TAMPA — Ryan Herbert has a hose at his Seminole Heights home but says he doesn’t have to use it very often.
“I don’t do anything. I don’t water anything. No,” he said.
The retired University of Tampa music professor considers his work here to be yard art instead of yard work. That includes a plethora of Florida-friendly plants.
“These fish tale palms do really, really well,” said Herbert.
And what areas of grass does he have? Well, he calls them his weeds.
“I let it go brown. Whatever it needs to go,” he said.
Tampa Mayor Jane Castor used Hebert’s yard to announce a proposal to make the city's once-a-week watering restrictions permanent. They’ve been in place since December after a dry 2023. Officials say the restrictions have helped, and so have all the recent rains. But reservoir levels remain below normal.
“Now that everybody is used to the once-a-week, we feel that moving forward with this permanent solution is a great idea for our community,” said Castor.
Ryan says he’s done a lot of online research and trial and error to see what works in his yard. He also says it’s not an overnight project.
“Don’t get overwhelmed. Do a little at a time. Take your time with it. Think of it as an art project,” said Herbert.
The city council will vote Thursday on making the once-a-week water restrictions permanent. The city says they’ve also been stepping up enforcement. Violators can be fined and ultimately have to go to court.
For details on the City of Tampa’s Water Conservation rules go to https://www.tampa.gov/water/conservation
