City Hopes to Encourage Drought-Tolerant Landscapes with "Go Native" Campaign

The water conservation program in Gillette, Wyo., got a visible boost when the first of several bright blue and white “Go Native” signs promoting landscaping with native vegetation was installed.

The sign, emblazoned with a camel half full of water, is installed at the city’s native plant demonstration garden. Gillette Water Manager Diane Monahan says it is just the first of many such signs to come.

“‘Go Native’ is the new buzzword in water conservation programs these days and we want to put these signs up wherever there are water-efficient projects in town,” she said. “There are more coming and we are also going to have some smaller versions for homeowners to use.”

She said the garden was commissioned by the city and planted by Barefoot Garden Center. It includes plants like black-eyed susans, purple cone flowers and creeping juniper. Once established, drought-tolerant plants can use less than half the amount of water more conventional landscaping uses. In a city like Gillette, where summer landscape water needs account for the bulk of the city’s water use, using drought-tolerant plants can have a big impact.

The metal signs were designed and made at the city’s sign shop by public works employee Ty Woodall, who makes most of the city’s signs. It was designed to fit in with the color scheme and design of the rest of the town’s new way-finding signs.

It cost $56 and was paid for out of the city’s water conservation budget, Monahan said.

And that’s why, in a bit of a unique twist, the drought-tolerant camel usually associated with the town’s sports teams is coincidentally turning out to be equally appropriate as a symbol about how to conserve water in Gillette.