Double Your Iris.  If you have large clumps of iris that should be divided, dig them up and divide the rhizomes now.  But wait until September to replant them.  Keep them in brown paper bags in a dry place until replanting.  Other perennials should be divided when cooler weather comes.  

Who Needs Grass?  Water restrictions giving you second thoughts about a green grassy lawn?  We recently saw a small front yard that had been entirely planted with gold lantana.  It was brilliant!

Another idea for lawn replacement is ornamental grass, such as Deer grass (Muhlenbergia rigens) or clumping blue fescue (Festuca ovina glauca).  Both need very little water and neither need to be mowed.  The Deer grass should be trimmed back in January.  One variety of Deer grass is called ‘Regal Mist’ and it has lovely, airy purple blooms in the Fall.  Combine “Regal Mist’ with lantana for a spectacular, water-wise front yard.

It will make you forget you ever loved green lawns!

We now have several pages of suggestions for lawn replacement.

Fast and Beautiful.  Consider planting the Chinese elm (Ulmus parvifolia) this Fall, the best time of year to plant all trees and shrubs, except for palms.   Under the right conditions the Chinese elm can reach 30 feet in 3 years and once established it needs infrequent, deep watering.   If you plant it in a lawn where it will receive water regularly, it will eventually reach a height of 50 to 60 feet.  As the Chinese elm grows its branches arch into a weeping shape.