Gardening can be a little tricky when hot weather emerges and temperatures soar past 30 degrees as it leaves room for a whole load of mistakes.
While some may dream of lounging in paddling pools and firing up the BBQ during hot weather, many gardeners will fret over the welfare of their plants.
Fear not as gardening experts have shared their sage advice on how to sidestep common mistakes and ensure your garden remains an oasis of beauty even as the temperature climbs.
TV presenter and QVC’s resident gardening guru Mark Lane has weighed in with a golden rule – timing is everything when it comes to watering your plants in the heat.
He warned: “One of the worst mistakes you can make is to water your plants at the wrong time.”
He recommends gardeners water their plants early in the morning when the outdoor temperature is cooler, between 5:00 and 9:00 am as it results in less water lost to evaporation.
Alternatively, watering in the late afternoon is possible as long as it allows plants to “dry off quickly which helps protect against the development of fungal diseases”.
However, when it comes to the night, this is when watering should be avoided. Mark cautioned: “Watering at night can result in water pooling on the soil’s surface, around the roots and on foliage which can lead to fungal growth, rot, insects and even the death of a plant.”
In addition to timing, gardeners may be pondering how much to water their gardens during hot weather. However, less is more during a heatwave.
Overwatering is a common blunder made in high temperatures, as it’s often assumed that plants require frequent watering. This, however, is not the case.
Henry Bartlam, founder of Dig, advised: “Don’t give your plants a daily light sprinkling of water. Better to give them a good soak every couple of days (especially in warmer weather) than a quick splash every day.”
“There is no precise science to this, but if the soil looks nice and damp, and doesn’t dry out quickly, you’ve probably done a good job. Be careful not to overwater and saturate the soil though – not only could this eventually damage the plants, but also wastes valuable water.”
The gardening expert explained that a good rule of thumb is if the soil feels damp to the touch, it can probably be left for a day or two, but likely not a week.
While not a major mistake, planting during extreme heat is also best avoided to give new plants the best chance of survival. Henry clarified: “It’s not ideal to be planting things when it’s so hot – especially if they are small, tender plants.”
“But you can still do so if you ensure the soil is well prepared and moist and that you avoid planting when the sun is at its strongest. The most important thing to do as soon as you have planted up is to give everything a good water.”
A brown lawn in summer might have gardeners running for their hose, however, the experts assure gardeners not to panic if they see their lawn turning brown on a hot day, as it should return to normal when the temperature drops if the lawn is well established.
Jonathan Hill, sales director, Rolawn explained: “Trying to keep your lawn green during longer spells of hot, dry weather can be an unnecessary waste of time, effort and water.
“During a heatwave, your lawn might dull in colour or turn brown and become dormant, but don’t worry, if the turf is good quality it should recover quickly when rain falls, as it inevitably will.”
