Hosepipe Ban - gardening in a drought

Record low water levels

At the end of last Summer, rivers, boreholes, and water reservoirs in the South East were at their lowest since 1873 following below average rainfall in the preceding 11 months.   They were not replenished by winter rain, hence the recent hosepipe ban.   It may be an inconvenience when it comes to cleaning the car, but can be potentially disastrous for gardeners.

As the lack of rainfall could become a pattern for our summers, it seems sensible to start rethinking what plants we should be buying for our gardens.   Bare soil between shrubs and trees will lose moisture, so cover as much ground as possible with ground cover perennials such as hardy geraniums.   Traditional summer bedding, either in the borders or in containers, have shallow roots that dry out in hot dry spells, and need a lot of water.   There are plants that can give displays that are just as colourful but are drought tolerant.

Plants that flourish without constant watering include shrubs such as sun rose (cistus), rock roses (helianthemum), hebes, lavender, and rosemary; and herbaceous perennials such as achillea, anthemis tictonia, spurge(euphorbia), sedum, sea holly (eryngium); and Verbena bonariensis.   Essex is the place to head for if you want to buy these, and other suitable plants, and see beautiful gardens with drought tolerant displays that give colour and interest all year round.   Beth Chatto's famous gravel garden is in Elmstead Market, near Colchester, Essex www.bethchatto.co.uk (01206 822007), and nearby in Rotterdean is the RHS Hyde Hall www.rhs.org.uk (01245 400256).   Both gardens have plants for sale.

Watering tips

  -Try and get your watering done early in the morning or in the evening to reduce the amount of water lost through evaporation.

  -Water around the base of the plants, not the foliage, so that it reaches the roots. When planting, water towards the base of the planting hole so that roots are encouraged to grow deeper.

  -There is no need to water grass - it will green up as soon as it rains. Overwatering can weaken lawn by encouraging roots to the surface.

  -Most trees and shrubs only need watering until they are established.

Valerie Ward