A New Round of RightScape Workshops on Tap
You say you missed the last RightScape workshop? Never fear, more have been scheduled!
These informative workshops will help you learn about the right plants, the right equipment and the right schedule to get you on the road to saving water and having a beautiful landscape.
The next Soil, Water and Plant Relationships workshop is scheduled for this Wednesday, May 10, 6-8:30 p.m. at the Irvine Ranch Water District headquarters office, 15600 Sand Canyon Avenue. Learn about building up your soil, composting, plant development, and proper watering.
Saturday, May 13, award-winning California native landscape designer Rob Moore will be featured at IRWD from 10 a.m.-1 p.m. Learn how to landscape using California native plants. Learn about native plant communities, proper planting techniques, pruning, watering and overall care.
The Thursday, June 15 Turf Be Gone workshop will be held at IRWD, 6-8:30 p.m.
The OC Master Gardeners Composting Workshops and the Garden Design: From Concept to Finish will be held at the South Coast Research and Extension Center, 7601 Irvine Boulevard, Irvine.
OC Master Gardeners Composting Workshops – Wednesday May 24 or Wednesday, June 21, 3-5 p.m. Learn about traditional composting and vermicomposting (using worms). Event will be held outside in the composting demonstration area. Enter drawings for a chance to win a kitchen counter composter, compost turner, and a large outdoor composting bin.
Three-part garden design series is free and open to the public. Each class builds in the preceding one to provide a deeper understanding of garden design. The workshop series is limited to 24 participants per class. Participants must attend all three workshops:
- Garden Design Basics, Saturday, June 3, 9-11 a.m.
- Efficient Irrigation, Saturday, June 10, 9-11 a.m.
- Putting it all Together, Saturday, June 24, 9-11 a.m.
Signups are required for all workshops at rightscapenow.com/events.
Turnkey Turf Removal Program Makes it Easy
Thinking of removing your water-thirsty grass and replacing it with water-friendly plants? Look no further than the IRWD Turnkey Turf Removal Program, which simplifies the process.
Residential customers can relax and leave it to IRWD’s drought-tolerant landscape expert, WaterWise Consulting, Inc. (WWC), which manages the project from start to finish.
The first step toward a water-wise yard is a meeting with WWC’s landscape design consultant to discuss vision and goals for the project. Once the design is finalized, a project team will remove existing grass, install new drought-friendly plants and convert the irrigation system to drip irrigation.
Eligible residential customers can receive a rebate up to $2,000 per site for turf removed. Sites must have a minimum of 500 square feet of grass removed to qualify for the Turnkey Turf program. If your site has less than this, check out the Do-It-Yourself program at rightscapenow.com/turf-removal/diy-turf-removal.
Program participants are responsible for obtaining any required design approvals from their homeowners association. Program details on available on our website.
Not Too Soon to Plan for Summer Camp
Spring Break has ended, now it’s time to begin planning for summer camp. The Irvine Ranch Water District San Joaquin Marsh provides the ideal setting for fun and learning. Opportunities abound for youngsters age seven to 12.
Sea and Sage Audubon Society will once again host its popular nature camps as it has done for more than 20 years and Discovery Science Center returns with Summer Smiles and Project Discovery camps.
All of these camps fill up quickly, so sign up now!
Sea and Sage’s Fledgling Camp is for 7-8-year-olds and scheduled for June 26-30, 9 a.m.-3 p.m. Campers will enjoy bird walks, journaling, songs, art projects and games.
Marsh Bird Camp is geared toward those nine-12 years old and is scheduled June 19-23, 9 a.m.-3:30 p.m. Participants will explore all aspects of marsh bird life, take daily nature walks and have a visit from the Birds of Prey Center.
Coastal Camp is for ages 11 and up and requires Marsh Camp experience. Camp is scheduled July 10-14, 9 a.m. – 3:30 p.m. The camp covers all aspects of coastal shorebirds and their habitats, with two off-site days on Tuesday and Thursday at Bolsa Chica Ecological Reserve and Crystal Cove State Beach. The week includes bird walks, journaling, crafts and other related activities.
Advanced Bird Camp is for campers 11 years and older and requires Marsh Camp experience. Camp takes place July 24-28, 9 a.m.-3:30 p.m. Campers learn about birds of Southeast Arizona. They will also paint a wood bird model seen in that area. Other activities include nature walks, keeping a daily nature journal, sketching and more.
Visit the Sea and Sage website for information.
Discovery camps begin with Project Discovery the week of July 3. Other weeks include July 10-14, July 24-28, August 7-11, and August 14-18. Duration of camp is 9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Campers will investigate chemical reactions, design, construct, test, and compete with a series of hand-made devices like roller coasters and catapults. Project Discovery is for children seven-10 years old.
Summer Smiles is for the five-seven-year-old set, with dates of July 17-21 and July 31-August 4, 9 a.m.-12:30 p.m. During this camp, youngsters will investigate the world of marshland plants and animals, while also focusing on a series of children’s storybooks. Hands-on activities include concocting gooey slime, creating a cloud in a bottle, and designing a bug.
Visit Discovery Science Center’s website for more information.
Posters Chosen for Annual Contest
Five posters created by students who attend school in the Irvine Ranch Water District service area were selected for judging in the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California’s “Water is Life” poster contest.
IRWD judges selected the posters from among many received from schools in the Irvine Unified, Tustin and Saddleback Unified school districts.
The five finalists will be sent to Metropolitan, where they will compete with posters submitted by water agencies all over Southern California. IRWD has had at least one winner every year for more than 20 years of participation
Once Metropolitan makes its selection, students will be notified in the fall if their posters will be published in the 2018 Water is Life calendar.
The five finalists for 2017 are:
- Jocelyn Hu, fifth grade, Vista Verde School
- Lindsay Lee, fifth grade, Oak Creek Elementary School
- Runkini Das, Portola Spring Elementary School
- Allison Kim, Beacon Park Elementary School
- Sean Kim, fifth grade, Beacon Park Elementary School
Each student received a certificate and bag of IRWD goodies.
The posters which were not selected as the five finalists will have another chance – they have been sent to the Municipal Water District of Orange County for judging in the 2017 poster and slogan contest.
Twenty-One Years of Water Festival Fun and Learning
Over two days in March, more than 7,500 third through fifth grade students, accompanied by 700 teachers and chaperones, converged on Aldrich Park at UC Irvine to learn about all aspects of water in a fun and exciting atmosphere. The annual Children’s Water Education Festival is the culmination many months of bringing together water agencies, cities and schools from all over Orange County.
The Festival is hosted by the Orange County Water District to educate students about local water issues and helps them understand how they can protect water supplies and the environment.
Students learned about the local groundwater basin, the aquifers, what they can do to prevent water pollution and conserve water, even after drought conditions have been eased.
A total of 881 students from the IRWD service area attended the two-day event held March 29-30. This was the fifth year the event was held at Aldrich Park and organizers agree this venue provides a back-to-nature feeling. This is also an opportunity for the students to visit a university campus.
IRWD has participated in the event since its inception 21 years ago. More than 400 students were able to “Get the Groundwater Picture” at the IRWD activity.
The festival has hosted more than 115,000 students countywide over its 21 years of existence.
For more information on IRWD educational programs, please visit our website.
