Yard awards in Monticello

You will find the home of Keith and Dee Cauley at the end of Monticello’s Meadowlark Lane, the home of the Xeriscape Award this month.
Dee has a vast knowledge in the field of horticulture, attained from years of experience working in landscaping, nurseries and florists. Cauley’s yard, although xeriscaped, does not lack in floral color as many people understand xeriscape to be.
Dee states that you can get GREAT color in your yard with water tolerant plants such as soaptree yucca, wild lavender, mother of thyme and salvia.
She has spent eight years in Monticello experimenting with what plants will thrive best in our harsh area, and just one look at her striking yard will tell you she has figured it out!
Cauley pleads with residents of the city to realize the importance of using xeriscape plants, to educate themselves in drought friendly vegetation and learn to implement them in their home landscape designs.
Next time you shop at the local grocery store, take a moment to look southwest and down a house to the Paul and Carolee Curtis home. They are the recipients of the Beautiful Yard Award.
Carolee has an immense familiarity in the department of flowers gleaned from years of experience in her own yard, as well as designing and implementing the flower beds every year at the LDS Temple.
Curtis tells us that years ago she started taking note of when flowers bloomed at different times of the year. She has planted and arranged her flowers accordingly so she would have constant color in her yard during the growing season.
Although most of Curtis’ flowers are deer resistant, she still sprays her flowers periodically with liquid fence to ensure deer don’t munch on her hard work.
Curtis faithfully treats her soil with organic compost and continues to water her flowers and yard with the good old hose and sprinkler head technique.
She states she prefers to water manually so as to ensure no water goes to waste and that it is placed exactly where and for how long she prefers.
She also uses a tensiometer (water meter) to double check moisture content of the soil to decide if watering is truly necessary.
The season for the yard awards has come to a close, and the Monticello Parks and Beautification Committee would like to recognize and thank the citizens of Monticello for their efforts – no matter how big or small – in any improvements or water wise alterations.
Your efforts have not gone unnoticed!