Holiday-Proof Your Community Garden
August is a wonderful month in the garden. There is a glorious abundance of summer veg crops, and containers are at their very best. It's also the time when many of the community head off on holiday. This leaves behind the question of how to keep plants well watered when fewer folk are around.
The good news is that with a little planning and community goodwill, the garden can be kept flourishing.
Create a Holiday Watering Rota
One of the greatest benefi ts of a community or neighbourhood garden is that everyone can lend a helping hand and an effective way to achieve this is to organise a holiday watering rota?
A shared calendar on the noticeboard; WhatsApp group or a sign-up sheet will all make it easy to cover the various parts of the community garden while people are away.
Containers Need Extra Care
Plants in pots, hanging baskets and window boxes can dry out in just a day or two during warm weather because they have only a limited amount of compost to draw moisture from.
So, if your usual contingency of helpers is depleted this month, following these top tips ahead of time should help plants thrive:
- Water thoroughly until water runs from the drainage holes.
- Move containers into light shade.
- Group pots together to create a cooler, more humid environment.
- Add a layer of bark, gravel or compost as mulch to slow evaporation.
Towelling Water Wicks - A Top Tip Traditional Trick
Long before automatic watering systems, gardeners relied on a wonderfully simple homemade solution; the towelling wick. It's an old-fashioned idea but one that still works really well!
It’s a great way of keeping plants in containers thriving whilst away and can also be used for plants growing in soil.
What you'll need
- 1"/3cm wide strips cut from an old cotton towel
- Trugs
- Water
- Stapler/Stones
Method
Place the trug as close to the pots/containers/raised beds as possible. Make sure it's higher than the level of the plants. This will enable the water to travel slowly down the towelling into the compost.
Fill it with water and place all towelling strips in it to thoroughly wet them.
Take one end of each towelling strip and push it into the compost.
If you find the lower end floating up and out of the trug, either weigh it down with stones, or staple it to the side of the trug.
Top Tips
- Test the wicks after a few days before the system is needed so you know it's working properly.
- Adding a balanced liquid fertiliser to the trug water will ensure your plants are fed as well as watered during your absence.
Many plants suffer because they're watered little and often.
Before going away, water the containers at the base of each plant slowly and deeply so the entire root ball becomes soaked. Large containers may benefit from watering twice, allowing the first watering to soak in before adding more.
Deep watering encourages roots to stay moist for much longer.
Harvest Before You Leave
Don't leave ripe vegetables on plants if you can avoid it. If crops like courgettes are allowed to become overly large, they start to form seeds. This signals the plant to stop producing fruit, as its job is done for the year.
Tomatoes, beans, courgettes and cucumbers all crop better when picked regularly.
If you're part of a watering rota, invite your gardening team to enjoy any produce that ripens whilst away.
It's one of the nicest traditions in community gardening and nothing goes to waste.
Don't Forget New Plantings
Recently planted shrubs, trees, and perennials haven't yet developed deep root systems. So they are particularly vulnerable in times of drought.
Make sure the team give these plants a generous soaking before people leave for their holidays. Applying a layer of compost, bark or leaf mould around the base after watering helps keep moisture trapped. This reduces the need for further watering.
Holiday Checklist
- Water deeply
- Move containers into shade
- Group pots together
- Add mulch
- Set up towelling water wicks
- Harvest ripe fruit and vegetables
- Set up and check the community watering rota
Growing Together
Follow the above tips and you should all be able to enjoy your summer holidays with confi dence as, with a little preparation, a clever watering trick or two and the support of fellow helpers, the community garden should remain full of colour, life and produce.