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May be a daft question but.....

WildlifeloverWildlifelover Posts: 380
edited May 2022 in Problem solving
Morning,

This may be a really daft question but when it comes to watering plants, do you water the immediate crown, a few inches around the crown or a larger radius around the plant? 

For example, to water my Cirsium’s, do I lift the leaves up and water where the stems start from or avoid that and water the area around the growing point?

 Thanks!

Posts

  • DovefromaboveDovefromabove Posts: 88,147
    It’s the roots that take up the water so you need to water the soil in the ‘root area’ … the soil around the plant, not the crown of the plant itself. 

    And no questions are daft if you don’t know the answer, but it is daft not to ask 😉 

    Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.





  • wild edgeswild edges Posts: 10,497
    edited May 2022
    It depends on the plant and how its root system works. If it has a long tap root then right at the base is best but for spreading roots then watering more widely is better. A lot of plants have leaves that catch rain water and funnel it right to the base of the plant and that can be a good indicator of their preference.
    If you can keep your head, while those around you are losing theirs, you may not have grasped the seriousness of the situation.
  • WildlifeloverWildlifelover Posts: 380
    Ok, thanks both. I don’t think much rain would get to the crown of my cirsiums so I’ll water the area around the crown then. 

    I have a few newly planted things so would I water the crown of those as if they were still in a pot?
  • DovefromaboveDovefromabove Posts: 88,147
    I wouldn’t water the crown of any plant either in or out of a pot, except for an Urn plant which actually needs to be watered that way. 

    Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.





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