Latest news with #watering
Yahoo
12-07-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
Gardening experts says 'do this urgently' as heat bomb turns weather maps red
Tending to your garden in the summer can be quite the task, with a list of chores that's as long as your arm. Whether it's snipping away at blooms, harvesting your home-grown produce, or leaving grass cuttings on the lawn to prevent it from scorching, there's no shortage of work to be done in the great outdoors. But among the most crucial of these tasks is ensuring your garden gets enough water. READ MORE: New Covid strain with unique symptom now dominant in the UK READ MORE: Pharmacist issues heatwave warning to anyone who takes these five medications During spells of hot weather, it's vital to water your plants, as the sun can quickly parch the topsoil, putting your greenery at risk. However, watering is not always as straightforward as reaching for the watering can or hose. It's essential to consider the timing of your watering to maximise hydration for your plants. Some green-fingered gurus even suggest immersing mushrooms in water to give your plants an extra nutrient boost during heatwaves. Yet, while you're busy making sure your lawn and plants don't wilt under the sun's relentless rays, there's another aspect of gardening that's often overlooked when temperatures soar. In a recent Instagram video, gardening aficionado @cookseyfarms issued a reminder to all those with green thumbs, stating: "Don't forget - your compost needs to be watered too sometimes!". Many green-fingered enthusiasts swear by homemade compost, utilising everything from weeds and shredded wood to vegetable scraps. Not only does compost enhance soil structure, but the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) also highlights its ability to increase moisture retention in soils that drain quickly. However, if your compost becomes dry, it won't be much use in your garden. The beneficial bacteria and fungi that break down organic matter require moisture, making it difficult for dry compost to decompose and fulfil its purpose. In a video shared by @cookseyfarms, the gardening aficionado captioned: "Dry compost compost! Maintaining the proper water levels can ensure your compost stays active." If you notice your compost starting to dry out, give it a good watering, but avoid soaking it. While it's crucial to keep it moist, overly wet compost can decompose slower and emit an unpleasant odour. "It shouldn't be sopping wet, just like a wrung-out sponge," advised @cookseyfarms. If your compost is too damp, the RHS recommends adding more dry material such as chopped wood, woodchip, straw or even shredded paper to help soak up the excess moisture.
Times
01-07-2025
- Climate
- Times
Beat the heat with these gardening tips
Be selective about what you water — you don't need to water things that are already established, such as most shrubs, hedges and lawns. Yes your lawn might look crispy and brown, but like your shrubs, it will recover as soon as it starts raining again. Soaking your lawn in a heatwave is just a waste of water. Focus mainly on watering anything that's newly established or is really suffering in this heat. Newly planted roses are particularly vulnerable. When it's consistently hot and dry, only water early in the morning, ideally between 5am and 9am or in the evening, after 6pm. If you water in the middle of the day, not only is it wasteful but it can also scorch plants and a lot of the water will just evaporate. Rather than plonking your sprinkler down in your garden and hoping for the best, do targeted watering with a hose or watering can. Make sure the water goes in at the roots. A light sprinkle will just water the top of the surface of the soil. Avoid watering the leaves, which can lead to scorching if the sun is on them. • Discover more gardening advice, features and interviews with experts Plants in pots, especially smaller ones, are more susceptible to dying off because pots won't retain so much water. Whack a saucer under pots or put them on a tray or a bucket filled with water to help the plant to soak up moisture. If you can move them, take your pots to a shadier part of the garden. If there are any plants that are particularly fragile — like roses or anemones — you could place a parasol over them to try and help them out. A layer of mulch will help to lock in moisture and give your plants extra help to survive by keeping the roots of plants cool. Give your plants a break: don't feed or fertilise for a few weeks to avoid adding extra stress to struggling plants. Heatwaves are getting more common. To prepare for next time, begin planting more drought tolerant and resilient plants. Salvia, Perovskia and lavender are great drought-tolerant plants. Get ready for hosepipe bans by installing a water butt now so you can start harvesting rainwater when it does rain. Then you use grey water from your down pipes to keep your plants hydrated instead. As told to Sidonie Wilson How to Design a Garden is out now
Daily Mail
11-05-2025
- General
- Daily Mail
Garden expert reveals why you're watering your plants all wrong
With the sun beaming, it's the perfect time to get out back and do a spot of gardening - but one expert has warned that you could be doing it all wrong. British garden enthusiast and content creator, Joseph Clark, says one of the most common ways we water plants is likely causing them more harm than good. Known as Joe's Garden on TikTok, the expert showed viewers the incorrect way to tend to potted plants before revealing his genius hack for ensuring their soil gets an 'even drink' of water. He said that most people often watered plants 'from the top', meaning they stand above the plant and spray water downward, allowing moisture to collect on its surface. Although quick and convenient, Joseph warned that this method resulted in 'bone dry' soil beneath the surface, which could have serious consequences for the health of the plant. In a video shared on the platform, he could be seen using a plastic watering can to water a potted lemon plant. He watered the plant in a circling motion while placing the can just a few inches above its surface. 'If you water your potted plants like this then you may be causing more harm than good' said Joseph. He said that most people often watered plants 'from the top', meaning they stand above the plant and spray water downward, allowing moisture to collect on its surface. He added that this method could cause serious harm to your plants He then discussed the difficulty of effectively watering potted plants, before admitting that potted types were most convenient for those who shared spaces, didn't own their home or had to work with 'limited spaces'. However he warned: 'But be careful when you're watering your pots from the top. 'Although the soil may seem saturated, dig a little bit deeper and it can often be bone dry'. He further explained: 'Most containers will have a slight gap between the soil and inner side of the pot, this is especially the case with plastic pots. 'As water will always travel down the path of least resistance, it will funnel down the sides of the pot and out the drainage hole in the bottom. 'This can sometimes leave the middle of the root ball dry.' To remedy this he revealed a genius hack that involved filling up a large tray or container with water and placing the potted plant inside it. To demonstrate, he filled up a large transparent plastic bowl with water to about halfway before carefully placing a potted plant inside it. 'The soil will absorb up the water through the drainage holes in the bottom of the pot, helping to give your plant an even drink all the way throughout,' he explained. However he said that for larger potted plants, a slightly different method would have to be employed. 'Bury a smaller pot in the middle [of the potted plant] and water directly into this - this will get the water straight into the roots.' A clip showed the expert place a small-to-medium sized funnel-type container into the centre of the large potted plant. He then pushed it deep into the soil of the potted plant before filling it entirely with water. Elsewhere, an avid gardener has revealed the beginner-friendly jobs you can complete to make your patch looks its best this spring and summer. Vicky, who is based in the UK and has transformed her new build garden using a variety of tips and tricks, has shared a bunch of advice for those just starting out. Gardening advice may often seem intimidating to the real beginner - and a seemingly endless list of jobs may appear daunting. In a video posted to her TikTok account, @therosetintedgarden, Vicky took her followers back to basics to describe only the essential jobs to consider when the weather gets warmer. The gardener showcased her bright and colourful plants in the first year of having her own garden last year - and has come up with more ideas for summer 2025. 'If you're looking to get into gardening, I think the best thing you can do is build an understanding of the calendar and what happens when' Vicky explained. She added: 'Here are some of the jobs I got up to this weekend as a beginner getting my garden ready for spring. 'I like to do gardening jobs little and often to help me stay on top of everything, especially as we head into much busier seasons - spring and summer.' She went on to share beginners tasks like mowing the lawn, feeding roses, weeding, watering pots, seed sowing and jet washing.
