What are the smartest ways to water your garden during a heat wave?

Is it so hot outside, your garden is wilting even before the sun rises or after it sets? Mine sure is!!  The only hope is to keep your vegetables and bushes watered. But how can you do that without spending all your time holding a hose? And all your dollars on a high water bill? Big Green Purse collaborated with Gilmour, which makes a very reliable garden hose, to offer you this list of smart ways to water your garden during a heatwave to help you out.

There are two secrets to water your garden during a heat wave:

1. The equipment you use
2. When and how you water

Here are 14 of the best, smartest ways to water your garden without wasting a lot of H2O or time.

1. Check your sprinkler and hoses for leaks.

“A leak as small as the tip of a ballpoint pen can waste 6,300 gallons of water,” says the U.S. EPA’s Watersense program.

It’s easy to spot a leaky hose because water shoots out of the hole. Sprinklers will spray around the place where they attach to the hose rather than send all the water through the sprinkling mechanism.

Next time you turn on the water, take a quick look. If you see a hose spurting, patch it up with duct tape. If your sprinkler is squirting, tighten the nozzle where the hose attaches to the sprinkler.

2. Let it drip.

Not your faucet. A drip irrigation system, which delivers water directly to the bottom of the plant so it can easily seep into the ground and moisten the roots. Though landscaping companies can install snazzy systems, you can also set one up yourself less inexpensively. Take a look at what Dripworks has to offer, for starters.

3. Use a timer.

If you want to set up your sprinkler and then go about your daily routine, use a timer to automatically turn the water off after a certain amount of time.

4. Can it.

A watering can or pitcher can be the perfect way to water newly planted seeds and seedlings. Using a pitcher, you can deliver the right amount of water to each seedling. Gently sprinkle water overhead to moisten the soil.

5. Try a rain barrel.

Set up a rain barrel next to a shed, garage, or your home, and capture rain water coming off the roof. You can put a rain barrel on each corner of the building if you want. Use the spigot on the bottom of the barrel to drain water into a watering can, or attach a hose. Rain barrels come in handy when rainfall is scarce and you don’t want to use your home water source to keep your garden alive.

This is Helpful! If You Don’t Have a Rain Barrel, You’re Losing Water and Money

6. Use your cooking water.

If you steam or boil vegetables, use the nutrient-rich water after it’s cooled to nourish your plants. This works easily for plants you have on your patio or porch.

7. Reuse fish tank water.

Do you have a pet fish whose tank you empty? That water will be full of nitrogen and phosphorous, great for some plants.

8. Water early in the morning and when it’s not windy.

Water early in the morning and when it’s not windy. The morning is the best time to water grass as it gives the water a chance to seep into the ground rather than evaporate in the hot sun or blow away from the plants that need it. If you have to water during the day, water plants that are in the shade as opposed to those in full sun.

9. Mulch.

A two-inch thick covering of shredded pine bark, composted leaves, or other organic materials will help the ground retain water and reduce evaporation.

10. Try worm poop.

“Vermicomposting” is the process of using worm castings (poop) to increase the organic content of the soil, which will help it retain moisture. You can add the castings themselves. Or you can let worms do the job in place.

You probably don’t want to introduce worms to your garden when it’s miserably hot and dry outside, but you can plan on adding them next spring. The more compost and organic matter you add to your soil, the more likely it will be attract worms and keep them alive.

You Want Me to Try Worm Poop? Yeah, Really…

11. Dig in some compost.

Like worm poop, well-decomposed organic compost helps the soil stay loose and retain moisture, which is great for plant roots. If your soil is primarily clay, it won’t hold water at all. If it’s too sandy, the water will drain away. Compost builds great soil that retains moisture and adds other nutrients that plants need.

Don’t Miss: Compost: Crack for the Garden!

12. Xeriscape.

Plant flowers, vegetables, and bushes that do well in the amount of rainfall that falls in your region in an average year. Once established, these plants should require little additional water. Here are some sources for regionally-appropriate plants to choose from.

13. Group plants according to their water needs.

For example, impatience need a lot of water; hostas, not so much. Make a beautiful color statement by grouping all of your impatience together, which will make them easier to water with one fell swoop.

14. Reduce slope erosion.

If you have hills or steep banks, strategically place boulders or ties to help reduce runoff, or landscape into terraces to stop water from slurrying off the hill rather than seeping into the ground.

How else do you water your garden during a heat wave?

NOTE: Collaboration with partners like Gilmour enable us to bring you the expert content you need to live the greener lifestyle you want. All editorial opinions remain our own. 

The post 14 Smart Ways to Water Your Garden During a Heat Wave appeared first on Big Green Purse.

Why grow grass when you could grow so many other things that are better for the planet? Not that grass isn’t pretty to look at, or fun to play on – it can be. But grass comes with a big price tag. To keep grass green and healthy requires toxic chemicals – fertilizers to keep it growing, pesticides to keep the bugs out. Plus, there’s all that mowing and seeding and watering and …the list goes on and on.

Fortunately, there are lots of natural alternatives to growing grass that will look great, free up time, and save money. Here are the top 8.

Best Natural Alternatives to Growing Grass

1) Vegetable garden – If you have enough sun to grow grass, you definitely have enough sun to grow a garden. Dig up the sod, till some rich organic compost into the soil, and plant the vegetables you want to eat. It’s a great way to ensure you’re getting totally local and organic produce for the cost of seeds and water for the plants. If you put in raised beds, you’ll significantly reduce weeding, and it will be easier to pick your harvest when it’s ready. Even if you live in a colder climate, you should be able to grow food three seasons of the year. Talk with your county extension agent or local garden shop to learn what you can plant when. Want more tips to help you get started? Don’t miss our Top Ten Organic Gardening Tips.

2) Flower beds – Wouldn’t you rather look at a bank of beautiful flowers than a boring old lawn?  Plant some flowers you’ll leave to enjoy, and others you want to cut and bring into your home. You can also put in “theme” flower beds. For example, have one bed designed specifically to attract butterflies, another for flowers like sunflowers that the birds will love. Plant perennial flowers, which will bloom year after year, but keep pots of annuals ready to fill in when one part of the garden is finished blooming.

3) Berry bushes – Grow raspberries and blueberries instead of grass for delicious fruit you can pick right outside your door. You may need to put up netting to protect the berries from hungry birds, or use scarecrows and flags that will wave the birds away when the wind blows.

4) Fruit trees – Apples, pears, peaches, plums, apricots and cherries need room to spread their branches. But if you give it to them, they’ll reward you with delicious fruit. Of course, you do have to pick it. But isn’t that half the fun? And so much better than eating grass!

5) Hardy ground covers – If you need a place for the dog to cavort or the kids to play, replace your lawn with a hardy, low-maintenance ground cover that requires little mowing or watering and no chemicals. For example, Blue Star Creeper (Isotoma fluviatillis) is rugged, fast growing, and can handle lots of foot traffic. It flowers beautifully in the spring and summer, an added bonus. Elfin Thyme (Thymus serpyllum) is very drought tolerant, grows low to the ground, and forms a solid mat of green foliage. You’ll love the light pink flowers it sports in the summer, too. Ivy, vinca and bishopweed are other options. Liriope works great, too. Though it dies back in the winter, for a solid three seasons it has lush foliage that never needs mowing.

6) Decorative stones, fountains, birdbaths – For a really low maintenance yard, replace sections of your lawn with stonework. Use gravel for pathways, larger boulders to make statements and different sized rocks to add visual interest. Fill pots large and small with some perennials, some annuals. Install a water fountain, a pond, and some birdbaths to complete the effect. Don’t forget a bench so you can sit near the fountain and take in the view.

7) Woodchips – If your kids need a play area, woodchips may serve them well. Pick large, smooth woodchips, not fresh chips that may easily splinter, and scatter them about two inches deep.

8) Green weeds – If the lawn look is what you want, or you feel like the kids just need some kind of grassy area to play on, go for “faux” grass – or, as it’s known around my house, weeds. Weeds are not uniform in appearance like grass is. But their low maintenance, while still covering the ground in green, makes them a hands-down winner. I never water or fertilize my weeds and mow them only about a third as often as I’d have to mow grass. But I still enjoy my yard greatly.

Want More Information?

Natural Weed Control

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