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Gardening

Gardening Northwest – 5 Summer Watering Tips

On her recent blog on www.frugallivingnw.com, writer Angela Davis tells us how we can save moolah and water this summer. Thanks Angela for these great reminders.
There are right and wrong ways to water your garden. Here are a few tips to help you keep your plants alive, and your water bill low:
Make a schedule. Come up with a plan for watering your garden and check the weather ahead of time to make sure you aren’t watering when you don’t need to. There’s nothing more frustrating than watching the rain fall on your freshly watered garden.
Water in the morning. Watering in the morning when it’s cool will give your plants a chance to drink the water before it evaporates. If getting up early to water your garden does not appeal to you (or your children make it impossible), buy yourself a hose timer and have your sprinklers or soaker hoses do the job for you.
Use the right tools. A soaker hose or sprinkler wand are much more efficient options for watering than your standard hose and nozzle. For a more advanced watering system, check out Emily’s post on installing your own drip irrigation system. You can also keep track of rainfall and/or sprinkler output with watering gauges to make sure your plants are getting the right amount of water.
Get your hands dirty. The best way to check soil conditions is to put your hands in the ground. The top two to three inches should be dry, and the soil below that should be moist. Checking the soil beforehand will help prevent you from overwatering.
Mulch.  Dried grass clippings, straw, and wood chips can all be used as mulch and not only do they help retain moisture, they also help keep the weeds down. Just make sure the mulch doesn’t form a crust that would prevent water from soaking in. Find out more about mulching here.
A successful garden doesn’t just happen. Monitoring your plants and soil conditions and making necessary changes will help ensure a nice harvest at the end of the summer. And prevent a shocking water bill!