Gardening in a water shortage

Gardeners are being urged to use water wisely after the driest first six months in more than 80 years.
The Met Office revealed the UK has had the driest first half of a year since 1929 with just 356.8mm (14in) of rain – 70 per cent of the long-term average.
The Environment Agency said there was currently little threat to public water supplies across most of England and Wales, although it warned gardeners to avoid wasting water so that stocks could be maintained.
But gardeners in the worst affected area, north west England, are bracing themselves for a hosepipe ban. The region experienced heavy downpours last week but a spokesman for water company United Utilities admitted it would need ‘significantly’ more rain to head off the threat of a ban.
Hosepipe bans are the first level of restrictions water companies can impose during a shortage. They do not need permission from the Government or the Environment Agency.
Current legislation allows water firms to ban the use of hoses or sprinklers to water gardens or wash cars. It is up to water firms to enforce the restrictions, but anyone caught ignoring them can be fined up to £1,000.
Elsewhere, Welsh Water said its reservoir levels were ‘satisfactory’ but urged customers to help ensure that water resources were conserved.
A spokesman said: “We have a limited number of reservoirs in which to store water, and so we urge people to use water wisely. We haven’t had a hosepipe ban for 20 years and want to keep it that way.”
South West Water, which has opened five reservoirs since the 1976 drought, said water restrictions were ‘highly unlikely’.
The Royal Horticultural Society issued its own warning to gardeners as soil dryness levels reach those often not encountered until late in the summer.
“It would have to be unusually rainy now to fully replenish the soil, so vulnerable plants may need supplementary watering,” said Guy Barter RHS chief horticultural adviser.
“Most established trees, shrubs and climbers should have sufficient roots to withstand this level of dryness by using water
stored in the soil from winter rain. But as summer rain is seldom sufficient for newly planted trees and shrubs,
I would suggest that ones planted in the last two years will need watering every 10 days, even if there is some rain now.”

How to conserve water

•Don’t worry too much about your lawn – brown lawns quickly green up when it rains again.

•Group containers, especially particularly vulnerable hanging baskets, in light shade to help reduce drying out.

•Mulch the soil with garden compost to help retain moisture and reduce evaporation and weed growth.

•Concentrate on fruit and veg crops more than ornamentals.

•Water the soil  rather than plants  and make ‘ponds’ around individual plants so that the water can really soak in, ideally wetting the soil quite deeply, say to 25cm (10in). Thorough watering like this supports plants for 14 days, but merely wetting the surface wastes water, encourages weeds and can lead to surface rooting making the plants more vulnerable.

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