IMO....

If you don't want the costs that come with a garden, then rent a house on a concrete block. I have never lived in a house that didn't expect me to cover costs, and rightly so. My family gets to enjoy that garden and how much would it have taken for the owners to get the garden to the current state in the first place. And we've got a hose that we take with us to each rental house we've ever lived in.

HOWEVER, if it is stipulated in your lease that you do not need to maintain the yard as maintenance is provided then you have an awesome landlord! It's not a given and not something I've ever expected.

And no landlord is above the govt, so if you are expected to water the lawn yet water restrictions say you cannot then them's the breaks for the owner. Unless they provide you with a grey water system or a rainwater tank there is nothing they can do if the lawn dies!