Garden water saving tips
Did you know that in the UK the proportion of treated mains drinking water used for gardening can approach 50% during the driest months.
Sprinklers can use as much water in an hour as a family of four uses in a day and can actually damage your plants. Why not try a trickle system which can work from a water butt without mains pressure.
Make the most of the rain
Catch all the rain you can by fixing water butts to your down pipes from the roof. Make sure a water butt is raised above the ground so it’s easy to fill a watering can from and keep it covered so the water stays clean. This water can be used for all plants except tiny little seedlings which do need a drop of cleaner water from the mains. Your garden centre or water utility company can give you more information on water butts.
Plant close to your water butt
Once the danger of frost has passed at the end of May, we can start planting out half–hardy flowers and vegetables for summer display and cropping. However, any plants you put in the garden now are sure to need watering so if you plant them near your water butt you will save yourself a lot of unnecessary walking up and down. Moreover, if the water butt is against the house, it’ll be that much easier to pick goodies for the kitchen and watch out for slugs at night.
Setting priorities
Be careful with the water from your water butt. Make sure it gets to the plants that really need it. Those in containers and the ones you have planted recently are most urgently in need of watering. The others can extend their roots out into the soil and should manage quite well on the natural rainfall.
Preparing for planting
Before planting new plants, dig as much bulky compost material into the ground as you can. It’ll make the soil so much nicer to work with and will really help reduce the amount of watering you have to do. For larger areas, it will be much cheaper to buy loose loads of mushroom compost or composted green waste. For smaller areas, a few bags from your local garden centre will do the trick. Spread it on the surface at least 100mm thick and just dig it in with a fork.
The old pot trick
When planting out vegetables such as courgettes and tomatoes and any other large leafy plants, sink a flower pot into the ground next to them. This can be filled with water which will percolate down to the roots making sure that all the water you give them gets exactly where its needed. Ensure the pot is big enough to take a decent amount of water down to the roots at one time. A two or a three litre pot should be fine.
Don’t let it drain away
The water you give to a plant can be wasted by draining away from its roots or evaporating off the soil surface. Give the plant enough water so that it gets right down to the roots but not so much that it drains away. The precise amount will depend on the plant and the soil but one third of a watering can will normally be enough for something you’ve planted quite recently.
Make sure it stays in the soil
Hot sunny weather is when plants need watering the most but this is when you are likely to lose a lot of water through evaporation. Watering early in the morning or late in the evening really helps to reduce this loss as does directing the water beneath the leaves of the plants. Another thing you can do is lay a sheet of hessian sacking or other material over the soil after watering as a temporary mulch.
Drought tolerant plants
Some plants really like dry conditions and if you’ve got a sandy or free draining soil, these plants will love it. They may need watering a bit to get them started, but once their roots have grown into the soil, they’ll be quite happy looking after themselves. Small leaves and hairy waxy leathery or succulent leaves are all signs that a plant could well be drought tolerant. Look out for plants like this at your garden centre and check with staff just to be sure.
Why not try composting?
You can never have too much compost on the beds. It makes the soil hold water like a sponge and helps plant roots to find water and nutrients for themselves. Why not use your prunings and clippings to make your own compost? Even if it doesn’t turn out like the stuff on the gardening programmes, as long as you keep nasty weeds out of it, you can spread it as a mulch to help conserve moisture in the soil.
Sizing water butts for gardens
To meet the Building Research Establishment’s Eco Homes Guidance Criteria, for Eco Homes Credits for Developers, the suggested size requirements for a rainwater collection system that uses collected rainwater for gardens irrigation only are as follows:
| Type |
Minimum capacity of storage |
| Terrace and patio only |
100 litres |
| 1-2 beds with private garden |
150 litres |
| 3+ beds with private garden |
200 litres |
Watering plants
Watch the weather forecast and save washing-up water for gardening on dry days. Keep the flower beds weed free. Weeds starve the trees and shrubs of moisture. When watering, soak the soil around the roots or sink an empty plant pot beside each plant and fill with water. It will soak straight to where it’s needed. Avoid the heat of the day. Choose plants that thrive in dry conditions like marigolds and cornflowers. Give summer flowering bulbs a soaking when the flowers fade, to rebuild next year’s food store.
Watering vegetables
Moist seed beds, well mulched soil and strict weed control reduce the need for summer watering. Look for modern ‘non-bolting’ varieties of salad crops and remember that overhead sprinklers can damage the crop, as droplets act as lenses scorching the leaves. Avoid damage to plants by watering in the evening and always pour water on the roots.
Watering trees
Drought very rarely kills healthy established trees. Soak the roots at planting, keep them watered through the first summer and their shade will help save water in the future.
Seasonal tips
Spring
Soak roots of newly planted flowers, shrubs and trees
Mulch borders whilst the soil is moist
Summer
Raise your mower blades. One inch-long grass stays greener longer. Too much water damages lawns, and encourages moss. Even a brown, dry lawn will recover within a few days of rain
Autumn
Use leaves, kitchen waste and grass-clippings to start a compost heap making useful home-made mulch by next summer. And it’s free!
Winter
Divide and replant the flowers that thrived in the dry summer. Improve the soil with compost, as fertile soil holds moisture well.