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Posted: June 13, 2005
In a unique partnership, Keep Plano Beautiful (KPB) has teamed with Home
Depot and Native Texas Garden Designs to transform the bare front yards of
three new Plano Area Habitat for Humanity homes in the Douglass Community
into beautiful showcases of drought-resistant, low-water use native Texas
plants.
Dwarf Palmetto, Little Bluestem, Crinum Lily, Mealy Cup Sage and Mexican
Feather Grass were installed at the homes last month, based on custom garden
designs developed by Native Texas Garden Designs with landscaping materials
donated by Home Depot. KPB volunteers prepared landscape beds and installed
the drought-tolerant and maintenance-friendly plants, later returning to
provide residents’ education on the care of the plants.
The brainchild of KPB’s Education Coordinator, Ms. Casey Eckert-Luker, the
project began when she had the idea to help those who are not able to afford
professional landscapers but still want to have help periodically to have
nice looking yards.
“I heard about Habitat’s efforts in the Plano area and wondered how we could
help the new homeowners,” she said. “I not only wanted to see about
providing native plants, but also wanted to educate the new homeowners about
how easy it would be to maintain their new landscape design, in addition to
water conservation information. I contacted Habitat, then hooked up with the
Home Depot and Native Texas Garden Designs. Christy and David IIfrey,
owners of Garden Designs were volunteers for our recent Great American
Cleanup and had contacted me about other projects they might assist with.
Along with Home Depot, they immediately came aboard.”
In addition to future planned work with Habitat for Humanity, the KPB
partner team is pursuing developing a program to provide landscaping
assistance for the elderly and disabled.
“It is our hope that the new homeowners will experience the benefit of
enjoying a vibrant and healthy landscape that creates year-round interest,
conserves water, thrives with no or low-impact pest controls, is low
maintenance and celebrates natural beauty,” said Ms. Eckert-Luker. “By using
native plants, homeowners will save money and time without compromising the
integrity of their landscape.”
Persons interested in the use of low-maintenance native plants can get a
first hand look at their use and beauty at the City’s Environmental
Discovery Garden, 4020 W. Plano Parkway, where self-guided tours take
landscapers through native plantings, water conservation and composting
educational walks.
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