Dry Landscape Design and the Zen Aesthetic

My place in Tahoe is at an altitude of 6300 feet and not much grows without irrigation installed. I don't want to install irrigation for several reasons: a) it's a waste of precious water, b) the run-off from watering fertilized lawns and flower beds is directly adding to the algae bloom in Lake Tahoe and the destruction of its famous clarity, c) green lawns and non-native flowers are totally unnatural to the Sierra landscape, and finally d) everyone with an irrigation system spends large amounts of time and money maintaining the system each year and cutting the grass and I would like to avoid that.

Since I renovated the house in the tradition of Greene and Greene (architects whose work embodied the aesthetic of the Arts and Crafts movement with a subtle Japanese influence), I believe a Zen garden ideal which repeats the natural materials I used (red cedar, stone, brick) will complement the house and its natural surroundings.

It might be a bit pretentious though, given the fact that the house is in the mountains among mountain people. I've been reading the Western Garden Book and matching it to web sites to understand how the Zen garden aesthetic can be applied in native plants in Tahoe.