We fully endorse good watering practices throughout the year, and offer the following advice to help our customers keep their gardens going through challenging weather conditions:
- We encourage our customers to water responsibly, preferably using a watering can with a rose attachment, and applying the water direct to the soil to help reduce evaporation and prevent leaf scorch.
- Timing is important and we recommend watering during the cooler parts of the day such as early morning or late evening when the water has more chance to soak in and be of use.
- We recommend moving pots, baskets, and tubs to a shady spot during episodes of extreme heat to help them survive. The addition of water retaining gels into compost can help prolong the time between watering too.
- Feeding plants and giving them a good supply of nutrients will allow them to make the most efficient use of available water.
- We recommend removing weeds, as plants will be competing with them for water.
- We encourage the use of a mulch to help retain water, supress weeds and reduce evaporation. For patio pots, we recommend dressing them with stone chippings as a decorative mulch as they have all the above benefits and help stabilise the soil during watering.
Rainwater Harvesting
Install water butts to capture rain and help mitigate the use of mains water. Additionally, we encourage gardeners to direct rainwater runoff from hard surfaces so it can be captured and given an opportunity to soak into the garden to help build the natural water table.
Drought tolerant
Consider planting drought tolerant and Mediterranean plants that are more adapted to drier environments. To find out about tough plants that can survive drier conditions, check out our plant list.
Choosing the right plants
Our website has a Plant Finder tool that can help gardeners choose appropriate plants and offers more information and advice.
Lawn recovery
To help your lawn recover when rain finally returns, check out our leaflet here.