Watering in heat

It is the ones that I have planted over the last month that are looking droopy.

The established ones look ok - but I planted a lot this month because it was my birthday and I got gardening vouchers. I'm hoping my dad will come over and water twice for me over a week and a half, which should be ok.

It's a tricky one!

We usually water in the evening, and the reason is that behind our house we have three enormous lime trees. We have roots all through the garden and they really dry the soil. It is a bit of a battle to keep the moisture in. Plus because we are establishing new plants.

 

OK, got it. Yes, anything planted in June will need nurturing I'm afraid. Some cardboard around them might help - mulch, keep moisture in, keep direct sun off the roots. You will need to water "under" the cardboard though - not sure how practical that is. (Could mulch with other things, but I don't suppose grass-clippings is really viable for small plants)

You should have planted them in June last year - that was the Summer for late planting :D

 

:dh: If only...!

Thank you for all your help. Will carry on with the watering in the evenings, but slacken off a little next month. They should be establishing nicely by then :cnfs: Then hopefully next summer I won't need to keep on with the constant watering.

Trees are a real problem for us though as far a moisture goes. I'm still waiting for the dripping to start from the honeydew, so haven't really seen how much of a problem that will turn out to be, but I must admit in this heat they are a total blessing.

Thanks for all your help. Will try the watering can thing before I water tonight, to see just how much I'm giving them.

 

How often have you been watering them though Jim & Vicki (before you were poorly).

All the stuff I have planted this year I am watering 2/3 times a week and count ten seconds for each plant. They are doing well on this.

I used the same method when planting in previous years and didnt loose anything.

I do though tend to hardly water anything thats over a year old - I will do the older stuff tonight purely because its been so hot the last few days, but last year I dont think I watered any of the older plants at all !

 

We were watering most nights when dry, not if there were showers or rain obviously.

If we have been busy it has been every other night, or we've occasionaly missed two nights. But that is becasue we have new things in and it is a very dry garden due to the trees.

 

When I plant things in June (which is probably only vegetables being planting out from small pots, but same thing applies) I dig the hole, pour plenty of water into it from a watering can (surprising how quickly it drains away), then put plant in, water around it some more (which washes some soil in), then back fill the remaining soil. I leave a small depression around the plant so that water tend to run towards the plant - e.g. when I water it.

We have clay, so I dunno how long this would last on sandy soil?, but I find that this gets the soil under the plant really wet, and gets the plant through the first week (although if I planted in this heat I would water again after 1/2 a week, but I'm holding my young veg plants back, rather than planting, during the next few days).

"not if there were showers or rain obviously"

If I haven't watered for, say, a week when the showers come I water at the same time. Not if we get an 1" of rain, but when we only get a few mm of rain it makes the top of the soil moist and I figure that my water is more likely to soak right down and less gets wasted to evaporation.

1" of rain is 25 litres per sq.m. Plants about a foot apart will be, say, 10 per sq.M - so they will get about 2.5 litres each with an inch of rainfall. That's about my weekly allowance for small plants.

Notwithstanding that the plants always look better with rain than any water I give them , even if its only a mm or two!!

More often rainfall is in the region of 5mm, maybe 10mm.

5mm of rain is 5 litres per sq.M - so for 10 plants that is only 1/2 Litre per plant ...

 

noticed in SPAIN and CRETE,which was HOT,HOT,HOT.the locals had some beautiful shrubs.they grew them up the walls and against there homes(DONT KNOW THERE NAMES) took a cutting ,planted it, but it never took on,here in SCOTLAND, surprise,surprise!! . i noticed the locals
absolutely,soaked there plants/shrubs/grass/paving/driveways/etc, in the early hours of the morning.
this would be about 7 am. and in the evening about 7 pm.it did work, because i have seen some beautiful gardens in SPAIN and GREECE. i more or less water the garden (WHEN IT IS WARM) in
SCOTLAND about the same times.and have had some great results. i did notice they watered at the base of there plants/shrubs,(NEVER ON THE LEAVES AND FLOWERS). i have done this with great results with the old faithful petunias.in pots, i started to water at the base of the plants,and they grow like a bouquet.they go to the shape of the pot and drape,like a bouquet of flowers!!
the pots of flowers have had lots of admiration from the passing public. one person asked if i could
loan her 4 of my pots of flowers for her front door, for her daughters wedding!!
( I WAS CHUFFED !!!) Music.