WATERING AND MULCHING.

Auckland Star, Volume LXVI, Issue 307, 28 December 1935, Page 6 (Supplement)

WATERING AND MULCHING.

Watering is one of those important garden tasks over which the average amateur makes many mistakes. Xo water successfully, one must be able to tell when it is necess-iry, and then do it thoroughly. On a hot, drying day, in early summer, with an east wind and a blazing sun, plants in the open border often show signs of distress; the owner comes to the conclusion that they require water, although upon examination the soil will be found to be quite moist. What is really happening is that the leaves are losing moisture faster than the roots can supply it, because root action in the cold soil has not been so active as leaf action in the warmer atmosphere. In planting out various plants from pots and boxes, or from seed bed, it is advisable to water them in to settle the soil about the roots, unless planting is done in showery weather; even then, od light soils, it would do no harm. The Dutch hoe should bo used the day after planting to loosen the soil, after which, if the oround has been thoroughly prepared, the plants will be able to take care of themselves. Newly planted trees and shrubs should be examined to ascertain if thev require water; if the soil is dry, give a good soaking, and hoe or mulch afterwards. If any show signs of distress, and the soil is still moist, try syringing the plants overhead morning and evening. Peas and beans, when carrying a heavy crop of pods, should have a good soaking at least twice weekly if the weather is dry. Celery, too, must not be neglected in this respect. Watering in driblets cannot be too strongly condemned; the roots are drawn to the surface in search of the moisture instead of penetrating deeply into the soil, with the result that if the supply is withheld the surface roots perish and the plants probably die. If plants in pots have been properly potted, sufficient space will have been left between the rim of the pot and the soil to hold enough water to moisten the soil at one watering. Where insufficient space is left it necessitates going over the plants two or three times to moisten all the soil in the pot; watering under these conditions can never be satisfactory, for while the surface soil may be moist, the soil in the lower part of the pot may be dry. The usual method of determining whether the plants require water is to give the pot a sharp rap with the knuckles; if a hollow sound is given out the plant requires water, while if the sound is a dull, heavy thud, no water is required. Some plants, however, such as azaleas and heaths, where the pots are packed firm with roots, do not respond to this test, and a more careful examination is necessary. It sometimes happens with pot plants that they show signs of distress even while the soil is moist; in this case the mischief is to be found in bad drainage; the soil has become sour and inert, and the root action weak. The remedy is to repot into fresh soil, with ample drainage, and to keep the plant rather on the dry side till growth is more active. To summarise the principles of watering—water only when necessary, and then do it thoroughly so that the 6oil is properly moistened; three gallons to the square yard in dry weather at one watering is none too much. When mulching is properly done this will very materially reduce the need for so much watering. It is not wise, however, to apply heavy mulchings of manure to crops until the soil has been sufficiently warmed by the sun's rays. The object aimed at should be to prevent evaporation in dry weather, and to give additional nourishment to the plants when an extra strain is made upon them. For the latter purpose, nothing is better than half rotted manure, especially for fruit trees, scarlet runners, etc. If the object is to prevent evaporation only, then leaf soil, short straw, or any loose litter may be used.