Chile.
TIt took a decade of drought for Santiago, the Chilean capital, to begin to adapt to the semi-desert climate. Now that in the city located at the foot of the Andes mountain range, marked seasons and rainy winters are increasingly rare, the solution of the landscape architect Joaquín Cerda has been to say goodbye to the “European-style” vegetation, and put in The “Vereda Nativa” project is underway.
Replace the extensions of grass and vegetables that require a lot of water, by native speciesaccustomed to the climate of Santiago, to periods of drought and adapted to living for a long time without water.
“The water consumption of this plantation pilot is super low. We water here once a week, half an hour and by drip irrigation. Every drop of water is very precious and we reduced consumption to less than a tenth of what was previously spent on irrigation in a strip of grass like the one here before,” he explained. Joaquin Cerda.
Amazed by the project, the residents of the residential neighborhood Pedro de Valdivia del Norte, in the district of Providencia, helped to clear the grass, plant and water the native vegetation. After a year, species such as esparto grass, miner’s flower, or annual herbaceous plants grow without problems.
In 2021, the rainfall deficit was 71 percent, making that year’s winter the driest of the 21st century, according to the Chilean Meteorological Directorate. For the southern winter that is yet to come, the forecasts are no better and for the Chilean capital another year of rainfall deficit is expected as a result of climate change.
–
– –
