Archive for “Arizona Articles” Category

News & Events

Rediscover the New “Landscape Plants for the Arizona Desert” for Fall Planting Preparations

September 3, 2024

“Now is an ideal time to start planning for the fall planting season and looking at options for transforming your yard.” Our most popular publication, Landscape Plants for the Arizona Desert, has been relaunched. A refreshed and updated version is now available to help residents add some extra flower power by incorporating desert-appropriate, drought-tolerant plants into their yards to create …

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Help Track Rainfall with Rainlog.org and Make a Difference!

July 12, 2024

Rain Can Be Hit or Miss – Especially During Summer Monsoons A little red-headed girl once sang “The sun will come out tomorrow. Bet your bottom dollar that tomorrow, there’ll be sun…” Since many areas in Arizona receive over 300 sunny days a year, the state certainly lives up to the sunshine in the song. But what about rainfall? Have …

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School’s Out and Water’s In: 5 Ways to Save Water Over Summer Break

June 23, 2024

Hey there! It’s Wayne Drop, your favorite water-saving pal from Water – Use It Wisely. As school ends and summer begins, it’s time to unleash your water-saving powers at home! I’ve got five splash-tastic ways to conserve water during your epic summer break. After all, it’s a break from school, not from saving water.   1. Turn Off the Faucet …

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Keep the Splash In Your Pool: Is Your Pool Leaking?

April 24, 2024

The start of summer is here, the temperatures are heating up, and that means it’s swim season. It’s time to get your pool in tip top shape, which includes determining if your pool is leaking. In our dry, Arizona desert climate, the typical swimming pool can evaporate its equivalent water volume in one year — up to 25,000 gallons. Along …

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fix pool leaks

Superstition Springs Transit Center Planting Event Restores Desert Landscaping

November 30, 2023

Beautiful trees and shrubs, including milkweed and other pollinator-friendly varieties, now grace the walkways and parking areas of the Superstition Springs Transit Center. This transformative project is the result of collaborative efforts between Mesa and its partners: Meta, Mesa High School, and the Arizona Sustainability Alliance. Additional support for the initiative came from Valley Metro and the Superstition Springs Center …

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Landscape Professionals Get Special Tree Care Training

May 9, 2023

With many Arizona cities focusing on tree planting initiatives to help mitigate the impacts of climate change, the University of Arizona Cooperative Extension Smartscape program recently developed an advanced course focusing on urban forest management. Industry professionals and Cooperative Extension staff worked on a comprehensive curriculum. The first course took place with Pima County Cooperative Extension (Tucson area) in February, …

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Celebrate AZ Water: A Tale of Two Watersheds

February 23, 2023

Did you know that Arizona residents and businesses receive the majority of their water from surface supplies like rivers? While this winter’s snowfall has benefited watersheds positively, the result of Arizona’s winter snowpack affects each watershed system differently. This blog contains great information from SRP and CAP on the current snowpack conditions, and its potential impact on our state’s water …

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Trees Play a Vital Role in our Communities

January 27, 2023

There are many ways to enhance any landscape, but one of the most beneficial ways is with trees, especially desert-adapted ones that can thrive in our arid climate. While planting the correct type of tree will make an immediate visual impact because of its beauty, color, and texture, trees also bring many benefits when planted and cared for properly. Low-water-use …

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Our Top Desert Gardening Books

December 9, 2022

Why we need books by local experts! One thing is certain when it comes to gardening books and magazines . . . gardening in the deserts of the Southwest is far different than in all other regions of the country. For that reason, most books, national magazines, and even those AP stories (that the local newspaper will occasionally publish) just …

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Gardening Books

Simple Ways to Become More Water-Wise

October 17, 2022

Conservation actions are more vital than ever as pressures on our water supplies increase. While reducing your water use won’t solve the Colorado River shortage, conservation enables your city to maximize and stretch all of its water supplies – this is crucial when dealing with the consequences of a historic drought and shortages. As we all prepare to have less …

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Tip Widget Turns Your Website into a Water Saver!

May 26, 2022

Our Tip Widget is easy, and free! Water – Use It Wisely has developed a Conservation Tip Widget! This handy piece of code will turn your website into an everyday water saver. We’ve created ten rotating water-saving tips with fun designs and graphics. Each has a helpful reminder on how to save water in and around your home and will …

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Efficient and Effective Outdoor Watering is a Key Component of Conservation in the Desert

May 20, 2022

Here in the Valley, most of our water use occurs outdoors and not inside the home. With such a significant amount of our water being used outside, it highlights the importance of being efficient with our outdoor water use, especially during a historic drought, changing climate, and Colorado River shortages. As our temperatures rise, so does outdoor water use in …

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Photo of a drip emitter