8BL ❚ THURSDAY, AUGUST 1, 2019 ❚ THE RECORD
A SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION OF THE RECORD
Homescape
INTERIOR DESIGN ❚ HOME IMPROVEMENT
WATER WATCH
Too much rain,
or not enough
Extreme weather conditions
can make gardening a challenge
By TERI GATTO
TACKLING DROUGHT
“We are not used to dealing with days
that hover around 100 degrees,” says Rudy
uly was a hot, wet month. At times
Eisele of Eisele’s Nursery & Garden Center
the temperatures soared into the
in Paramus.
nineties, followed by long, violent
“It is a matter of watching and watering
storms. Other times, the heat contin-
more often because you know it’s going to
ued unabated for days without a hint of
be needed.”
rain. Judging from recent summers, there
According to Eisele, outside potted
is a strong possibility that August will be
plants need the most water during hot
much the same. These new weather pat-
weather. “You have to water them at least
terns bring a slew of challenges for home
every two days all season long right up to
gardeners, who have to adjust not only to
frost in October or November,” he says.
drought conditions but also to problems
Eisele also notes that new in-ground
brought on by too much rain.
plantings — including trees and shrubs —
should be watered daily
the first week and every
other day after that
because they require
much more water than
established, more mature
plants.
“If you get a 100-degree
day but you had a good
rain two days prior, the
soil most probably has
enough water in it,” says
Bruce Crawford, director
of the Rutgers Gardens.
“The challenge is that
plants tend to wilt under
those conditions but it
PHOTO COURTESY OF GETTY IMAGES is not because of lack
Drip irrigation works, but must be moved with spreading roots. of water in the soil, the
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Gardens and flower beds need about an inch of water per week to prosper. In drier,
weather, hose watering and other irrigation methods should be used to supplement rain.
problem is excessive heat. Unfortunately,
overwatering might then exacerbate the
problem.”
On average, a garden needs about one
inch of water per week. An inexpensive
water gauge can help with keeping track
of rainfall. One can then hand-water or use
sprinklers or other irrigation tools to assure
that a garden or lawn is getting the water it
needs to thrive.
“Soaker hoses and drip irrigation sys-
tems work great,” says Crawford. “Initially,
people place the drip or soaker hose
around the base of the plants, but one has
to remember that root systems spread out-
ward, so as the plant matures you have to
adjust the hose.”
Lawns should be irrigated in the morning
because evening watering may encourage
fungus problems. Crawford suggests set-
ting up a system that waters for at least 20
minutes in a given area to get deep-water
penetration.
THE CHALLENGES OF
TOO MUCH RAIN
“There is not a lot you can do for too
much rain,” says Crawford. “Container
plants are not difficult to care for if you use
a soil that allows for easy drainage.”
One thing to remember is to fertilize
container plants more often, because they
tend to lose nutrients at a faster rate.”
According to Crawford, we are dealing
with a weather pattern that will prob-
ably persist for the next 10 to 50 years.
Therefore, since we can’t control the
weather, it is best to focus on finding places
that will enable plants to survive in unusu-
ally wet environments.
“Plants that like soil that drains well will
need to be located in uphill areas,” he says.
“Those that are tolerant of moist soil can be
placed in downhill portions of a property.”
Crawford notes that there is little one
can do with vegetable gardens. “If they
are planted on the ground you can add
more organic matter, which usually will
improve the drainage; but there comes a
point where you can’t improve it beyond a
certain level.”
Too much rain can inhibit the ability of
a plant’s root system to get the oxygen it
needs to grow. It can also make them liable
to fungal diseases.
Raised beds can be of help for both veg-
etable patches and flowerbeds. The raised
beds don’t need to have sides; just heap
the soil higher in the center and place the
plants towards the top to counteract heavy
rains and keep root systems from puddled
water. “Unfortunately, there is little one
can do with shrubs and trees that are
already planted,” says Crawford.
“We are going from one extreme to the
other,” he notes. “We have a week of very
hot, dry weather and then 1 1/2 inches of
rain comes down overnight, tremendous
sheets of rain flowing across the ground
taking all the mulch with it, so then you
have to mulch again.”
PHOTO COURTESY OF BRUCE CRAWFORD
Succulent plants like yucca and cacti are
easy to grow and are drought-resistant.
If the mulch is not replaced in a timely
manner, sunlight will hit the ground and
encourage weeds to grow. Mulch also helps
keep the ground moist during dry spells.
But while moist soil is desirable, wet soil
can cause problems.
“One should never cultivate or till wet
soil because the texture of the soil is
destroyed,” adds Crawford. “Wet soil can
become a major problem if you’ve planned
to add another crop to your vegetable gar-
den, or to update an annual or perennial
garden.”
WHAT TO PLANT?
According to Eisele, succulents such
as yucca and cacti, which don’t need much
water, will thrive both in the ground and
in containers, as long as they are in well-
drained soil.
Succulents are easy to grow. They are
drought-resistant and can be found in a
wide variety of unusual shapes and sizes.
The challenge is that these plants have a
very different look from those we tradition-
ally grow in our North Jersey gardens.
Another tactic could be to grow plants
that currently thrive in warmer U.S.
climates, but according to Crawford, this
may not always be successful.
“Some suggest that we start planting
more southern plants because they can
adapt to the warmer summers,” he says.
“But every couple of years we are still
going to get a stretch of very cold weather
in winter, so that won’t work.”
Crawford suggests considering plants
that are adapted to flood plains. “Plants
that will grow in an area where a river
will flood during the winter and spring,
and then recede and become bone dry in
the summer, could work well in our area.
Bold cypress and river birch will tolerate
extreme conditions; winterberry holly
— a wonderful native deciduous holly tree
— is well-adapted to wet soils but can also
tolerate drier soils.”
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PHOTO COURTESY OF BRUCE CRAWFORD
Plants that prosper in soil that drains well are best located in uphill areas where the soil
naturally drains downhill, away from the plants.