Summer watering....................

On the Eastern Seaboard we are experiencing a long, hot, dry summer. During this time it is critical to thoroughly water your gardens and trees. If you simply run a hose over them, this will not completely saturate the ground. This is especially true for any large containers that you use say on your deck or patio.

After running the hose on them for 30 seconds you may see water coming out of the bottom holes. This usually means one of two things....the water you see is a result of the plant being pot bound and not able to hold any water or the water is running down the inside of the pot between the soil and the pot and then out the bottom.

I recommend watering the plant several times when watering. The first watering will moisten the layer of mulch that should be on top and subsequent waterings will actually penetrate into the soil. If you water your containers thoroughly twice a week, they should be fine.

Our display beds are watered using both drip and micromist irrigation twice a week for about an hour to an hour and a half. This will develop healthy root systems and consistent growth. We have most of our irrigation on timers for 4- 6 in the morning, prior to us needing showers. Since we are on a well, this works.........well for us!

Any watering should be done early in the morning so it can soak into the mulch and soil and not evaporate as will happen if you water mid-day. Watering in the morning also allows leaves to dry during the day and hence not cause powdery mildow or other fungus'.

We use Antelco(tm) brand drip and micromist irrigation. Almost every head is adjustable at the head to provide you with complete control of the flow rate. We have used this system for many years due to the ingenious design that has gone into it and the low cost. The average garden will cost about $300 to irrigate, not counting timers which can be purchased at the orange place or the blue place for about $30.00 ea.

We use these systems in our vegetable garden, to irrigate the many containers on our deck and our display gardens. Deep, thorough watering during the growing season, especially during very dry periods will promote the growth and health of your plants. You can also add an inline fertilizer which will deliver liquid fertilizer right through you irrigation system. This is call fertigation.

The picture shows a 180 degree adjustable sprinkler in one of our display gardens.