Larry Smith and the Riverside Gardens team talk all things pots, plants and pruning in their weekly gardening column.
Well, I hope you and your garden managed to get through the extreme heat last week without too much stress.
It certainly was an early reminder of just how hot and dry our summers can get, but it was also a timely reminder for us to ensure we have prepared our gardens for the summer heat onslaught.
If you have prepared your garden properly, most gardens will handle our hot, dry summers — even new gardens that are not yet established.
Watering systems are a good place to start.
Whether it consists of a hose and sprinkler, a manual irrigation system, or a fully programmable wi-fi system accessed from your phone, they all need to be checked over.
Make sure all points of the garden can be watered and that all drippers and sprinklers are working properly.
Ensure there are no blocked or missing drippers, that sprinklers pop up to their full height and spray correctly, and that there are no sprinkler heads blocked or damaged by mowers, nor any leaking pipes or fittings.
Check that sprinklers, such as MP Rotators or gear drives, rotate as they should and are spraying in the correct areas.
Inspect valves to ensure they turn off and on correctly and that solenoid valves operate as they should.
Make sure your timers are working and that water programs in automated systems are still active, with start times, watering days and run times set correctly.
When watering gardens, be sure to practise deep watering.
This involves running the irrigation system for longer periods but less frequently.
By doing this, plants are encouraged to establish larger, deeper root systems that grow in soil less prone to drying out compared to surface-level soils.
With automated systems, don’t be afraid to set the watering schedule further apart and then monitor if the system needs to be triggered manually between drinks or if extra watering is needed on extreme heat days.
On hot north wind days or during extreme heat, give the garden a deep soak the night before or early in the morning, and then keep an eye on the garden for the odd plant that might need a drink during the day.
Mulching gardens will help conserve the moisture in the ground and keep the roots considerably cooler.
It will also limit weeds that can compete for the precious water in the soil.
Mulches such as sugar cane, pea straw, or lucerne, applied in layers about 75mm thick, work well and will break down over the summer-autumn period to help improve the soil and add nutrients as they decompose.
Pine bark, red gum chips and gravel mulches will help conserve moisture and suppress weeds, but do little to improve the soil.
In contrast, a covering of fist-sized stones as mulch can cause heat to be retained in the stones and reflected back at the plants, making the garden even hotter.
Additionally, the larger air spaces around the stones do little to conserve moisture or suppress weeds.
Soil condition will also affect how much moisture the ground can retain.
A high-organic composted soil will retain moisture far better than an open sandy loam.
When constructing a garden or maintaining one during the cooler months, dig in lots of compost, manure and organic matter.
This will also encourage worms into the garden, further improving the soil.
Some soils can become hydrophobic and repel moisture rather than absorb it.
If you think your soil might fall into this category, bring a small sample to the garden centre and we can assess it and help you remedy the problem.
Young shrubs and trees can be susceptible to moisture loss through their leaves faster than their immature root systems can replace it.
These can be sprayed with products such as Envy, which forms a semi-permeable, biodegradable film over the leaves, limiting moisture loss and offering sun protection at the same time.
So, there is plenty you can do to help your garden through our hot summers.
It does require forethought and a bit of work, but it will pay off in a big way in the long run.
While we’re at it, if you’re out working in the garden over summer, don’t forget to stay hydrated yourself and to slip, slop, slap.
Finally, we at Riverside Gardens would like to take this opportunity to wish you a safe, merry Christmas and a happy new year.
Thank you to all our customers for your patronage over the past 12 months.
You are a happy and appreciative bunch, and it is a pleasure to help you with your gardening needs.
We hope to see you in the new year.
Have a good one!