Using the deep watering method  for home gardens. . .

. . . can save you time, water, and money.  But most importantly, it promotes lush and vigorous growth. This gardening article explains how it's done.

Deep Watering Method for Home Gardens

© Bill Watson

The Deep Garden Watering method  . . . 

1.  Promotes lush and vigorous growth, no matter what varieties of plants you grow.

2.  Saves water 

3.  Encourages the  development of strong, active root systems. 

4.  Encourages the roots to go deep, looking for food and water, which is exactly what we want them to do

5.  Reduces maintenance 

You irrigate less often, say once every 1 to 2 weeks; however, each time, you irrigate more deeply.

Tip: Seedlings and fresh plantings (less than a month old), will always need more water until their root systems have started to expand and become established.

Wait to start a deep watering gardening program until your plantings start to show new growth. Even then, slowly introduce them to this system.

Tip: Flower gardening plants in hot, sun-drenched areas of your garden, will generally need to be watered more often, but you can off-set this by choosing plants that are "drought tolerant."

Cooler, shady areas will need much less water.

Method

1. To allow the water to penetrate and not run off,  till or loosen the top one-inch of soil in the flower gardening plant bed.  

Be careful around newer plantings, as some of the roots will be nearer the surface and will be fragile.

2.  For better results, use a good water nozzle, one that breaks the water flow into multiple, gentle streams.

3.  If possible, add a good mulch on top of your garden bed, about 1 to 2 inches thick. 

Mulch  helps retain moisture,   protect roots from temperature extremes, and  keep weeds down to a minimum.

4. Start watering at a point in your yard that you can work your way back to. Slowly work your way around your garden. 

5.  Make sure to thoroughly water each individual plant and any open or unplanted area around them. 

For a typical 10' x 3' bed,  spend 5 minutes watering; then slowly work your way around the rest of your garden.

6.  Now you're done for about a week, depending upon the weather.

As you condition your plants to a deep watering system you will slowly stretch the length of time between waterings.

Your goal is to drive the water deep into the ground, and thoroughly saturate the soil to about 12 to 14 inches deep to create a reservoir of moisture below the roots.

As the upper part of the bed dries out, the roots will seek the water that's stored below them. This encourages a deeper root system which is healthier and better able to tolerate low water conditions.

When you first start a deep watering program, you'll want to monitor younger plants, and plants in hot areas of the garden.

For any plants starting to wilt, water them deeply again. Over time you will find that watering twice, or even once a month will be all an established plant needs, depending upon specific species or variety of plant.

Tip: Annuals  need about 1 inch of water per week.    Low-growing annuals like pansies will have naturally shallow root systems and although a deep watering program will encourage deeper roots, any plant with a shallow root system will  require more regular waterings.  .

You can offset this tendency by planting annuals in cooler areas of your garden or using taller plants to shade surrounding areas (creating a gardening microclimate).    

As with most gardening activities, you may need to adjust this process to suit your particular growing conditions.

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About the Author:
With over 20 years of gardening and landscaping experience, Bill now shares his tips and advice on maintaining lush and healthy gardens. Visit his website at www.your-healthy-gardens.com. For webmasters, visit http://www.your-healthy-gardens.com/website.html