Gardening can be a little tricky when the warm weather hits and temperatures rise above 30 degrees, as it leaves room for a lot of mistakes.
While some may dream of lounging in kiddie pools and firing up the barbecue during warm weather, many gardeners will be concerned about the well-being of their plants.
Fear not, gardening experts have shared their sage advice on how to avoid common mistakes and ensure your garden remains an oasis of beauty even when the temperature rises.
QVC TV host and gardening guru Mark Lane weighs in on one golden rule: timing is everything when it comes to watering plants in hot weather.
He warned: “One of the worst mistakes you can make is watering your plants at the wrong time.”
Gardeners are advised to water their plants early in the morning when the outside temperature is cooler, between 5:00 and 9:00 am, as less water is lost through evaporation.
Alternatively, watering in the late afternoon is possible as long as this allows the plants to “dry quickly, which helps protect against the development of fungal diseases.”
However, when it comes to nighttime, that’s when you should avoid watering. Mark warns: “Watering at night can cause water to pool on the soil surface, around the roots and on the foliage, which can lead to fungal growth, rot, insects and even death of the plant.”
In addition to timing, gardeners may be wondering how much to water their gardens during hot weather. However, less is more during a heat wave.
Overwatering is a common mistake in high temperatures, as it is often assumed that plants need frequent watering. However, this is not the case.
Henry Bartlam, founder of Dig, advised: “Don’t water your plants every day with little water. It’s better to give them a good soak every other day (especially in hot climates) than a quick mist every day.”
“There’s no exact science to it, but if the soil looks nice and moist and doesn’t dry out quickly, you’ve probably done a good job. Be careful not to overwater and saturate the soil, though, as this could not only harm the plants, but also waste valuable water.”
The gardening expert explained that a good rule of thumb is that if the soil feels moist to the touch, it can probably be left for a day or two, but probably not a week.
While it’s not a huge mistake, it’s best to avoid planting during extreme heat so that the new plants have a better chance of surviving. Henry clarified, “It’s not ideal to plant things when it’s that hot, especially if they’re small, tender plants.”
“But you can still do it if you make sure the soil is well prepared and moist and that you avoid planting when the sun is strongest. The most important thing to do as soon as you’ve planted is to water everything well.”
A brown lawn in summer can send gardeners running for their hoses, however, experts assure gardeners that they should not panic if they see their lawn turning brown on a hot day, as it should return to normal when the temperature drops if the grass is well established.
Jonathan Hill, Sales Director at Rolawn, explained: “Trying to keep grass green during prolonged periods of hot, dry weather can be an unnecessary waste of time, effort and water.
“During a heatwave, your grass may lose colour or turn brown and go dormant, but don’t worry, if the grass is of good quality it should recover quickly when it rains, as it inevitably will.”
