It’s perfect timing for a heatwave if you ask me. Netflix has just released the latest season of Grace and Frankie and it’s going to be an absolute scorcher outside, most of this week, so, well…. I can’t possibly garden, can I?
Yesterday, at my place it got up to around 41 degrees Celsius, that’s about 106 in Fahrenheit and it is darn hot and your plants will feel it as much as you but as you will, so can your plants survive….here’s how.
GET UP EARLY
Early morning is the best time to get out there and water your plants by hand. So, grab yourself a nice cup of tea or coffee if that’s your poison and head out into the garden. Man (or woman) yourself with the hose and a good shower head attachment, I love the DRAMM rain wand attached to the hose as it allows me to get right up into my hanging baskets. I have the short one and the long one and have been trialling them over the past two years, they are sturdy and strong and don’t leak. The
BE THE PERFECT HOST…..NOT EVERYONE NEEDS A DRINK RIGHT NOW
Your finger is the best moisture monitor you will ever own, so before you water your containers, check first that the soil is not still moist. If it feels dry when you stick your finger (I use my pointer finger) into the soil then it needs a drink, it’s as simple as that. I hear from so many people that they are watering every day and their plants are “still wilting” wilting or that the plant looks floppy which in fact can be a response to too much love and too much water! Most containers only need watering three times a week, indoor ones even less. Please do not water your indoor plants and outdoor containers every day, they absolutely don’t need it.
IT’S NEVER TO LATE FOR MULCHING
OK so fess up, you never quite got to mulching the garden in Spring…that is perfectly fine…pick a cooler day and you can do it now…there is plenty of hot weather still to come and your garden will love it. I like to use locally sourced lupin straw mulch as it adds extra nutrients back into the soil as it breaks down, it has no weeds (unlike pea straw) and also I like to repeat mulch several times through the year but maybe you like to spend more time doing activities other than gardening (I get that) then wood chip style bark mulches are probably going to work better for you. You can get tree pruning mulches for free from your some councils or from www.mulchnet.com or even by the bag from the hardware store. Please don’t use that horrible black fluffy stuff, it offers nothing except to heat up the soil and kill all of the good microbes that your soil needs to be healthy.
YES! YOU CAN PLANT NEW THINGS ON A HOT DAY
So, the family is coming around for a BBQ on Australia Day and your garden can do with a little freshening up, can you still plant some pretty flowers? Yes, you can. This is what I do. I buy seedlings or potted colour early in the day so that they haven’t had a chance to dry out too much at the store. Before planting, I dunk them (still in their plastic pots)in a big plastic
CHECK YOUR RETICULATION
It’s halfway through summer and maybe some of your irrigation drippers and
Yesterday, apart from some early morning watering, I binge watched Grace and Frankie, I felt very slack but happy at the same time (I love those gals)…so today I better attack my next gardening project!
Stay Cool!
