8 Steps to a Water-Wise Garden
What are the two biggest users of water in your home? Toilets and landscape watering! In fact, during the summer months half of all household water use is for the lawn and garden. However, it's possible to dramatically reduce your water consumption, lower your water bill and still have a beautiful, productive garden. Just follow these eight steps:
1. Add organic matter to your soil.
All soil is not created equal. Soil is essentially a collection of mineral particles of different sizes. If most of the particles are large (sand), water drains through rapidly. If most of the particles are small (clay), water will penetrate the soil much more slowly. The solution for either problem is the same: add organic matter. Organic matter, in the form of compost, chopped up leaves or composted manure will improve the texture and water-holding capacity of your soil. Add at least an inch of compost each year.
Plants & Water 101
During photosynthesis, green plants use water and carbon dioxide to make their own food. They take up water through their roots and transport it up through the plant to the leaves.
Carbon dioxide is taken up through microscopic pores in plant leaves called stomata. When the stomata are letting in carbon dioxide, water vapor escapes through a process called transpiration.
Transpiration cools the plant (kind of like perspiration). Water vapor can also condense on leaves and enter the plant through the stomata.
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To learn more about improving your soil, read Building Healthy Soil.
2. Deliver water directly to the roots.
Drip irrigation ensures that up to 90 percent of the water you apply to your garden is actually available to your plants. Sprinklers can claim only a 40 to 50 percent efficiency. Drip irrigation minimizes evaporation loss and keeps the areas between plants dry, which also helps limit weed growth. Our Aqua Cones are an economical and effective way to get water directly to the roots of individual plants. HydroGrow Hose delivers water slowly and evenly in garden or landscape beds.
3. Use mulch to retain water and reduce evaporation.
A six to eight-inch layer of organic mulch can cut water needs in half by smothering thirsty weeds and reducing evaporation. Organic mulches retain some water themselves and increase the humidity level around plants.
Organic mulches include chopped or shredded leaves, straw, compost, salt hay, shredded newspaper, grass clippings and rotted hay. Inorganic mulches include Pro Weed Mat, Tomato Booster Mulch, Fiber Tree Rings and recycled rubber Tree Rings.
For more information about mulches, read The Right Mulch Makes a Difference.
Water Facts
- Vegetable crops are 80 to 95% water
- Average garden soil will store two to four inches of water per foot.
- Growing vegetable crops need about one to two inches of water per week.
- An average-size tomato plant transpires about 30 gallons of water during a season.
- A corn plant transpires about 55 gallons from germination to harvest.
- One reason the air beneath a shady tree is cooler and more pleasant is because the air has a higher moisture content from the transpiration of nearby leaves.
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4. Use free water.
Rainwater is the best choice for your plants. It's clear, unchlorinated and free. Use rainbarrels or a cistern to collect water from your downspouts. A 1,000 square foot roof will yield 625 gallons of water from one inch of rain.
Our Rain Barrels department has barrels in several sizes, along with diverters and linking kits so you can increase your storage capacity.
5. Reduce your lawn.
Turf grass is one of the most water and labor-intensive types of "gardens" you can have. Consider planting groundcovers or low-maintenance perennials instead.
6. Plan before you plant.
By planning your garden before you plant, you can take advantage of the characteristics of your site, such as sun, shade, wind and soil. Group plants with similar water needs. Also consider how your plants will get the water they need. Will you need to carry water to demanding plants in a remote corner of your yard? Planning will save you time and energy down the road.
Plant Adaptations
Plants have evolved many ways to find, use and store water. Here are three:
- A long tap root to reach underground water. Example: carrots.
- A horizontal mat of fibrous roots just below the surface to capture water. Example: many grasses and trees.
- Water storage in leaves or stems. Example: cacti and succulents.
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7. Choose plants carefully.
A plant that's satisfied getting most of the water it needs from natural rainfall will require a lot less work from you. For water-thrifty perennials, choose varieties that are native to your area (or a region with a similar climate). These plants will be naturally adapted for your local climate and soils. For example, a plant that thrives in the Pacific northwest will likely require lots of additional water in the much drier conditions of Colorado.
For plant ideas for your area, call your local university extension service, talk to someone at a local garden center or contact your local Master Gardener program.
8. Take good care of your plants.
Healthy plants need less water, fertilizer and pest controls than stressed plants. By keeping on top of tasks like weeding, thinning, pruning and monitoring pests, you'll be able to ease off on watering.
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