The summer isn’t letting up anytime soon.
And when it comes to your garden, neither can you, say two local gardeners: OSU-Tulsa County master gardener Karen Watkins and Stringer Nursery’s Jeff McCants, both of whom offer tips on areas to pay attention to this season.
Watering
It’s big. Even some of the top performers, such as crape myrtle and rose of Sharon, both of which are plants accustomed to this climate, need water, McCants said. They will survive, but not flourish or flower without water. The amount of water will vary based on plant variety.
When you do water, do so in the early morning if you can, Watkins said. Your plants will use the water throughout the day, and any moisture on foliage would have dried off before the day has ended.
You want your foliage dry because, when the weather cools down later in the day, fungus is given the chance to grow.
Watkins recommends watering deeply and less frequently during the hot-weather months. That means watering your garden a little longer but watering every other day.
And as you’re using your water, use it wisely.
“Watering wisely is so important, or we go into water rationing,” Watkins said.
For containers, the smaller the container, the more often you should water the plant in it, as container plants dry out quicker than those in the garden.
Weeding, mulching
Summer is prime time for weeds to accumulate and, worse, suck the life from your ornamentals that are already stressed out by the heat, McCants said. Get rid of them. Picking them out by hand might be the best way to go about this.
Consider protecting your garden beds and tree zones with mulch, which will keep in moisture for the plants to use. A two-to-three-inch layer should be adequate.
Fertilizers, pesticides
“I’m not going to suggest that you fertilize, though light fertilizing of a stressed-out plant may be good,” McCants said.
Pick off your pests as much as you can. Or give affected leaves a strong burst of water to throw off the harmful insects. A weekly blast of high-powered water will keep spider mites at bay, McCants said.
Lay off the chemicals, Watkins said. She likens applying pesticides to plants in the summer to taking medicine without food.
“It’s something else for the leaves to deal with,” she said. Also, it drives away pollinators.
Observe – look at things regularly enough so that if something is too wet or too dry, you are able to rectify the problem, McCants said. If you don’t, it turns into neglect.
Original Print Headline: Plants need help in this heat
Bravetta Hassell 918-581-8316
bravetta.hassell@tulsaworld.com
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