Three ways to deal with beloved gardens, and drought
This garden gets more water than any other place on the acreage. I replaced a plant today with a purple mum (center, near sidewalk), and watered it as deeply as I could. Since the first of August I've gotten up early every day and started watering ... Something. There are annuals and perennials in the gardens, and all plants certainly struggled during the weeks that delivered searing heat and absolutely no rain. Even the derecho on Aug. 10 featured tremendous sustained winds and caused untold damages, but only an estimated two-tenths of one inch of rain in our yard. Garden experts agree: Most annuals and perennials do need 1 inch of water, once each week. But such a challenge in this year that seems to post a daunting challenge nearly every day! Richard Jauron, a noted horticulturalist at Iowa State University, Ames, identifies three ways to deal with drought: 1. Soil moisture can be conserved by mulching a planting bed with wood chips, dry grass clippings, shredded l...