The village of Hinsdale wants to let its gardens grow in new ways. The village will experiment with planting perennials in 13 of 38 flower boxes in the downtown business district.

Using perennials instead of annuals is expected to save the village about $8,000, said horticulturist Dan Hopkins. They also want to use plants that are more sustainable such as ornamental grasses or catmint, which also are more hardy and are resistant to salt and drought.

Although he has not yet designed then, he said the sort of flower beds he envisions creating also will require less water and maintenance than the impatiens and petunias the village has used in beds throughout the downtown district. Over the summer, he said annuals require watering three times a week.

“Unless it rains, you really can’t miss a day,” he said, adding that keeping the gardens growing requires about 35,000 gallons of water throughout the warmer months.

The beds will be planted in May.  It may take some time to see the full effect of the new beds.

“Annuals look great in a matter of weeks but perennials take longer –maybe a few years before you get the full impact,” he said.

Hopkins said the village will try the new sustainable beds on a trial basis and will be interested to see what business owners and residents think of the new look.