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Photograph by Vicki Thompson

Officials have a launched a landscape contest to replace five lawns, including this one at the Rosicrucian Egyptian Museum, with native plants that require less water.

Community gets chance to landscape Egyptian museum

By Mary Gottschalk

The two lush lawns flanking the front steps to the Rosicrucian Egyptian Museum on Park Avenue along with three lawns at the corner of Chapman Street and Randol Avenue are on their way out.

Exactly what will take their place is unknown, but it will incorporate native plants and it won't need watering, says Julie Scott, grand master of the English Grand Lodge of the Rosicrucian Order in the Americas.

In fact, the Rosicrucians are holding a landscape design contest for the two areas with a cash award of $2,500 for each one.

"We could have just done this ourselves, but we want to excite people in the community about this project," Scott says.

"Hopefully, they'll be inspired to do it in their own homes and in their own businesses."

Scott says she and her administration were shocked to learn how much water Rosicrucian Park uses on its "very water-hungry lawns."

Initially, she thought they might be reading the figures wrong, but they weren't.

"Conservatively, we'll be saving 200,000 gallons of water a month in the summer," Scott says. "We don't feel very good we're using this much now, but if you want to keep a lawn green that's what you have to do."

Scott sees the move as a continuation of her goal "to conserve resources and serve as a model for the community."

"It's time for everybody in our community to understand the results of our lawns because everything seems to indicate water is going to become a more scarce resource, not a more plentiful one," she says.

One person applauding the Rosicrucians' move is Alrie Middlebrook, co-author of the newly released Designing California Native Gardens and owner of Middlebrook Gardens, the Race Street business specializing in sustainable landscaping.

"It's something that is really, really important for people to think about, not only for water conservation but also for electricity conservation," Middlebrook says.

"The No. 1 use of electricity in the state is to pump water.

"With household water use, more than half goes to landscaping, and that's generally because of the lawn. A 16-by-25-foot lawn will use 10,000 gallons of water a month in the summer."

Middlebrook, who also maintains the www.losethelawn.com website, says water use is "a part of our culture that really needs to change if we want to change global warming.

"The No. 1 burning of fossil fuels in our state comes from coal and natural gas to power the power plants. If somebody wants to address global warming on the home front, start with the lawn. Tear out the lawn and put plants there that don't take all this water."

Scott says the contest rules have been left as open as possible to allow designers free rein.

Also, she points out there is no prohibition against submitting designs for each area.

In fact, the rules are few. Existing shrubs and trees must be retained; the plants and landscape should be in harmony with the Egyptian architecture of the park; plants should attract wildlife, particularly songbirds and pollinators; and the new landscape should require little or no watering after two or three years.

Garden designers are offered a choice of a sunny location with the lawn in front of the museum, as well as a shady location with the lawn around the learning center.

Scott doesn't know how many entries have been submitted thus far.

As a judge, she's asked not to be updated, and she directs inquirers and those who want to tour the site to Heather Rodrigues at 408.947.3606.

However, Scott says since the contest was announced in May, "We've received a number of e-mails congratulating us for taking this step, mostly from people in the community we don't know and who don't know us, but who are thanking us for doing this for the good of us all."

Scott says she expects designs from home gardeners and backyard native plant enthusiasts as well as professional landscape designers and architects.

Submission deadline is Sept. 15, and entries must include drawings with recommended plants and other landscape features, an irrigation plan, a maintenance plan, budget and resources needed.

Joining Scott as judges are members of the board of directors, the facilities manager, someone who is familiar with native plants, an architect and Peter Bindon, a grand master from Australia and designer of the Peace Garden in the center of the park.

The winning designs will be announced in October, with the implementation and planting taking place in December.

For full details on the contest, visit www.rosicrucian.org/nativeplantscontest/.