Hot Summer Part 1 (Watering)

I feel like summer has come too soon. It's only June and already the heat is taking my breath away! Heat affects us in profound ways. It tempts us to hide away in the air conditioning and makes working outdoors slow and difficult. I pride myself on having excellent heat tolerance, but even I've been dreading going outside! Conditions like this truly test our love and commitment to gardening.

Heat like this is particularly hard on almost all plants. It zaps them of both water and energy. Most plants, except perhaps the most tropical, will even cease to grow and actually sort of "shrink" when temps. linger above 95 F. High night-time temperatures are particularly devastating. Indeed, high nighttime temperatures are probably the reason why so many Mediterranean and West Coast plants fail to thrive here in the deep south.

There are, however, strategies that we can employ to help us continue gardening throughout this challenging time. My intention in writing this is to consider the simple act of watering. I'm one of those people who actually loaves watering by hand, but it can quickly get old. Therefore, I'm beginning to think more critically about how I water and how to make the process quicker yet still effective.

When I'm gardening in high summer, I consider how much supplemental water am I realistically going to offer a plant? Am I truly committed to dragging hoses around my yard just to keep that far away water-hungry iris happy and hydrated? I love gardening but dealing with a persnickety hose just isn't fun! I try, therefore, to keep my new and essential water-needy plants in one particular location, and I streamline the process by coiling up a hooked-up hose nearest those new plants. All I have to do is turn on the spigot and then give them a big soak. By having the hoses nearest the beds that need the most water, I save considerable time by not having to constantly move them.

I have 2 basic methods for watering. The first is simply letting the hose trickle on a plant or shrub. By focusing a slow to medium trickle of water for a long period of time just on one plant, you minimize evaporation and ensure water reaches deep into the ground. This is especially effective for new trees and shrubs. Another advantage of this method is that, if done properly, your shrub should only need one good soak per week. Conversely, this method is tedious, extremely slow, and requires moving the hose around to individual plants. Yet this kind of targeted soaking is crucial during dry hot conditions like this!

Another kind of watering I'd like to encourage is using a circle spot sprinkler. These are cheap and really do broadcast decent-sized soak. I simply move the sprinkler around throughout the landscape and leave it running for about 20 min. at each location. Overhead watering like this has the added effect of cooling down the surrounding air. Unlike the mechanical sprinklers that have moving parts, this device doesn't break and is particularly useful for mechanically challenged gardeners like me. I'm sick of buying fancy sprinklers that work great for about a week then don't.

Lastly, I'd like to mention at least a couple of perks of hot weather. Weeds don't like it either! You'll find yourself pulling fewer weeds in the heat of the summer. While I'm not certain, I surmise it is the intense sun that has a kind of "sterilizing" effect on the soil surface, especially coupled with prolonged drought.

Another advantage of high humidity is that it is great for rooting plants. Oldtimers knew this and passed it down from generation to generation. They rooted lots of shrubs and perennials in July and August even without the aid of greenhouses or large plastic bags/ rooting chambers. My maternal grandmother used this method for rooting Hydrangeas. I still remember the joy she took in rooting them and her surprise in what color the bloom would be. This method works best during those juicy sultry days with high dewpoints.