Every drop counts in the desert. Calculate how much free water you can capture.
The roof formula is arithmetic. The olla, mulch and laundry figures are rules of thumb and say so; they are being checked against extension sources and will carry them when they do.
Roof to cistern to bed. The oldest plumbing there is.
IllustrationRoof Rainwater Catchment
How much free water falls on your roof each year?
Olla Sizing
How many buried clay pots for your garden bed?
Mulch Water Savings
How much water does 3-4" of mulch save?
Laundry Greywater
New Mexico allows residential greywater reuse without a permit up to 250 gallons a day under 20.7.3 NMAC; other states differ, so check yours.
Buried Pot Reservoir System
A homemade cousin of the olla: sealed pots stuffed with cotton, buried under the beds. A workshop method, not a trialled one; the olla above has the longer record.