Whether you love your lawn or want to grow a tropical oasis in your backyard, for gardeners in Melbourne’s north, being water smart can help save money and the environment.
To ensure you save water but keep your garden thriving, product manager Alyce Rigby from watering products experts Nylex shares her top water saving tips.
Water your garden less often, but for longer:
Instead of watering plants a little every day, it is more effective to give them a good soak less often, to encourage roots to grow down into the soil, where it’s cooler and promote a good firm, drier tolerant root system.
Water at the right time:
The optimal time to water your garden and lawn is early in the morning. Watering at this time reduces the likelihood of water loss due to evaporation, so more water can soak deep into the soil.
Early morning watering also ensures that water doesn’t sit on the foliage overnight, which can encourage fungal disease. Additionally, make sure you are only watering your garden when it’s needed. For example, avoid watering if it has recently rained and don’t use the mist setting on the nozzle when it’s windy.
Anti-leak fittings and taps are best:
A leaking tap can mean litres of water wasted every month. Apart from checking your water meter for leakage, it’s important to use a good quality hose fitting that won’t leak or break and lead to wasting water.
Use the right amount of water:
Before watering, take some time to analyse your garden and soil. Water is essential for the health of plants and soil. Soil that has been watered holds nutrients that feed the plant and its roots.
However, how much water your soil needs may depend on the type of soil – light sandy soils tend to lose moisture quicker so you might find they need watering more often than heavier clay-based soils which tend to hold onto more moisture and often require less water.
Originally published on www.realestateview.com.au from Nylex.
