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Rainwater versus tap

SupernoodleSupernoodle Posts: 954
in Tools and techniques

If I put tap water into a butt or can, and leave it say for a week, is it closer to rainwater?  I'm thinking in terms of ph for watering my ericaeous pots, plus my Slightly acid garden soil.

Thanks

Posts

  • nutcutletnutcutlet Posts: 27,441

    I can't see standing could remove calcium from water. Evaporation would concentrate it a bit more if anything.

    That tap water chlorine smell would go.



    In the sticks near Peterborough
  • Woodgreen wonderboyWoodgreen wonderboy Posts: 2,322

    I Have camellias in pots and give them a mix of rainwater and tap water. Sometimes one, sometimes the other. Probably 2:1 rain/tap. Also use sequestrene to help the plant take up nutrients which helps overcome any deleterious effects of tapwater. I live in a hard water area. If you live in a soft water area you are probably OK anyway.

    Most important is to water , particularly in late summer/autumn as they form the flowers for next year. Letting them dry out is always a problem.

    The colour of the leaves give you a clue as to how happy they are. Dark green signals happiness. Yellowing leaves and is time to give them feed/sequestrene and rainwater. Do this and they will recover.

  • Alan4711Alan4711 Posts: 1,657
    Hi super ,there is no competition between rain and tap for plants, first choice as always rain, unfortunately i cant find any advise on old tap water from RHS but theres lots of advice on grey water and soft /boiled and such, just go RHS tap water plants ,you cant beat big butts thats the answer,keep em clean with Jeyes fluid once a year as recommended by RHS it works for all us allotmenteers,
  • WelshonionWelshonion Posts: 3,114

    Alan, why do you use Jeyes Fluid in your water butts?  There has been a thread about this before, and if you keep your water butts well-covered, they never need washing out, and certainly not with Jeyes Fluid.

  • Alan4711Alan4711 Posts: 1,657
    Hi welsh ,all our water butts ( i have 4 x 40 gallon butts all joined up low down to get the flow to one tap on the end butt,) they are all covered and have a drain pipe going in from the shed all wildlife is kept out, we all get through a lot of water,

    towards the end of summer when the butts are low we wash our tools in the butts with mild Jeyes then scrub the inside of the butts which need keeping fresh as poss as recommended by RHS and Jeyes ,any type of disease is hopefully killed off ready for the winter rains to fill them up again,this is done by all our allotmenteers that i know of. We find Jeyes good for hygiene on the allotments a can lasts me years as its only used very sparingly, Alan
  • FairygirlFairygirl Posts: 55,099

    Alan- do you sing that song when you clean them out?

    "I like big butts and I cannot lie...."

    sorry ...image

    It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....



    I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
  • Alan4711Alan4711 Posts: 1,657
    I don't know that one Fairygirl, and you wouldn't want to hear me singing while im gardening believe me, good luck all
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