With Lake Corpus Christi's level now below 10%, homeowners are turning to creative methods to keep their yards alive.
Shannon Hughes, a manager at Herbert Irrigation, says some of the water-saving techniques people are trying might be surprising.
"People clean out their fish tanks every week. They recycle that water. It has great fertilizer in it. They use it on their potted plants, their beds. When they're heating up their shower, they put a bucket, recycle that water. I've even had people, their AC drains, put a bucket under there," Hughes said.
For bigger yards, Hughes says homeowners might consider switching to artificial turf. For smaller lawns, Hughes offered a simpler solution.
"If you have smaller areas and you can recycle water, that's the best thing you can do," Hughes said.
Whether it's turf or smart watering, both options can save water long-term. I got to try one out for myself at Herbert Irrigation — and the system demonstrated there uses well water for the home's foundation.
A local nursery also has options for homeowners looking to adapt their landscaping. Wyatt Page, an employee at Gills Nursery, spoke about drought-tolerant choices.
"We've got a lot of different drought tolerant options for your landscape. So that can be anything from plants that you plant in your flower beds as well as lawn alternatives, which we're really trying to get people to do. Since we do have the water restrictions were under and you can't water your lawn," Page said.
With rain in the forecast, Page also discussed how water barrels — a topic I've covered before — can help residents capture and store rainwater.
"With one inch of rain that will usually fill it up 3 quarters of the way and just a little more will go all the way," Page said.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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