Too Muck Water

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXIV, Issue 22777, 10 July 1937, Page 10 (Supplement)

Too Muck Water

Much damage is frequently done in the small greenhouse during the winter and early spring when the rays of the sun luck much drying power. It is advisable to allow plants to become well on the dry side before replenishing supplies, and should the soil shrink away from the edge of the pot at any time, it is only necessary to stir it up, not too deeply, with a pointed stick prior to watering. It is most important that the water should percolate slowly through the compost if it is to do its work properly. As good a method as any''of determining just when plants require water is by judging the weight of the pots. When applying a weight test, which consists of lifting each pot single-handed where practicable, it is as well to run through the small sizes first, then the next size and so on, so as to obtain a fairer and better judgment of the varying weights. After a little practice, it will not seem so difficult to water with reasonable satisfaction. The pots approaching a dry condition are much lighter than those with a'fair water content. It does not take long to acquire a sense of the different weights of plants potted in varying composts and pot sizes. Many experienced growers follow the practice of tapping the pots with a small wooden mallet without raising the pot from the stage, to detect a hollow sound which indicates lack of moisture sufficient to swell" out the compost and restore the more solid sound that a thoroughly moist pot gives when tapped in this manner. .