Garden Column for the Salisbury Post

Darrell Blackwelder

July 27, 2005



     It would seem Mother Nature has enjoyed flexing her muscle this season
by providing us with a series of temperature extremes. Record lows earlier
this spring and now unusually hot summer temperatures have gardeners
wondering what will be in store this fall.

     Everything suffers in the heat experienced earlier this week.
Obviously, many are concerned about their plants, especially newly set trees
and shrubs. Irrigation during this type of weather is critical for survival
of plant materials. Below are a few tips that may help plant survive the
extreme heat.

     **Irrigate plants early in the morning. Applying water in the heat of
the day may cool off plants, but it also involves wastes water through rapid
evaporation. Irrigating late in the evening encourages fungal diseases.
Irrigation with drip systems is an excellent for newly planted trees and
shrubs. This type of system meters water near the root system without waste.
Soaker hoses are generally not recommended, but anything will do in extreme
heat experienced and drought experienced earlier this week. Soaker hoses don't
supply water uniformly, so be sure to check your landscape often for
suffering plants.

     **Do the plants really need water or are they just hot? For example,
many plants such as hydrangea, rhododendron, impatiens or ornamental sweet
potato often wilt in the heat of the day, but will have adequate moisture to
survive.  Wilted plants should be checked the next morning; if they are
still wilted, irrigate. Over watering kills plants much quicker than lack of
water.

     **Mulch plants. Mulching holds moisture and cools the soil. Three to
four inches of bark, pine needles, compost or other types of organic mulch
reduces water consumption.

     **Some plants need to be irrigated often. Plants in pots, especially
clay pots or hanging baskets loose moisture quickly. These containers may
need water everyday and more often twice a day during periods of extreme
heat and drought.

     **Keep a constant check. Weather we've experienced over the past few
days kills plants quickly. Those that go on weekend vacations often come
home to face dead or heavily damaged plants during excessively hot dry
weather. Arrange for a neighbor or friend to water plants, especially newly
planted trees or shrubs if you're out of town for a few days.

     **Some plants do poorly in hot weather and there is nothing you can do
to alleviate the problem.  Fescue turns brown and goes dormant; leaf drop
occurs on many trees, hostas sunburn, other plants may turn pale green and
die outright. Fortunately, temperature extremes have been rare over the past
few years.



     Darrell Blackwelder is an agricultural agent in charge of horticulture
with the North Carolina Cooperative Extension Service in Rowan County. For
archived garden columns or other information, visit the Rowan County Master
Gardener web site at www.rowanmastergardener.com , e-mail
Darrell_Blackwelder@ncsu.edu