34July 7, 2011
We planted some vegetable plants at the garden center. We set up some displays of the raised bed kits that we sell. We figured they would look better with some plants growing in the displays. The plants just sat there for a week to 10 days, putting out very little growth. All of the sudden, the plants began to grow. The funny thing is, many of our customers have said that their plants just sat in the garden and put out very little growth. Once I got to thinking about it, we put our plants out during one of those extended spells of cloudy and cool weather. Just goes to show that everybody’s gardens can be affected by dreary weather.
As all of your plants put out new growth, they will need a fair amount of water to keep the plants growing at a steady pace. As I write this on the 4 Th of July, we have had very little rain during the last week. We have found that we need to water the outdoor plants, at the store, every day. Part of the reason is that we are in a sunny location that can become very windy. There are many factors that you have to consider when you are watering your plants. The structure of the soil is one factor. If the soil is very sandy, the water will drain away quickly and you will have to water often. You may possible have to water more than once a day to keep your plants healthy. The amount of sun and wind that the plants get can be another big factor. On a sunny, windy, and hot day, your plants will lose a lot of moisture through the leaves. Again you may have to water several times a day to keep your plants healthy. This is especially true if you are growing your plants in containers. As the plants grow in the container, the roots will expand and fill the soil. As the season goes on, the roots fill all the spaces in the soil that would hold water. As you water, the soil does not have the ability to hold as much water. This is why, later in the season, your container grown plants seem to dry out quickly.
Watering your plants and watering them correctly can make a huge difference in how well your plants will grow. Improper watering can result in things like blossom end rot happening on your tomato plants. If you water your plants late in the day and the foliage stays wet overnight, the plants are very likely to develop fungus diseases.
Proper watering of your plants is one of the keys to success in having a beautiful garden.
Well, that’s all for this week. I’ll talk to you again next week.