How to Help Your Lawn Survive a Drought

With temperatures rising and rain fall decreasing (though there has been more than usual rainfall where I live so far this summer), summer time drought seems inevitable and it putts a serious strain on your lawn. With little rain fall and water restrictions it makes things really hard on your lawn and your ability to take care of it. If you are not careful, your lawn could end up dead.

The summer of 2007 was a very bad year for drought in many parts of the country, particularly the Southeast, which suffered a historic drought. There were widespread mandatory water restrictions, and most lawns in these areas suffered extensive damage as a result.

Work done about a month before a drought period can have a real impact on your lawn's ability to survive. The primary objective is to make the lawn as strong and healthy as possible before a drought hits in order to survive a drought with little or no supplemental irrigation (watering by hose or sprinkler system). A lawn properly prepared to survive a drought will have a deep and extensive root system.

Here are some tips that are sure to help you beat the summer heat and take care of your lawn.

1. Raise the blades on your mower. Taller grass provides more protection from sun and grows deeper roots, which makes it more resilient. Remove only one third of the grass length at each mowing, cutting too much at once stresses the grass.

2. Resist the temptation to bag your lawn and use a mulching mower instead or go over your lawn twice. The clippings will provide a barrier that keeps moisture in your lawn longer. They also provide free fertilizer (at least ¼ of your lawn’s needs) and help your lawn grow greener and denser, and it doesn’t cause thatch buildup.

3. Sharpen your lawnmower blade. Dull blades put your grass under lots of undue stress. Stressed grass needs more water.

4. Most lawns require only 1 inch of water per week, some grasses even less. If you water your lawn every day, you are encouraging shallow roots. By spreading out your watering you can help your lawn to establish deeper roots that will help it survive drought periods. Generally watering deeper, less days per week will encourage deeper root growth and a more healthy lawn.
Water early in the morning and when it is not windy to avoid unnecessary evaporation of your rationed water and remember, that long watering sessions are preferred to short watering sessions for grass.
Watering techniques should be adjusted during the growing season to compensate for precipitation and lengthy hot and dry periods. The amount of water and the duration of each watering period should be adjusted according to soil types and grass types.
Avoid watering in the afternoon because a large percentage of the water is lost to evaporation. Avoid evening watering because the lawn will remain wet for 12 to 15 hours, until the following morning sun dries off the lawn. This prolonged wet period can increase fungal disease incidence.
Use an alternative type watering or irrigation system like a soaker hose. It puts the water in the ground, where it is needed, more efficiently.

5. Use drought-resistant grass. The lawn care industry is filled with innovative products and solutions, including drought-resistant grasses. If you live in a region where summers are long and rainfall is minimal, this is an excellent idea. Rhizomatous grasses like Bermudas have best drought tolerance followed by Zoysias (though these can be invasive), St. Augstines, then Centipedes, Seashore Paspalum and Fescue. Which one of these is best for you depends on where you live. Ask your local garden center.

6. Aerate your lawn twice a year (fall and spring) to keep out thatch and help the roots grow deeper.

7. Do not fertilize in the summer. Experts will tell you that fertilized lawns are more sensitive to heat and require more water.

A green lawn is definitely something to envy in the heart of the summer. Do yourself and your lawn a favor and follow these tips to keep it looking green. Your green lawn will cause your neighbors to be filled with wonder and envy.

Lawns “by the yard”

Gardening with Containers is for Everyone

Container gardening is fun, fabulous and festive. A terracotta pot on its own is just a container and summer bedding plants are just colorful plants. However, by planting the summer bedding plants in a container, you can create miniature garden-scapes of all shapes and colors. Each container is effectively a miniature garden all of its own. If you put a number of them together you can create a garden that will impress even the most avid gardener. Some people refer to this as container design planting, I just say WOW.

The exciting thing is that the planting of containers allows people who may just have a balcony to enjoy a chance to get their fingers dirty and enjoy a bit of God’s creation up close and personal. Container planting also brings the garden within the reach of a disabled person and is a size that even the youngest child can manage. So it is a type of gardening that everyone can do and enjoy.

Here are a few things that will help you have a successful garden.

Start by cleaning your containers:

If you intend on replanting any containers you used last year and why not, you should get rid of all traces of the soil from the previous year. Wash them thoroughly as particles of previous year’s compost can contain pests, diseases and mould spores. Use a hose to get the bulk off then wash them in water containing a garden disinfectant, scrubbing off any stubborn soil with a scrubbing brush, using this same disinfectant water. Then you need to rinse the containers well under running water and leave them to dry. Use this method on any container you plan to use no mater what they are made of. Not taking care of this properly can cause your planting to finish flowering far too early.

Check your containers’ drainage:

Check to make sure your containers drainage holes are adequate or have not become plugged. Having too few or no drainage holes causes your plants to suffer from oxygen starvation due to excess water. To prevent drainage points becoming blocked with potting soil, use some broken terracotta or polystyrene bedding plant trays over the drainage holes. Broken polystyrene or bedding plant trays crumpled up can also be used to fill the bottom of larger containers therefore reducing the amount of potting soil needed to fill the container.

Don’t overfill your containers with potting soil:

You should fill your container with quality container potting soil which you should be able to find at any garden center then firm it lightly. Your soil should stop about 1 inch below the lip of the container; so there will be room for watering. Some people with more experience have their own or have acquired a good formula for mixing the right amounts of peat and loam-based soil and if you have such a formula that is great but my suggestion if you’re just starting is go for the bought mix. It often comes with some fertilizer mixed in as well.

Getting them in the ground:

Before planting make sure your plants have been thoroughly watered. A good way of doing this is by soaking them in a bucket of water. Watering like this will prevent shock when they are replanted and it will also help merge the plants existing soil with the new soil. To help get a sense of what the container will look like try positioning the plants on top of the container before actually planting them. If you need to make an adjustment now is the time before you get them in the dirt. Plant them from the centre of the container outwards. Create a hole big enough for the root ball of the central plant (It should be the tallest plant). After removing it from its pot place the plant into the hole firming the soil around it. Then, insert the rest of the plants similarly around the edges. You should make sure all the plants end up at the same depth as they were in their original containers.

Watering:

After the complete container is potted water it thoroughly until water starts to flow from the containers base. If after an hour the soil has settled a bit, you top it up. Typically containers need a lot of water Wooden and unglazed terracotta containers usually require much more water due to their porous and absorbent nature. I suggest you apply a mulch of mini-chip bark or gravel to the composts surface, as well as being decorative this will lessen the containers loss of water through evaporation.

Gardening with Containers “by the yard”