It continues to be a dry month with the city missing the hoped for rain on Wednesday night.
We are lucky in Whanganui that we have a good water supply and no water restrictions. A handy hint to ensure watering in the garden is the most effective is to water in the evening or early morning so as more water is absorbed into the soil and not evaporated before plants can use it.
The use of a mulch on the soil will also help conserve soil moisture, keeping plants healthier. A good product is 'Natural Bark Feeding Mulch'. It is a bark based mulch with added hydraflo (for water retention) poultry compost, & gypsum. This product is designed to fertilise, improve soil structure & retain moisture.
It is great spread around plants in the garden to retain soil moisture. It creates a suitable environment for surface feeding roots essential for healthy growth, It will protects the soil from compacting and erosion during heavy downpours. It adds organic matter to the soil and controls weed growth & improves appearance of garden beds.
For plants in pots that are drying out quickly each day I recommend adding 'Debco Saturaid'. This product is a granular soil wetter that makes for better absorption of water when it is applied deeper into the root system. Used by professional growers, it can be applied also to lawns and garden beds.
Two of my favourite plants that are coming into their own now providing brilliant colour for the summer are Hydrangeas and Salvias