But the biggest problem is the pots - I have quite a few outside against the south facing side of the house where I mix annuals with perennials, bulbs and one or two grasses. They give me enormous pleasure but of course they need constant watering. And peat-free compost is just rubbish at retaining moisture. So a rethink is needed here.
Could you maybe make a virtue of necessity and replant them with drought tolerant plants, a little dry garden but in pots?
I'll confess I'm rubbish at watering pots, I always seem to go too far one way or the other, so 'dry' posts are something I might explore one day when I have more time.
Not at the moment, but I do plant for the conditions I have, which is loam but about 1m down it’s more clay based, so I’m sure that helps keep it moist!
I only watered about twice a week during the really hot weather, once a week during the “normal” summer hot weather, but the border was completely newly planted that spring so it got more attention than it will this year!! I also mulched thickly with well rotted manure which I think helped a lot, I will do the same this year as I feel the £100ish it costs is worth the savings in watering!
We were lucky that we only had about 5 days total where it hit the high 30s, and the last round of it was followed by a massive rainstorm. We also didn’t have a hosepipe ban, this year I will use more from my waterbutts (about 450 litres) because last year I chose to save the rainwater for when there was a hosepipe ban, but that never came
I'm another who doesn't like pots, although I've got a few, mostly because I've run out of sunny spaces, and mint out of necessity. So my only contingency plan is to plant the last two bamboos out because I was watering them twice a day last year.
To be honest there's not a huge amount the individual can do. Mulching will help, as will storing rainwater but there are limits to how much rainwater most people can practically store, and it will be used very quickly if we do have another hot and dry summer.
If plants have died it makes sense to consider more drought tolerant replacements, but what happens then if the weather returns to 'normal'?
That's the problem isn't it, @KT53, not knowing what the future weather will be. I just know the ONF talk with it's potentially dire predictions made me think and question what I'm planting now.
I also plant for my conditions, which is on the dry side at the best of times, so I won't be changing anything, just hoping for more rain than we had last year. It's not started well though - total for January 2023 so far is 26mm which is only a little over half the long-term averages for January.
Doncaster, South Yorkshire. Soil type: sandy, well-drained
I have been trying to improve my dry sandy soil since last summer with two applications of organic mulch so far to help to improve water retention. I also decided after the summer not to grow thirsty plants like dahlias, but as time has gone on and with the thought of not having that late summer/early autumn colour in the garden, I relented last month and placed an order for some new varieties! Because of my soil, I have always planted reasonably drought tolerant plants here like grasses which all came through well last year without any watering.
I got rid of all fancy pots and planted the plant out that had survived the drought, everything else died. I will plant in 1 pot a rosemary and keep that again in the more shady part of the garden. The remaining pots will be turned into water baths for the animals.
Learning from what disliked the dry Summer, I will pay more attention to watering my Hydrangeas as it was sad that they all wilted. I love a few blooms to cut and keep the rest to dry on the plant and cut some of those for a dry Autumn vases.
I don’t plan on making big changes to my planting, but I will be more inclined to look for drought tolerant plants if the option or opportunity arises. I just worry that by solving one problem, they may not enjoy the very wet weather when that comes.
I have dozens of pots on my patio and most of them are reserved for annuals, pelargoniums and herbs grown or bought that year, so I can look for more that enjoy a Mediterranean climate I suppose. I don’t mind watering all those as I quite enjoy it after an after-work relaxation.
Posts
I'll confess I'm rubbish at watering pots, I always seem to go too far one way or the other, so 'dry' posts are something I might explore one day when I have more time.
I only watered about twice a week during the really hot weather, once a week during the “normal” summer hot weather, but the border was completely newly planted that spring so it got more attention than it will this year!! I also mulched thickly with well rotted manure which I think helped a lot, I will do the same this year as I feel the £100ish it costs is worth the savings in watering!
We were lucky that we only had about 5 days total where it hit the high 30s, and the last round of it was followed by a massive rainstorm. We also didn’t have a hosepipe ban, this year I will use more from my waterbutts (about 450 litres) because last year I chose to save the rainwater for when there was a hosepipe ban, but that never came
Oh for the crystal ball, and all that.
I ♥ my garden.
pelargoniums and herbs grown or bought that year, so I can look for more that enjoy a Mediterranean climate I suppose. I don’t mind watering all those as I quite enjoy it after an after-work relaxation.