Be Thrifty.

Ideally, a sustainable landscape should not produce waste that needs to be removed off-site. All irrigation water should penetrate the soil without runoff.

Plants should be chosen for appropriate size so that cuttings do not need to be hauled away - or if this is not possible, cuttings should be composted on site.

Use plants adapted to your climate, soil and sun/shade patterns. Not only will they grow better, they'll probably take less water and perhaps provide food for birds, either directly with berries or indirectly by attracting insects that the birds prey on.

Rain water should be slowed, filtered and allowed to infiltrate the soil wherever possible. Pervious paving materials, sumps, bio-swales and green roofs can work together to drastically reduce runoff.

The life cycle and origin of all materials used in the hardscape should be considered. They should be easily recyclable or reuseable. Think about where the materials go when the site is remodeled.

Locally produced materials use less energy in transportation.If you're using stone, crushed rock, or wood, where is the nearest source? Many products are transported thousands of miles, using petroleum based fuels.

Renewable materials are preferable to those that are extracted from an environment (often with energy intensive processes).

Recycled materials are better than those using fresh resources. Examples include decking, tumbled glass, tiles and recycled concrete aggregate.

If you're going to irrigate your landscape, use a system that puts water down slowly, such as low precipitation rate nozzles, drip and micro-spray. This lets the water soak into the soil instead of running off needlessly. Water early in the morning to reduce evaporation losses and maximize your investment in water.

Think healthy.

Most pests can be controlled by natural means. Aphids are eaten by ladybugs, lacewings and syrphid fly larvae, among others- but aphids breed faster than their predators, so you have to allow time for the predators to multiply enough to reduce the aphid population. This typically takes from one to two weeks, depending on the resident predator population.

Many predator insects are collateral damage from heavy pesticide use, and once they're gone, pest insects can breed unchecked over a longer period, thereby creating a vicious cycle of pest buildup and pesticide use.

Integrated Pest Management, or IPM is a series of techniques designed to make controlling pests as benign to the environment as possible. These techniques also tend to be less expensive than frequent pesticide applications.

Fertilizers should stay where they're put: in the soil. Liquid based fertilizers can easily run off into storm drains and from there into rivers and streams, whereas most organic fertilizers need to be worked into the soil and act slowly over a relatively long period of time.

Edible plants have a twofold benefit: they provide you with the freshest produce and don't require fossil fuels, middlemen and long distance transportation to arrive at your table. You can also be certain that no toxic pesticides were used to grow them.

Be innovative.

Sustainabilty is not a design style. Landscapes can be Tuscan, Modern, French, Mediterranean, Australian, Asian or just about anything you can imagine and still be sustainable. Tropical landsdcapes can take their style cues from hardscape items such as sculptures, brightly colored walls,and tropical style outdoor structures.

When thinking about a landscape's design, think first about what you want to do in it. List the activities you enjoy outdoors, and the spaces that will be required for them. You may find that in most cases, they can be designed with beautiful, water conserving plants, pervious paving materials, and Earth friendly construction materials.

You can choose how sustainable an environment you want to create. Even sustainable sections of a landscape will help save resources and money.

Just applying sustainable maintenance techniques to a traditional landscape will probably save you money and possibly result in healthier plants as well. Examples are more efficient irrigation, IPM, and organic fertilizers based on renewable resources.

Look at alternatives.

Often, a sustainable substitute is available to replace a less ecologically friendly product. Better yet, more and more sustainable products are coming on the market.

Think about the function of a lawn, instead of a specific type of grass. Is it for playing or sitting? If the latter, there are a lot of good alternatives, some of which look a lot like a traditional lawn. Varieties of naturally low growing sedges (carex), buffalo grass, and even dwarf yarrow have been used with success in creating low, green spaces perfect for putting out a lawn chair and relaxing. If it's for playing, perhaps synthetic turf can be used - or the size of the lawn can be limited to where it will be heavily used.

New materials include tiles that look a lot like granite yet are made from recyled waste materials to pavers incorporating colorful recycled glass.

Think about paving materials. Instead of impervious stamped and colored concrete - often accompanied with a toxic sealer - think about crushed rock, pervious pavers, or recycled concrete slabs. If you're going to use colored concrete, direct runoff water to someplace where it can be allowed to infiltrate into the soil.

Traditional pressure treated wood is toxic when cut, and contains toxic materials that end up in landfills when discarded. In fact, it's so toxic that the government has special regulations for contractors regarding its removal, and some types have been banned for safety reasons. New products, such as TimberSil, eliminate these toxic substances with newer, Earth friendly manufacturing processes, yet protect the wood from rot. and even make it fire retardant.

Many paints give off toxins as they cure. Typically alternative, less toxic options exist. Integral colors using mineral pigments can also be used to color concrete or stucco.