Dealing with a good ol'e Aussie Summer!

One of the most important things for your garden during the summer months is water and to make sure you use efficiently there are several things you can do.

Water - Firstly, ensure your reticulation system is running properly, that is to check for leaks, broken sprinklers, split pipes etc. Usually our sprinkler systems are set for early hours in the morning so we don’t see the damaged sprinklers or lack of pressure from broken pipes until plants or lawn start dying, so it’s good to to a test run regularly. Once it’s done and there are no leaks, check the distribution from the sprinkler heads, especially in your lawn. If sprinklers are partly blocked or mis directed you will notice dead patches in your lawn and garden very soon where the water isn’t reaching. Unblock or replace any of these damaged sprinklers.

Give It a Dose - Across the entire garden, including the lawn, an application of a wetta soil product is very beneficial. This will eliminate dry spots that have become hydrophobic- that is repellent to water. The wetta soil product will enable water to soak more evenly back into the soil to help keep your lawn and gardens alive. With water restrictions you are meant to only water with sprinklers after 6 pm in the evening or before 9 am in the morning, this helps with minimising evaporation so the water can soak in rather than be evaporated from the surface.

Mulchy Mulchy - Another key element you can do to avoid excessive water use is apply a thick layer of mulch to your garden beds to avoid the evaporation of moisture from the soil. A thick layer of mulch still enables the water from sprinklers to soak through, however it will limit the evaporation back out throughout the day.

Don't Go Low - Keep your lawn cut at a slightly higher level during the summer months. If you cut it too low and scalp it, you’ll have to water the lawn more and more to get it back to being nice and green again. When the weather cools down in the autumn, you can cut it a little bit harder again to take any thatching or sponginess away.

Bring The Rain - For people that don’t have reticulation and use hoses to hand water it’s best to water heavily less frequently than a little every day. A longer deep watering soaks further into the soil encouraging lawn and plant roots to grow deeper following the moisture which then makes them stronger in the heat when the top layers of soil get warm and start drying out.

Sauce The Water - Another water saving tip is to use saucers under any pot plants around the house, wether on the patio or in the house. A saucer can hold excess water that would usually run out of the bottom of the pot. On a hot day as the soil dries it can soak the water in the saucer up for the plants roots to use. Just make sure to remove the saucers in autumn as water constantly sitting in them during the cooler months can cause overwatering and rot the pot plant. During summer saucer use, generally the saucer will dry out between waterings.