Plant watering is difficult to master. It varies for plant varieties, location, soil conditions, mulch conditions, wind, tree canopy, and more.
The best way to know if your plants need watering is to check the soil condition yourself with your hand for EACH plant.
You want the soil moist, not slimy wet, and not crumbly. The next important thing to note is the type of plant: does it like dry conditions? Or does it prefer wet conditions? Look at the foliage, are the tips of the leaves burnt? If so, the soil may be too dry.
Experts say 1’’ of water per week is enough for good plant growth. That is more than enough to keep established plants alive but new plants probably need a bit more. Three square meals a day is what most humans need, 1-2 a day will keep us alive for many years, but probably not thriving. Similarly, our plants probably need more than the bare minimum amount of water suggested. Do you want your plant growing like crazy or just staying alive? How you water will make that difference.
Before June, most of Columbus had adequate, if not well above average rainfall for 2024 and needed zero additional watering. As June began, things got dry and HOT. Now at almost two full weeks of no rain, plants and lawns are showing signs of stress from lack of moisture. We are encouraging our clients to increase their watering regiments to make sure plants and lawns stay moist. Always remember to check the soil moisture yourself before deciding how much to water.
One tool we’ve found that aids in knowing how much to water is a rain gauge. It keeps track of the amount of rain your property receives by collecting rain in a tube with measuring marks to tell you how much rain that area received. When making your decision on how much to water, be cognizant of overhangs, structures, and tree canopies that limit rainfall on a plant. Know your plants and how much water they require, and which plants are established (over 3 years in the ground) and which are new. These factors start to tell you what, when, and how much water. Never water during the middle of the day.
Almost 50% of water can be lost to evaporation, wasting money and a valuable natural resources.
In the morning and/or evening, focus on flooding the root zone of a plant 2-3 times before moving onto the next plant. Shrubs, trees, perennials, and flowers need to be checked daily with temperatures this hot, but may need only watered every other day. Established plants if planted correctly will survive almost anything without any watering help.
As always, when in doubt, give us a call.
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