TIPS FOR WATER REDUCTION

The other day on the radio they put out a call for people to send emails with their tips for keeping the garden alive and looking good with our water restrictions, this summer. So, I thought we could put our ideas here on the blog for all to share. Here are some things I do:

THE SEED FRAME: This is an amazing water saver that I have discovered by chance. While we were away for those 2 hot weeks everything in the seed frame not just survived but grew like something from the Amazon! I put all the seedlings I could into it and covered them with the white cloth that I got from Cheap-As-Chips, before I left, and when I returned they were pushing the cloth up and their lush green leaves looked like something from another planet, compared to the rest of the garden. So, useful all year round, is the seed frame.

PLANTING TIME: Plant in the afternoon or evening. Deb suggested this to me and I recommend it to you. Cath's red capsicum seeds had produced fantastic seedlings but they were very soft and spoiled after a life in the seed frame. I wanted to get them out into the garden before all those other seedsaver people were coming on Saturday. They went into the ground on Thursday afternoon, just as they became shaded by the boysenberries, and looked unsure of themselves later that evening. However, by morning they looked like they had regained their former glory and haven't looked back.
This way you won't have to water them much more for a while.

SOIL: Plant into very damp soil. Always thoroughly wet the soil BEFORE you plant, whether it be into the ground or into a pot. Then water in well straight away, right to the roots. Surround with mulch. This is water-wise, despite what the government says, because once you have done it and mulched, the water will be there until it is used by the plants and you won't have to re-water from a blasted watering can, trying not to drown the plants or knocking them over.

Got to go and have breakfast before 8am so I can do all those upside down things at yoga.....