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Mr. Handyman How To Guide

Got Rain? Tips For Keeping
Your Garden Healthy

Linda Steen

How do you ensure your garden stays healthy year-round, even when we encounter short water supplies? Listen to the following misconceptions and information then use the tips provided to get your garden ready for a summer with less water.

Watering
Misconception “It rained today so I don't need to water my plants."

Reality: Rainfall in many areas is light mist that soaks our clothes but it is not sufficient to keep our plants healthy and thriving. Additionally, while the roots of most lawns are rather shallow, tree roots are deep by comparison and shallow watering is inadequate to maintain their health and vigor. The soil layers around a tree need to be sufficiently saturated before water will reach the root zone.

 

Tips:

• Monitor the amount of water that falls on your garden by wither digging a small hole in your soil bed to see how deeply the water soaks down through the earth or purchase a small water measuring device ($2 to $8 purchase at your hardware store) that catches and measures the rain.
• Water deeply to moisten the root zone, but infrequently. Quick, shallow watering causes shallow rooting and doesn't reach a tree's roots.
• Avoid applying too much water. Over watering can promote lawn disease, leach nutrients from the soil and cause fertilizer and pesticide runoff into streams.
• Water early in the morning or late in the afternoon to avoid water loss through evaporation.

Planning
Misconception: “Summer is here and it's too late to do anything with my garden."

Reality: there are a number of steps you can take that will dramatically increase chances that your landscape will not just survive, but thrive, during periods of drought. Remember, it is much less expensive for you to plan ahead and maintain what you have than have your landscape die back and have to revitalize it.

Tips:

• Plant or replace existing plants with more drought-tolerant species.
• Consider planting trees to provide needed shade and cover exposed soil with ground cover plants to maintain soil moisture.
• Asses your watering system. Is it broken and leaking? Does it make sense to install a drip irrigation system?
• Install rain barrels to collect and utilize a few water source.
• Consider letting your lawn go dormant for a couple of months in the summer. It will need a little extra care in the fall.
  Caring for your Garden
  Misconception: “Water is expensive so I'll save money by not watering."

Reality: An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. In the long run, it will cost more money and heartache if you lose plants to stress and disease caused by lack of nutrients and water, than if you are able to invest small amounts on a regular basis by keeping your garden healthy.

Tips

• Compost your garden as soon as possible. Composting – sometimes called mulching – helps retain soil moisture and provides important nutrients for your plants as the mulch breaks down. Mulch also helps keep weeds at bay.
• Consider using Compost Teas to encourage deep roots that resist drought and promote healthy growth to resist disease.

Remember that any investment you make now in your garden through watering wisely, planning or caring well for those leafy green friends, will pay off for you in bushels through having happy plants for you to enjoy and add value to your property.

Article by Linda Steen, owner and designer, Eden Landscapes a Seattle-based landscape consulting, construction, and maintenance company committed to organic gardening principles. To contact Linda please call 206-634-0949.

 

Resources:
www.savingwater.org
www.metrokc.gov/dnrp/swd/naturalyardcare/documents.asp

 

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