Not getting enough water can be a major problem for plants. During long hot summers gardens can go without water for several days. This can lead to flowers dying, or not blooming at all, to leaves curling up and even to the entire plant dying. Things to look out for are:
- Leaves curling
- Leaves browning at the edges
Flowers yellowing or dying back
This is the plants self-protection mechanism – it will try to keep the moisture in the roots and the main stem to keep alive during drought periods.
The obvious solution is to try to keep your garden well watered during summer months, however in times of hosepipe bans and ever increasing water costs there are some easy ways to help.
- Water after the sun has gone down, this will prevent the sun drying out the water beofre it gets a chance to get to the roots of the plants.
- Plant low growing plants to protect the soil from becoming too dried out.
- Produce shady areas with other hardy plants or ornaments – this can keep some of the sun off the root area and give it some protection during part of the day.
