For many of us, gardens are places of sweet relief that relax worn eyes, stretch out cramped limbs, and unwind taut brains with their color and tranquility. But gardens need water, and water, as Santa Barbarans are well aware, is an increasingly expensive and scarce resource.
Fortunately, sweet relief doesn’t have to be costly to homeowners or the environment. The city of Santa Barbara has teamed up with the Santa Barbara Botanic Garden (SBBG) to teach the public how to make a garden that is both beautiful and water-wise. Just planted this past December, the Water Wise Home Garden is now in full and glorious bloom. I took a tour of the garden with Betsy Collins, SBBG’s director of horticulture, who pointed out some top plant picks for home gardeners to grow.
Dudleya brittonii, or Dudleya for short, is a favorite of both Collins and Executive Director Steve Windhager. The plant is elegantly beautiful and extremely easygoing. “You just put them in the ground and ignore them,” says Windhager.