Being water-wise saves money, resources | Southern California

Though heavy rains have moistened Southern California's dry soil, it hasn't lessened the state's dehydrated condition or provided any long-term answers to its water woes.

"We're still in a drought," said Debby Figoni, conservation specialist/education coordinator for the Chino Basin Water Conservation District (CBWCD).

"Cutting back on water usage will conserve our resources, be better for the environment and benefit everyone. So many people want to conserve - they just don't know how," she said.

The CBWCD is taking people from just wanting to conserve water to conserving water - by showing them how.

Based in Montclair, the CBWCD is a public agency serving Chino, Montclair and parts of Chino Hills, Upland, Ontario and Rancho Cucamonga.

Its mission is to protect the Chino Groundwater Basin, educate individuals and organizations in water conservation and promote the efficient use of water resources.

In helping to meet its goal, the CBWCD has started free, user-friendly workshops that offer the public useful tips on being water wise. The workshops are open to anyone.

"Water Wise Gardening (The Basics) is like Water Wise Landscaping 101," Figoni said. "It sets a foundation and is a gateway to other workshops."

Those who attend Water Wise Gardening (The Basics) will leave with the knowledge and ability to go home and make changes that will have a positive impact on their water consumption.

The workshops

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are on site in the district's conference room and includes an informative tour of its beautifully maintained garden that's filled with many examples of drought-tolerant plants, ground cover and foliage.

Other workshops include:

• Water Wise Gardening: Irrigation, Soil and Fertilizers

• Water Wise Gardening: Plants and Planting

• Water Wise Gardening: Preparation and Design

• Water Wise Gardening: Maintenance, Pruning and Integrated Pest Management

• Backyard Composting.

Informative handouts will be provided with each workshop and there is always plenty of printed material available at the CBWCD office on water-saving tips, water- wise nurseries and a plant list.

"About 60 percent of the water the typical household uses comes from outside irrigation," Figoni said. "We can teach people how to remove their water-guzzling lawns and replace them with water wise wonderlands."

Attending the workshops will teach participants how to implement drought-tolerant landscaping that can reduce water consumption up to 40 percent.

Water wise gardening is also economical, Figoni said. "If you put in the right plants, the need and cost for pesticides and fertilizer goes way down," she said. "Everything will grow more naturally in the right environment."

Even if people want to keep their turf lawns, workshops can show them how to reduce their water consumption. "Just switching the sprinkler head makes a huge difference," she said.

Many people are hesitant to trade in their lush green because they associate "drought-tolerant" with succulents and cactus, but there are many types of ground cover, flowering plants and fragrant shrubs that make any landscape lively and interesting.

"Landscaping can be overwhelming. I try and make it easy to understand and clear," said Water Wise workshop instructor Juan Zamora. "I want to show how to use water wisely and have a lot of fun."

Zamora's teaching style includes lots of show-and-tell paired with hands-on learning. When the workshop's over, participants can go home and apply the methods.

"Our goal is to get the message out and have those people in the workshops tell other people," he said. "It's not hard to be water wise, it just takes a little bit of education."