[AP] Rethinking the yard in drought-stricken regions

LUBBOCK Parks officials are offering Texans landscaping tips to cope with a historic drought that's taken a withering toll across the state.

The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department features a "Drought Survival Kit" on its website that encourages homeowners to reduce water use by reconfiguring yards into "wildscapes."

Wildscapes can include colorful native plants, shrubs and trees that use less water and benefit wildlife as well. Perennials are ideal in wildscapes, and newly planted native trees will need extra water at first. State experts say residents should avoid water-hogging grasses.

Watering restrictions hit the state hard in 2011, its driest year on record. And with another La Nina weather pattern already in place, those limitations will only deepen without ample rainfall.