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July 10, 2007

Don't give in to garden theatrics

I know what my mom’s hydrangeas are doing right now.
Looking pathetic. Like she’s been away for a month, withholding vital fluids.

The truth is, they’ve had plenty of water. They’re just hot.
They’ll perk back up when it cools down.

You often hear people say, “This plant looks limp. I’ll just give it a little water.”

Now, it’s true. In hot weather like this, plants in some places, like in containers, on hot decks, hanging baskets, or anywhere the soil is raised up, you might need to water once, or even twice a day to keep up. (Poke your fingers into the soil. Water only if it feels dry. If the soil feels damp, they’re fine.)

And newly planted shrubs and trees need more steady watering until they get established.

When you water, water thoroughly. "A little drink" promotes shallow rooting, making plants dry out faster and easy to topple.

Read Rudi’s advice on watering, especially drip irrigation and soaker hoses, below.

But most plants, big and small, may not need as much water as you think.

Mature shrubs and trees do fine as long as there is about 1 inch of rain a week.
That’s it.

Plants can go limp for many reasons. Heat, disease, environmental conditions, Celine Dionne CDs — watering isn't always the cure.
If the soil is damp, and you may need to dig your fingers down a little to be sure, STOP WATERING.

Overwatering can kill plants, by suffocating the roots or spreading waterborne nasties.

But in summer, when watering outdoors, the bigger problem is environmental. People set their hoses or irrigation systems to water for hours unnecessarily, wasting hundreds of gallons of clean water, sending it coursing over fertilized and pesticide-treated lawns and sidewalks, into streams, sewers and ultimately, Narragansett Bay.

The thing that always gets water conservation people going — seeing people’s auto-timed sprinkler systems merrily spouting away during a rainstorm. You can override them, folks.

So, by all means water. (Although looking into plants that convert carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere while using less water isn’t a bad idea either.) Plants that dry out a little should bounce right back.

But when you’re done, turn off the hose.

For 100 ways to save water, check out Water, Use it Wisely.

Posted by Paula Constantine  at 11:41 AM | Permalink

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