But it’s raining now!
by Joyce Holster
How to decide if gardens need watering. In the past I’d skip watering if rain was predicted. Then I lost a plant from a ‘friend’ from lack of watering.
Actually if you really look at your plant it will tell you if it needs water. Well watered plants are perky. The leaves attach to the stem at a somewhat acute angle. When the leaf stem is more than 90 degrees it may be losing so much water that it can’t stand up. The leaf edges may also be drooping. Sometimes leaves turn yellow (extreme overwatering). When you step back and look at the entire plant it will look less perky, hanging down.
At this point the soil becomes hydrophobic. The surface may have whitish areas and have cracks in it (note for winter watering of houseplants). This soil has to be watered several times in a row. At first water just drains out. On-off watering over a short time (20”) will help soil begin to soak up water.
If you have a dog bowl or another such container, use it to assess the rainfall like a meteorologist!!
So here are my watering rules.
1. Always empty dog’s outside water bowl before rain.
2. If it didn’t rain yesterday, consider watering.
3. Water if it’s dry.
4. Water if it’s dry but going to rain.
5. Water if it’s just misting.
6. Water if it ‘rained’ overnight (you never know).
7. Water if the dog bowl only has the bowl bottom covered.
8. When there is at least an inch of rain in the dog bowl, I don’t water.
9. I don’t water if it rains all day (but if you scoop out a tablespoon of soil it may be bone dry underneath so check if unsure)
10. If it pours all day, don’t water.