How did this Sacramento family spend their summer? Inspiring others on local billboards
The Dal Ben family's front garden no longer has lawn, but does have many happy low-water plants. Courtesy Anthony Dal Ben
Ditching the lawn isn’t just for grown-ups; kids like water-wise gardening, too.
The Dal Ben family of East Sacramento all has green thumbs as parents and kids nurture their slice of nature.
“Our front yard has been a labor of love for many years,” says dad Anthony Dal Ben. “The whole family is involved.”
For their efforts, the Dal Ben family were honored by the Regional Water Authority as “Summer Strong Yard Winners” and featured on local billboards. Read more here: https://bewatersmart.info/summer-strong-yard-winners/
The transformation from traditional turf to flower-filled garden started simply:
“We had a lawn we didn’t use,” Dal Ben explains. “It was difficult to mow. At the State Fair, they had a low-water landscape design display. I always looked at that section. Everybody has a lawn. I thought it would be cool NOT to have a lawn.”
As with many people, home ownership prompted Dal Ben to think more about plants. “When I bought a house, I got interested in gardening,” he says. “We rebuilt our entire Craftsman house. We took everything down to the bones. We wanted to make the property look really nice, too.”
Dal Ben, his wife, Maria, and three children – son Bradlee, 11, and daughters Vianna, 9, and Camilla, 5 – became an active gardening family.
“We’re constantly doing something,” says Dal Ben, who also creates videos of their gardening adventures. “It’s been really fun.”
At their home, a funky strip of turf next to the street became a forest of 6-foot sunflowers every summer.
“Sunflowers reseed, so the park strip has been solid sunflowers,” he says. “We have an intense amount of bees; that’s really cool.”
In addition, the garden is studded with lavender, geraniums, two large crape myrtles, hollyhocks, poppies, naturalized bulbs and much more.
“It really looks so beautiful,” says Dal Ben, who works as a maintenance engineer for Sutter Health. “We get so many compliments from neighbors or people walking by. (The garden) gives our yard personality.”
The garden makeover evolved slowly; it’s three years and counting, says Dal Ben, who did all the heavy work himself. All plants were bought at discount, keeping his costs down.
Dal Ben also got big savings on a Rachio smart controller for his new drip irrigation, thanks to the City of Sacramento (his water provider) and the Regional Water Authority.
Taking care of the old lawn wasn’t fun for anyone, he notes. “I’m no longer mowing the lawn! That’s a big time saver. As for water, we’re now all on drip, so there are savings there, too. There’s still work but it’s not bad. We enjoy gardening.”
Dal Ben urges other families to find their inner gardeners and create a yard that reflects their style. “Make it unique, make it your own. Instead of just plain lawn, there are all sorts of cool plants to match your personality.”
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Food in My Back Yard (FIMBY) Series
FALL
Dec. 9: Soggy soil and what to do about it
Dec. 2: Plant artichokes now; enjoy for years to come
Nov. 25: It's late November, and your peach tree needs spraying
Nov. 18: What to do with all those fallen leaves?
Nov. 11: Prepare now for colder weather in the edible garden
Nov. 4: Plant a pea patch for you and your garden
Oct. 27: As citrus season begins, advice for backyard growers
Oct. 20: Change is in the autumn air
Oct. 13: We don't talk (enough) about beets
Oct. 6: Fava beans do double duty
Sept. 30: Seeds or transplants for cool-season veggies?
Sept. 23: How to prolong the fall tomato harvest
SUMMER
Sept. 16: Time to shut it down?
Sept. 9: How to get the most out of your pumpkin patch
Sept. 2: Summer-to-fall transition time for evaluation, planning
Aug. 26: To pick or not to pick those tomatoes?
Aug. 19: Put worms to work for you
Aug. 12: Grow food while saving water
Aug. 5: Enhance your food with edible flowers
July 29: Why won't my tomatoes turn red?
July 22: A squash plant has mosaic virus, and it's not pretty
July 15: Does this plant need water?
July 8: Tear out that sad plant or baby it? Midsummer decisions
July 1: How to grow summer salad greens
June 24: Weird stuff that's perfectly normal
SPRING
June 17: Help pollinators help your garden
June 10: Battling early-season tomato pests
June 3: Make your own compost
May 27: Where are the bees when you need them?
May 20: How to help tomatoes thrive on hot days
May 13: Your plants can tell you more than any calendar can
May 6: Maintain soil moisture with mulch for garden success
April 29: What's (already) wrong with my tomato plants?
April 22: Should you stock up on fertilizer? (Yes!)
April 15: Grow culinary herbs in containers
April 8: When to plant summer vegetables
April 1: Don't be fooled by these garden myths
March 25: Fertilizer tips: How to 'feed' your vegetables for healthy growth
WINTER
March 18: Time to give vegetable seedlings some more space
March 11: Ways to win the fight against weeds
March 4: Potatoes from the garden
Feb. 25: Plant a fruit tree now -- for later
Feb. 18: How to squeeze more food into less space
Feb. 11: When to plant? Consider staggering your transplants
Feb. 4: Starting in seed starting
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Garden checklist for week of Dec. 14
Rain is due midweek, but there should be some partly sunny breaks between rain clouds, especially Thursday. Make the most of those opportunities and show your garden some TLC.
* Brighten the holidays with winter bloomers such as poinsettias, amaryllis, calendulas, Iceland poppies, pansies and primroses.
* Keep poinsettias in a sunny, warm location. Water thoroughly. After the holidays, feed your plants monthly so they’ll bloom again next December.
* Rake and remove dead leaves and stems from dormant perennials.
* Rake and compost leaves from trees, but dispose of any diseased plant material. For example, if peach and nectarine trees showed signs of leaf curl this year, clean up under trees and dispose of those leaves instead of composting.
* Clear gutters and storm drains.
* Prune dead or broken branches from trees.
* Plant bulbs at two-week intervals to spread out your spring bloom. Some possible suggestions: daffodils, crocuses, hyacinths, tulips, anemones and scillas.
* Seed wildflowers and plant such spring bloomers as sweet pea, sweet alyssum and bachelor buttons.
* Set out cool-weather annuals such as pansies, violas and snapdragons.
* Lettuce, cabbage and broccoli also can be planted now.
* Plant garlic and onions.
* Give your azaleas, gardenias and camellias a boost with chelated iron.
* For larger blooms, pinch off some camellia buds.
* Prune non-flowering trees and shrubs while they’re dormant.
* Clean and sharpen garden tools before storing for the winter.
* Bare-root season begins. Plant bare-root berries, kiwifruit, grapes, artichokes, horseradish and rhubarb.
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