Since the summer heat is on blast and the monsoon rains have been paltry, it’s time to cut back on water use. Here’s how I’m doing it. First thing is cutting back on my own consumption. That means shorter showers, and I have a timer that makes them easy and fun. It’s a five-minute hourglass,…
This backyard scene shows good news — rain on July 22! — and bad news. See that brown trailing indigo behind the flower pot with the ceramic flower? That indigo might be viewed as the bearer of bad news. Let me explain. We’ve been in drought since August 2024 and guess who should have been…
There are few photographic topics I enjoy more than rain in the Tucson desert. Know what I’m really enjoying about this photo? The rain that’s been collected in my gauge! In this post, I’m offering tips on how to clean a rain gauge so you can keep enjoying scenes like this. I like to keep…
If you’re a rainwater harvester, there’s nothing like the sound of rain on the roof. Being the quantitative type, I’m not content to just listen to the rain. I want to measure it. That’s why I keep a rain gauge on duty in my backyard. It’s shown in the photo above. This is the gauge…
While Tucson’s summer monsoon season began with great promise, it fizzled out. Locally, we’re calling it the non-soon. At my place, the lack of rain has resulted in the need for more water for the garden. Where is it especially needed? Well, my two pomegranate trees have been suffering. I’ve been seeing — and removing…
When the monsoon rains come, it’s time for a photo op. For this episode, I’ll be heading out to my front yard, where the passive water harvesting earthworks are busy. This is a good time to get shots of falling rain and flowing water. The camera lens combination is my Nikon Z9 with the 24-70mm…
Welcome to Martha’s Tiny Tree Farm! This little farm consists of items that I paid absolutely nothing for. The three pots? Found them by the curb. A neighbor was offering them to whoever wanted them. The dirt and the mulch? From my yard. The tree seeds? Their pods fell off my two ironwood trees. I…
In this week’s episode, I discuss summer gardening in the desert. Short take: It’s not easy, but it’s doable. Since garden plants don’t fit anyone’s definition of drought tolerant, they’re going to need human help to keep going. In my garden, that help consists of three things: Here’s another summer gardening tip: Cut back on…
Here’s a drainage swale that’s just sitting there, looking for something to do. Typical for drainage swales when they’re not directing rainwater away from where it isn’t wanted to where it is. That’s the first of the three activities of water harvesting. So, how do I get this swale ready for the summer monsoon season?…
I may not look like a killer, but I am. Now, before you check the Most Wanted List to see if I’m on it, rest assured that I’m not talking about homicide. I’m talking about darn near killing my fruit forest! The culprit? Me! I also had a partner in crime that came in a…
Although it’s tempting to plant desert trees in the bottom of your water harvesting basins, don’t do it. Remember that all-day hike in the rain, the one where your feet stayed wet? That’s exactly how desert trees like ironwood, mesquite, and palo verde trees would feel. Instead, plant those desert trees and shrubs near your…
It’s important to choose the correct mulch for your rainwater harvesting basin. If your basin is going to experience rapid inflows and outflows, it’s best to use inorganic mulch consisting of heavy materials like gravel or crushed rock, rather than an organic mulch like wood chips. Heavy materials are more likely to stay put during…
Meet my studio audience. I caught this mourning dove couple strutting on the fence outside my studio. And birds are the theme of this post, specifically, my appearance on the Birdhugger Podcast. Host Catherine Greenleaf and I discussed how to handle drought with water harvesting, and we also noted one of its key benefits: Nourishing…
This is an episode about rocks. Specifically, it’s about lining the sides of steep-sided passive water harvesting basins with rocks. This will prevent erosion during heavy downpours. The secret? Don’t just place your rocks on the ground. Instead, build a trench for each one. Think of this trench as a nest for the rock to…
Digging a basin? Before you pick up a shovel, let’s pause for an important safety briefing. Please call 811 or use the Call811.com website to get your underground utilities located. You don’t want to discover these utilities by accident, especially gas lines. That could be an explosive experience. That ends our safety briefing. Returning you…
With this episode, I’m beginning a five-part series on passive water harvesting earthworks creation. Let’s start with creating drainage swales like the one shown above. It’s in my front yard, and it’s busy harvesting rainwater. At left, rainwater flows into the swale via the green downspout. As mentioned in this week’s podcast episode, I’m giving…
Starting with a bare lot? That’s what I did back in 2004. If I had to do it overagain, I would have followed a bit of water harvesting advice that I heardseveral years later: Plant the water first. What does this mean? It means that you refrain from planting anythinguntil after you’ve created your earthworks…
Welcome to the first in a recurring series of episodes on this podcast. This one features my swale fail. Here’s your backgrounder: I bought my house in the fall of 2004, and by the end of 2006, my DIY landscaped yard was looking pretty good. But there was one big problem. During Tucson’s summer monsoon…
For this episode, it’s time to visit the wilderness and see how Mother Nature does water harvesting. Take, for example, the drainage swale, which sits at the top of a passive water harvesting system. I liken swales to intermittently flowing rocky stream beds, and the above photo shows an example from southwestern New Mexico. Unless…
In this episode, I introduce three passive water harvesting principles: Passive Principle #1: Think like water. Remember that, regardless of the terrain, it always flows downhill. Do you like where it’s going? Or do you need to send it elsewhere? Passive Principle #2: Decide what you want your water to do. Since rain is falling…
In this episode, I introduce two ways to capture rainwater, passive (guiding water naturally through landscape design), and active (using systems like cisterns and greywater recycling). I also discuss how each method works, summarize the benefits of active and passive water harvesting, and offer real-life examples, from watering gardens with stored rainwater to giving the…