You may have just invested in having new trees, shrubs, perennials, annuals, and/or groundcover plants installed in your landscape and would love them to survive. Landscaping Milledgeville GA surely needs some maintenance and care. Watering these plantings properly is the most important factor in getting your investment to pay off. When it comes to watering trees and other landscape plants, there are a lot of misconceptions and assumptions that need to be cleared up.
You’ve spent good money on these plants and you’re going to spend even more time and money (on your water bill) to keep them alive. If you don’t, you’ll be spending it replacing them when they die.
There are some notions people have about watering their new plantings that just aren’t true. Let’s clear up these assumptions:
- Don’t rely on Mother Nature
Rainfall can be very deceiving. You think the 45 minutes of a thunderstorm just watered your plants beautifully, but half of it ran off into the lawn because it rained too hard, leaving only the top couple of inches of the mulch wet. Unless it rains a light, soaking rain for at least 4-5 hours, don’t even consider natural precipitation as “watering”.
- Standing with a hose is not good enough most times.
It may work for tiny flowers with 2″-3″ of a root system, but if you think standing there with a hose for a few minutes on that new tree or shrub will matter, you’re not doing enough.
- Don’t wet the leaf tissue
Those cute little leaves may look thirsty, but they won’t absorb water by spraying them. In fact, you can promote fungal diseases by wetting the leaf tissue. Water at the base of plants so the roots can take in the water. Try to avoid overhead sprinklers as they will do the same thing.
- You can water anytime you want
Obviously, early morning and evening are better because less water evaporates from the scorching sun of summer, but if you can’t water then, do it another time. It’s better to do it period than not to do it at all. Just make sure you are watering at the base of the plant. You can even water overnight!
- You’re probably not going to water too much
We’ve only seen this on a couple of instances over the past few decades here. The overwhelming majority of property owners underestimate how much water their plants should receive on a weekly basis.
How Much Water, and for How Long?
This is tough because the answer changes based on how hot it is, how windy it is, how much clay is in your soil, and what type of plant you are watering., etc. There are always variables. Understand that these guidelines are average guidelines. If you have any of those challenges just listed, you’ll have to adjust the numbers for your situation. For instance, if it is 90-100 degrees for a week, you’ll have to ramp up your efforts.
Your plants are immature for at least a year. The larger the plant installed, the longer it will take to repair its root system with tiny, fibrous roots that will reach out into the soil for moisture. It can take a couple of growing seasons to get that root system established. Be prepared to water when needed for the first year. If the weather gets to freezing, you won’t need to continue watering until it warms up later in the year.
You will need to water 3-4 times a week depending upon the heat, lack of rainy days, and soil conditions. If conditions are more severe or favorable, you’ll need to adjust.