When placed in the soil next to plants, it releases water over two months. The garden shows off a beautiful shredded-wood mulch made from the yard wastes local residents leave at curbs. The mulch is free to the locals. And it's used throughout the garden. Another recycled product in the garden is a plastic milk jug buried up to its cap next to plants, with pin holes punched in its bottom.
Water placed in the jug gradually seeps into the soil and waters the roots.
This way of feeding the root zone is practical and effective in both the landscape and garden. Newspapers are recycled in the landscape by placing them two sheets thick under mulch when planting seasonal color beds. The newspaper helps hold moisture in the soil and extends time between watering. Also a research area The Resourceful Landscape was designed not only as a demonstration and teaching garden but also as a site for valuable research. Rainfall and irrigation are carefully monitored.