Outside your home

In the garden

Watering

Water plants in the early morning or evening when it is cooler and there is less chance of loosing the water to evaporation by the sun. When plants need watering, give them a good soaking to wet the roots once or twice a week in dry weather as this is more beneficial than useless daily light sprinklings, although new plants need regular watering until they are established.

When watering with a can, direct the flow around the base of the plants and make sure the roots have a good soak.  Make sure you water plants and not the soil.  Make a slight depression in the soil around each plant to prevent run off.

Water plants with a watering can or use a low volume watering device. You can make your own or buy seep hoses or trickle systems which give a controlled delivery of water directly to the plant. 

Containers and pots

Large containers and raised beds need less frequent watering than small pots. Place small pots into larger containers or group them together to help humidity and slow down evaporation. This will help them to survive very hot days. Mixing planting compost with water retaining crystals will retain water in the soil more effectively.  Ceramic or metal pots are less porous than terracotta, although lining every pot with plastic and topping them with mulch will assist in water retention.

Lawns

Don’t over water the lawn – it encourages surface rooting rather than deep roots that can search out moisture and so increases susceptibility to drought damage. Lawns may turn brown but they will ‘green’ up over the wetter autumn or winter months. Cut the grass slightly longer in dry periods to allow the dew to be trapped. Cut your lawn less frequently during dry weather and leave the cuttings on the lawn – it will return moisture and nutrients to the soil.

Hosepipes and sprinklers

Don’t let your hose pipe or sprinkler run unnecessarily and direct your watering only where it is needed. Better still use a watering can. Fit a trigger gun to your hosepipe to allow you to turn the water on and off easily. If you have a garden sprinkler a water meter must be fitted.

Wash the car with a bucket and sponge rather than a hose pipe – it’s just as effective and uses much less water.

Playing with a garden hose is fun when it’s hot but a water pistol or a paddling pool will use a lot less water.

Water butts

90,000 litres of rain fall onto a typical roof in any one-year, that’s enough to fill 473 water butts. Capture rainfall all year round by placing a water butt by sheds, greenhouses and conservatories. Rainwater is better for your plants. We have a special offer on water butts, composters and other water efficient gardening products. Find out more information on the water butt offer.

Mulch

Apply an organic mulch around plants and on borders to conserve water by reducing surface evaporation and keep down competition from weeds and other plants. Used tea leaves or bags make a good mulch – roses in particular like cold tea.

On free draining soils mix in organic matter to improve water retention. On heavy soils, incorporate a mixture of organic matter and sharp sand or grit. This will open up the structure, improve water retention and reduce the chances of clay soils cracking during a dry summer.

Plants

Choose drought resistant bedding plants such as alyssum, geraniums, French and African marigolds and petunias or plant perennials such as aquilegia, campanula or heuchera. Remember that even drought resistant plants need watering while they get established. Give plants a good soaking before you put them in the ground and, if the rootball is dry, submerge it in a bucket of water before planting.

Vegetables

Group vegetables by their water needs:

• Leafy crops, together with cauliflower, broccoli, salad onions, peas, potatoes, runner beans and tomatoes need the most water.
• Marrow and courgettes need watering only once the fruit starts to swell.
• Broad beans, french beans, onions and sweetcorn will tolerate drier conditions, though yields will decrease.
• Asparagus, beetroot and other root crops are the most drought tolerant.

Ponds

If filling a new pond, leave the water to stand for 24 hours before introducing plants and fish to reduce the chlorine content. It is better if possible to fill a pond with rainwater, which is not chlorinated.  Pond water evaporates quickly in hot weather. As the water warms up, the oxygen levels drop and fish can be put under stress. Making the pond as large as possible and covering half to two thirds of the water surface with floating plants will provide shade for fish and cut down on evaporation.

Recycling water/grey water

Once it is cooled bath or shower water and laundry rinsing water may be used on your plants. Washing up water can be used if it is not too greasy. Never re use water containing strong detergents, chemicals or household cleaning agents and avoid re-using water while a member of the household is ill or using a topical skin treatment.  Try to vary where you use grey water in the garden, don’t use it on edible crops and only use it to water plant roots not the leaves.

Providing your bath is on a higher level to the garden you can use a piece of hosepipe to siphon water from the bath into a storage butt or straight onto the garden.  Bath water should not be stored for much longer than 24 hours it becomes rancid much more quickly than rainwater. 

A washing machine outlet pipe can be attached to a hose for rinsing water to trickle out onto the garden.

Swimming pools

Make sure there are no leaks in your pool as topping up can use a great deal of water.  If you have a swimming pool you must have a water meter fitted.

Car washing

One of the most popular weekend activities is cleaning the car, but DIY car washing is hard work and isn’t necessarily the most environmentally friendly way of keeping the car looking good.  Dirt, oil and detergent filled water can flow down roadside drains and end up in local streams and rivers causing pollution.  Washing the car with a bucket and sponge used much less water than using a hosepipe.  If you prefer to use a car wash, find one that uses recycled water.  Alternatively there are wipes on the market that can clean a car without using any water at all. Click here for a free sample.