GARDENING: Watering ad nauseum, but a necessity

I am a bit concerned about our well. I have been running two sprinklers daily for several days. Communities are now looking at potential water bans. Good use of water is critical at this point.

Best practices include watering in the morning to help prevent potential diseases. Use a soaker hose to directly deliver the water to the roots. Don’t use overhead sprinklers as some water evaporates before it hits the ground.

It’s good to follow best practices when doing anything in the garden. However, we are in a situation where best practices may have to be delayed getting the job done.

If you don’t have a soaker hose and can’t afford to get enough to cover your landscape, it’s ok to water with an overhead sprinkler to keep plants alive. It’s also ok to water in the middle of the day if needed.

I am suggesting that you don’t have to water everything every day. Water to keep the roots alive. This may mean one good soaking instead of a little bit of water each day.

Focus on your priority plants first. Maybe you have a newly planted tree or shrub, or perhaps you have a prized Japanese maple. Saturate these first and then move on as water and time allow.

I have gone around my entire landscape completely within the last week. I won’t do this again for another two or three weeks, depending on the weather. If it stays dry, I will make the circuit again.

I leave the overhead sprinkler on my perennial beds for approximately four hours. This allows deep penetration of the water and a saturation of the root system. I also have mulch on top of the soil to help prevent water loss.

For trees and shrubs, either lay the hose at the base of the tree and turn it on to a slow drip. Allow this to saturate for a couple of hours. Or take a bucket and drill several small holes in the bottom and fill the bucket with water. This allows for slow penetration.

I have seen people stand by a tree and “christen” the tree with a hose. Unless you stand there for a few hours, you aren’t helping the roots.

In summary, here is what needs to be done:

Turfgrass areas that are dormant – water just enough every three weeks to saturate the crown during dormancy. Don’t water to bring them back to green or you need to keep up with it.

Perennials – saturate once every two or three weeks and mulch the beds.

Newly-established trees and shrubs – saturate the soil around the base of the tree at least once, maybe more if this continues.

Annuals – water flower beds periodically if you want them to continue to live later into the fall; some people are giving up on annuals in containers (me).

Next week I will address the situation with conifers such as pines, spruces, etc.