Gardening tips: How to waterproof your garden this summer with At Home gardening guru Dennis Scott

Summer temperatures can frazzle even the most stoic of gardens, but there are a few simple ways you can ensure your backyard thrives over the hotter months.

Life as we know it on earth cannot exist without water.

It is the most precious natural resource and it most definitely is the key to a healthy lawn and garden.

Plants require water for the processes vital to their survival and are almost entirely composed of water. Water gives them volume, shape, food, temperature control and their overall environmental setting.

One of the simplest ways to ensure your garden not only survives but thrives is by ensuring it gets enough water. So below are my must-have sprinkler investments.

GARDEN SPRINKLER SYSTEMS OPTIONS

Multi-function water gun

The Holman multi-function watering gun has eight preset spray nozzles in it’s rotating multi- function head. The head can be easily turned to select your desired spray pattern which includes a non-slip rubber grip, enabling you to twist it while watering and change the spray pattern. Great for swapping between watering delicate plants to watering larger areas.

Must-have: multi-function water gun

Impact Sprinklers

As its name describes this sprinkler has two arms.

The larger one spits water out at high pressure with the second arm hitting this stream helping distribute the water evenly. You can adjust the arc they reach and also the rotation distance they spin enabling you to miss areas not requiring water. Impact sprinklers are a good option for larger lawn areas needing water or you have areas that need to be avoided.

Oscillating Sprinkler

These sprinklers move in an up and over fashion mimicking the rain.

They cover a medium sized rectangular pattern giving a soft gentle soaking. They are suited to wide open spaces. Some oscillating sprinklers cannot be adjusted, making it difficult for things such as garden features, kids play sets and furniture that cannot be avoided.

Butterfly Sprinkler

The most common types of sprinkler on the market.

Old school: butterfly sprinkler.

These sprinklers usually have a hole in the top where the water will spray out in a circular pattern. Great for a targeted area that needs to be watered quickly. The old school option is made of metal and all but indestructible, the newer options can be adjusted to help control where water is released from and in what direction and pattern it is sprayed. Ideal for a small lawn or garden area.

Soaker Hoses

These have small pin holes on one side of the hose allowing for water to be distributed along the full length of the hose. They come in different lengths to suit all your garden sizes. Price will vary depending on the length. This option doesn’t throw water across any great distance, making them ideal for narrow lawn areas, like the side of your house.

Automatic Irrigation

A professionally installed automated and timed irrigation system, coupled with sprinklers in the right locations or plant zones can be a massive help to homeowners reduce the overall water usage and time involved with watering. While the initial costs involved installing such a system are much higher the advantage of being able to set your sprinklers to water when and where you need means there is no time wasted moving sprinklers or watering by hand.

WATER WISE GARDENING TIPS

1. Water less often but for longer.

Sounds bizarre but we need to promote deep root growth so your plants and lawns will have a strong root system keeping cooler, making the plant able to withstand longer periods without water. This means water on fewer days but for longer periods ensuring deeper penetration of the water applied.

2. Watering early in the morning is preferable to the evening as the plant has time to dry before the sun goes away.

At night water can tend to rest in soil and around roots and on foliage. This encourages rot, fungal growth and insects.

Watering in the morning is best.

3. Choose a water wise garden design and plants.

Water wise plants are capable of surviving long periods without water once established. Succulents though are waterwise from the moment they have been given their initial water.

4. Choose pots wisely.

Pots need to be big enough for a plant to have room to grow in so allow enough soil to promote growth and retain enough moisture for a period of time that sees you not watering every day. Try not to have pots placed in full sun.

5. Check taps, hoses and all watering equipment.

One hole in a hose can lose a significant amount of water. Have automated irrigation systems serviced regularly. Make sure your sprinklers and watering cans are at the ready.

FIVE REASONS WHY OUR GARDENS AND LAWNS NEED WATER

1. Germination: Most seeds need water to activate germination.

2. Structure: Plants are 80-90per cent water, when the plant cells are plump with enough water, the pressure created is what keeps a plant upright.

3. Energy: Without water and sunlight, plants can’t photosynthesise.

4. Moderate temperature: Water movement through the plant and evaporation is an essential part of its protection against the environment.

5. Distribution: Water carries essential nutrients from the soil up through the plants.

Landscaping and gardening expert Dennis Scott, of Selling Houses Australia, has joined News Corp Australia as a regular columnist.

Originally published as Gardening tips: How to waterproof your garden this summer with At Home gardening guru Dennis Scott