Yorston_3330_Final Paper

Running Head: WATER CONSERVATION THROUGH LANDSCAPE AND CROPS 1
Communicating Water Conservation through Landscape and Crops
Martha Yorston
INTS 3300-D01
Dr. Gail Bentley
Texas Tech University

WATER CONSERVATION THROUGH LANDSCAPE AND CROP 2
Abstract
Due to the increasing growth in population of the United States there is an ever
growing use of fresh water. The emphasis of this paper is to use horticulture and
communication to inform the public of the fresh water crisis and how to conserve the
water that is remaining. The articles have different opinions on what constitutes water
conservation and the best ways to efficiently irrigate crops and landscapes using the least
amount of water. They also suggest testing theories such as hydroponics to grow
vegetables. There are two hypotheses in the paper; the first one is that using drip irrigation
will reduce the water consumption of landscapes. The second hypothesis is that growing
vegetables hydroponically will also reduce the amount of water needed in turn conserving
water as well as having higher yields and feeding more of the population.

Introduction
What will it take for the United States to understand that there is a fresh water
crisis in the making throughout the country? As Americans we have always had every
privilege imaginable and that includes plenty of water to do whatever we pleased. As our
nation’s population continues to increase we are quickly running out of fresh water with
our rivers and lakes beginning to dry up. Communication and Horticulture are two
immediate ways that we can start to address issues related to conservation of fresh water
and the realization of how crucial it is to sustain life and in addition will help save our
most treasured resource. Using drip irrigation and hydroponics are some of the ways that
Horticulture plays a role in preserving our fresh water. Communication is an integral part
in what we do every day. We have so many avenues that we can use now that we should
easily be able to spread the word to our whole population. One Facebook post and one
tweeter feed and the whole world will understand what a crisis it really is. How do you
communicate the most eco-friendly means of irrigation amongst the landscaping/farming
community?
STEP 1: State the Focus of Your Paper
The overall question of the fresh water crisis is a broad statement that will require
several disciplines to answer. The disciplines that this paper will use are communications
and horticulture to connect the most eco-friendly means of irrigation amongst the
landscaping/farming community? In order to provide the population with sufficient
information about the fresh water shortage several forms of communication will be needed

(webpages, blogs, Facebook). Measuring the amount of water used to irrigate your lawns,
landscapes and gardens will provide data to use in searching for more efficient way to
reduce water usage. This paper will use communications and horticulture to bond the most
eco-friendly means of water conservation between the landscaping and crops in the urban
community.
STEP 2: Justify Using an Interdisciplinary Approach
This paper is using an interdisciplinary approach to the fresh water crisis. The textbook
gives four reasons for doing an interdisciplinary research project. They are (1) the inherent
complexity of nature and society (2) the desire to explore problems and questions that are not
confined to a single discipline (3) the need to solve social problems and (4) the need to produce
revolutionary insight and generative technologies (Repko, 2012). The two disciplines that apply
to the view of our topic that will be used in this paper are the desire to explore problems and
questions that are not confined to a single discipline and the need to solve social problems.
Because the topic is so broad it is impossible to try and solve it with just one discipline and the
fresh water crisis is a social problem that needs to be addressed so we do not run out of a
necessary element to sustain life.
STEP 3: Identify Relevant Disciplines
The disciplines that have potential to be used in this paper are horticulture, engineering,
communication, economics, and social science. Horticulture is significant because we need food
to sustain us and for aesthetic purposes. Engineering is relevant to the technology of the
irrigation systems that are used to reduce water wastage. Communications is the most important
aspect due to the fact that we will not be able to accomplish anything if we can’t get the message

out that there is a fresh water crisis to start with. Economics is a vital part for urban financial
stability. Social Science is a necessary discipline for the health of the population and for sanitary
purposes. For this paper communication and horticulture will be the two disciplines that are used
to convey the seriousness of this issue and how we can more efficiently use water in our
landscapes and crops.
STEP 4: Conduct a Literature Search
Communication and Horticulture are two immediate ways that we can start to address
issues related to conservation of fresh water and the realization of how crucial it is to sustain life
and in addition will help save our most treasured resource. In order to provide the population
with sufficient information about the fresh water shortage we will need to use several forms of
communication. Webpages, blogs and Facebook are three good ways to put qualitative research
facts out to the public on how to reuse and recycle our fresh water. The authors of the article
“Tapped Out: How can cities secure their water future” discussed the fact that urban and rural
communities need to work together to help conserve water. Since both of these facets depend on
each other to survive we need to communicate to the cities and to the farmers the benefits of
working together (Richter, et al., 2013). For any water conservation program to work we have to
communicate a plan that people will understand and they will see the advantage for themselves.
Horticulture is a very important part of preserving our fresh water supply. There are
numerous ways that we can use horticulture to conserve our water; some of which include
mulching your yards, use drip irrigation because it is the most efficient, using artificial turf for
fields rather than grass and design your landscaping to use very few plants. I would use a
quantitative approach with Horticulture because you can measure and record numerically how to

conserve water by the amount used to water your lawns, landscapes and gardens. Testing
theories such as hydroponics to grow vegetables or using drip irrigation to water your landscape
will give you the numeric data you need to prove that you can conserve fresh water. As stated in
the article “Urban Water Management Design For vertical And Horizontal Landscape” Green
roofs and Green facades are two significant and critical resolutions for increasing biodiversity
which can improve the urban environment (Kohi, 2013).
STEP 5: Develop Adequacy in Each Relevant Discipline
Communication is a vital source that we have to tap to get information out to the global
marketplace that there is a real threat of a freshwater crisis; it’s not just in other countries it is
also in the United States. This research gave great information on how as an urban community
and rural areas can work together for the greater cause. Because we all depend on farm crops to
survive we need to work together with the farmers to help with irrigation conservation to relieve
some of the water sources they need. Not only do we need to conserve water with our crops but
cities could also look at their water usage irrigating landscapes and golf courses as San Antonio
did and cut their cost about 50%.
The article by Gibson stated not only how to reduce the amount of water we use to
irrigate our plants but it also uses solar power to make it even more efficient. Hydroponics is an
up and coming source of growing our own fruits and vegetable especially if we live in an urban
city like New York. Bright Farms is hoping to expand globally with their hydroponic
greenhouse where there are congested urban populations. It is also a great way to have seasonal
produce all year long. In Kohi’s article “Urban Water Management Design for Vertical And

Horizontal Landscape “ states that not only are we reducing the water usage the environmental
effects such as breathing easier , stress reduction and lower blood pressure are very beneficial as
well (Kohi, 2013).
STEP 6: Analyze the Problem and Evaluate Each Insight or Theory
Urban developments as well as residential homes more than likely over water their
landscapes. Through this research several ideas are noted that will help the cities get there
landscape over watering under control.
Tapped Out: how can cities secure their water future?
“This article reviewed the water development histories of four major cities: Adelaide,
Phoenix, San Antonio and San Diego. A similar pattern of water development in these cities, was
identified which begins with the exhaustion of local surface and groundwater supplies, continues
with importation of water from other basins, and then turns to recycling of wastewater or storm
water, or desalination of either seawater or brackish groundwater” (Richter, et al., 2013).
The theory is that urban and rural communities (farmers) can work together to help
conserve water in agriculture for urban use. The methods used is using four cities in water scarce
regions and following their history to help distinguish a way that we can conserve water. Those
cities are Adelaide Australia, Phoenix, San Antonio and San Diego. They looked at the local
sources of water, importation, water conservation, water re-cycling, desalination and cost of
future supply options.
The major key concept in this paper is with the use of communication in getting the cities
and rural famers to join together to help each other. They are interconnected in the fact that
farmers need water to grow crops that feed the city population.

Bright Bounty
The theory of this article is to grow vegetable hydroponically to supply produce to urban
communities. “A company in Midtown Manhattan brings fresh, locally grown produce to
underserved urban areas by engineering green gardening on a commercial scale (Gibson, 2013).
The method used for this project is the rooftop of a School for Children in New York
where you will find a greenhouse supplying vegetables for 700 students. The plants start in trays
and within two weeks are transferred to tubes with a thin layer of water in them. The plants are
watered with rainwater caught on the roof and go into a 350 gallon tank, the water is filtered to
get rid of all the dirt and debris before it is used for the plants.
The key concept for this article according to Caplow founder of Bright Farms is “to
promote the use of hydroponic greenhouses for sustainable urban agriculture” (Gibson, 2013).
They would like to focus on commercial outlet like grocery stores that can handle the amount of
produce that is grown.
Urban Water Management Design for Vertical and Horizontal Landscape
The key concept of this article is to evaluate the water consumption for urban landscape
and reduce their water waste mainly because of the high population growth. Because of limited
space in urban areas they have designed green spaces that are being used to support biodiversity,
mental and physical health. Water is a vital part of the green space so a horizontal irrigation
system is being used to conserve water.

The method of horizontal irrigation system for a green roof or façade is to use a wall for
support and the plants are rooted in layers. There are three parts to the main line, one goes to the
roof, and the other two will feed the green facades. The three lines feed into the filtration tank.
Liquid fertilizer is injected once a week for nutrients. See appendix 1
The multiple personalities of water conservation
According to this article there are misconceptions about water conservation as it is related
to agriculture and irrigating crops. One major misconception is that the public has been
convinced that if we use efficient irrigation we will conserve water. Almost 75% of the fresh
water is used for agriculture irrigation. This article claims that drip irrigation is a deficient
irrigation practice. Although drip irrigation is an efficient way to irrigate because it is getting
water to the root zone, it is conserving water at a farm level with 90 percent efficiency but it is
not conserving water for future use because drip irrigation is more consumptive.
The theory behind this article is that ideally sound water management is to reduce consumptive
use of water and increase in-stream flows. This theory is highly unlikely because it requires
accountability from the individual irrigation districts and state authorities.
The phenomena that will influence this study is that water scarcity is a global issues and
more than 90% of it is due to agriculture irrigation not just in the United States but across the
world. In the Bright Bounty article using rainwater harvesting as a method of irrigation will have
a big impact on saving fresh water.

STEP 7: Identify Conflict Between Insights and Their Sources
There is certainly a vocabulary issue about the definition of what water conservation truly
means. In Samani and Skaggs article they define water sound water management. Also in the
article by Kohi water conservation is noted to be water management. In the tapped out article the
authors use “water scarcity” as a meaning for water conservation.
The specific conflict is drip irrigation is a good way to individually reduce water
consumption, but overall does not conserve water for future use. In the article by Kohi drip
irrigation works with lower water pressure which in turn uses less energy from having to switch
a pump on and off. According to Samani and Skaggs drip irrigation is a deficient irrigation
process that disrupts the existing hydrologic balance.
The basic assumptions in my disciplines and through all my research articles is that the
main reason for the fresh water crisis is the urban population has increased abundantly over the
past several years and will continue to rise, therefore they are not in conflict. There is also not
conflict within the communication discipline because it is an integral part of the whole research
topic.
STEP 8: Create Common Ground
The most common ground in the research was that so much of the farmland is being
occupied by urban areas now the cities are using green spaces to grow fresh fruits and vegetables
as well as using roof top landscaped designs to incorporate horizontal watering. As the
population in the United Sates urban area continues to rise we will continual need to try and find
ways to alleviate the water shortage.

Although there is a conflict on what water conservation means, the fact is that we still
need to conserve water whether it is called “water management” or “water scarcity”. Using the
technique of redefinition we can find the common thread is that we need to work together to
conserve water. The common thread in the research articles is to communicate effectively the
different ways in which you can conserve water through the use of drip irrigation, and
hydroponics.
STEP 9: Construct a More Comprehensive Understanding
The process of integrating insights will use communications and horticulture to bond the
most eco-friendly means of water conservation between the landscaping and crops in the urban
community. Each of the research articles gave some solutions to the water conservation in
landscape and crops. Although they did not specifically tell you how to communicate this to the
population, that is a given to make any progress. Being able to communicate effectively is the
glue to this research. As you see in the “tapped out” article communication between the farmers
and the community noted several concepts (1) we need more resourceful irrigation (2) cities can
reward farmers for investments in water savings (3) when agricultural conservation takes place
cities will have more water to use, and (4) it can be cost-effective for safeguarding other water
sources. The new insight that comes from this research is that hydroponics can be used as a
landscape in the green facades to make your business more aesthetically pleasing or in growing
your own vegetables. In both situations you are helping to conserve water and being a good
steward of our resources. This is also a good way to get the information to the public, as they see
people doing some of these things the idea will spread. It is not a major fix for the problem, but
it’s a start.

STEP 10: Communicating the Results
In the concluding summary of this paper the results are that we have several ways that we can
conserve water their landscape and crops. The use of drip irrigation and hydroponics are both
very easy fixes to conserving water. Hydroponics can be a unique way for the urbanite to grow
their own food and therefore they are conserving water and cutting their food bill. Hydroponics
is a fascinating topic and could be a real asset in water conservation and food production. This is
something that should be practices in a real world setting. As a consumer being able to produce
your own vegetables is very appealing. Although there is some discussion as to whether drip
irrigation is in fact a water conserving facet deems further study to produce results that conclude
to the contrary.
Getting the farmers and the community to work as one unit might be a bit more difficult.
Most people tend to shy away from things that do not have some monetary attachment for them.
Being able to communicate to these people in a way they understand this is national problem not
just a problem for a few people.
The greatest strength is in the research itself, although pulling things out of the articles is
sometime difficult. Using poster paper and tacking it to the wall to write notes on as you do your
research is would very helpful.

References
Gibson,T. (2013). Bright Bounty. MechanicalEngineering,38-43.
Kohi,S.(2013). Urban Water MangementDesignforVertical andhorizontal Landscape. Advancesin
Natural& Applied Sciences, 7(1),104-110.
Repko,A.F. (2012). Interdisciplinary Research Processand Theory (2nd ed.).ThousandOaks,CA:Sage
Publications,Inc.
Richter,B. D.,Abell,D.,Bacha,E., Brauman,K., Calos,S.,Cohn,A.,. . . Siefgried,E.(2013). Tappedout:
howcan citiessecure theirwaterfuture? WaterPolicy,15(3),335-363.
Skaggs,R., & Samani,Z.(2008). The Multiple personalitiesof waterconservation. WaterPolicy,10(3),
285-294.

Appendix
Fig. 1: Schematic of Pipes
Fig. 2: Filtering, Storage and Pumping Process

Fig. 3: Top View of Green Roof
Fig. 4: Green façade

Yorston_3330_Final Paper

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