WICHITA FALLS, Texas (KAUZ) – The dry season is making its way into the Texoma region, and for gardeners preparing for fall, now is the time to start getting gardens ready for the heat.
According to Smith Gardentown owner Michael Fiore, it all comes down to how much water plants are receiving.
“When we have those really long extended hot dry periods in the summer, you got to get out there and water them including your trees,“ Fiore said.
While many well-adapted plants can withstand the summer heat, Fiore said summer gardens don’t have to look like a desert.
There are plenty of drought-tolerant plants available, he said, but advises gardeners to keep a close eye on their plants as if they listen carefully, they’ll tell exactly what they need.
“Sometimes plants will let us know because they’re drooping or they visually show that they need water but other plants don’t do that and so if you can feel of the soil get your fingers down in the soil and if it’s feeling really compacted hard and dry that’s when you know it’s time to get out there and soak that soil and water it,“ Fiore said.
He adds when it comes to watering plants, “low and slow” is best when using soaker hoses or a drip irrigation system.
Sprinklers are fine, he said, but he also cautioned to be mindful of how much a garden is actually getting watered.
In addition to proper watering, he recommended investing in mulch, which helps retain moisture in the soil and keeps more money in gardeners’ pockets.
“When you put that layer of wood mulch over the soil it’s going to retain the moisture in the ground and it also slows down evaporation significantly so people can actually reduce their water bill by a lot by using mulch around their plants and their plants are going to be happier for it,“ Fiore said.
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