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Concept
Xeriscaping
Summary
Xeriscaping is the process of landscaping, or gardening, that reduces or eliminates the need for irrigation. It is promoted in regions that do not have accessible, plentiful, or reliable supplies of fresh water and has gained acceptance in other regions as access to irrigation water has become limited, though it is not limited to such climates. Xeriscaping may be an alternative to various types of traditional gardening.
In some areas, terms such as water-conserving landscaping, drought-tolerant landscaping, and smart scaping are used instead. The use of plants whose natural requirements are appropriate to the local climate is emphasized, and care is taken to avoid losing water to evaporation and runoff. However, the specific plants used in xeriscaping vary based on climate as this strategy can be used in xeric, mesic, and hydric environments. Xeriscaping is different from natural landscaping, because the emphasis in xeriscaping is on selection of plants for water conservation, not necessarily selecting native plants.
Xeriscaping produces greenspaces that require low amounts of maintenance and irrigation, and promote biodiversity; however, due to societal norms and lack of landscape understanding, public perception of xeriscaping has frequently been negative, as some assume that these types of landscapes are ugly expanses of just cactus and gravel. However, studies have shown that education in water conservation practices and xeriscaping's benefits can greatly improve the public's perception of xeriscaping.
Denver Water coined the term xeriscape in 1981 by combining landscape with the Greek prefix xero-, from ξηρός (), meaning 'dry'. The term zero-scaping (or zeroscaping) is sometimes substituted for xeriscaping due to phonetic similarity. When used seriously, zero-scaping usually refers to a different type of low-water landscaping that uses very few plants or none at all. Because o is the most common connecting vowel in Greco-Roman vocabulary, xeriscaping is sometimes misspelled as xeroscaping.
Official source
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