Summer is a tough season for many plants. The dry and rough winds are harmful to the plants. It is quite difficult for a gardener to make her garden looks happy and healthy. It is important to protect your green babies from the beaming rays and keep them hydrated. Adequate shade and moisture are the two most important factors that you need to keep in mind.
If you are worried to think about the health of your plants in the coming summer, then here are some solutions to your problem.
Discover the natural ways to protect your plants.
- Check the Time of Watering: Prepare your plants for a harsh day with a splash of water in the early morning. Add water to the soil when the sun starts to increase the temperature. Do not add water when it is sunny outside as the heat will scorch the leaves. Moreover, the water will evaporate before it travels to the root. While watering, make sure that the water travels all through the pot and comes out from the bottom. Early evening is also a good time to water your plants.
- Shower them often: Summer is the season of dehydration. You need to keep them hydrated so that they can thrive at the end of the season. To maintain the moisture level; showering is a great way. You can shower the plants with a hose or sprinklers to maintain the moisture of the soil.
- Check Soil Moisture: Just like underwatering, overwatering is a dangerous cause that kills many plants. Overwatering your plants can have negative consequences, such as leaf wilt caused by transpiration due to heat and sun exposure. Excess moisture in the soil can cause bacterial growth, oxygen deficiency, and fungal diseases. Therefore, it is important to avoid watering your plants too frequently; especially during hot weather. Check the soil moisture level by touching it before watering to prevent overwatering. Your plants only need to be watered if the soil is dry.
- Add Mulch to the plants: To protect the soil from sun exposure and retain moisture for a longer period, it is recommended to add mulch to your garden. There are different types of mulch available but light-colored mulch, like dried grass clippings, works best as it reflects sunlight. You can use bark mulch for shrubs as it will shade the soil from the sun and decompose gradually which will add compost to the soil.
- Add Proper Shade: We all know that sunlight is the source of life but sometimes, the rising heats cause much harm to the plants. To protect the plants from harsh sunlight, use proper shade. You can buy the green shades that are popular in nurseries or you can also make your own shades as well from old clothes or bedsheets.
- Repotting is banned: No matter how beautiful a pot you have bought recently, you have to restrict yourself from repotting. If your plant is root-bound; you can easily wait for the summer season to be over. During repotting, many leaves get damaged or you need to trim away the root mass as well. After re-potting, your plants will be stressed and the summer heat will add damage only.
- Don’t add fertilizer: We all know that fertilizers are the friends of plants. They help the plant to grow. During its growth, most of the leaves and roots outgrow and that can cause stress to the plant. If you find out that the plant is already stressed; do not make the mistake of adding fertilizer. In case, you want to add, always make sure that the soil is moist as they need water to dissolve.
- Identify the Stress: Before plants get affected by the problem, they show many signs that are creating problems. You have to recognize the problem as early as possible so that it will not take hold and ravage your favorite plants. For example, tropical plants face tender and wilted leaves problems that cause heat exposure. Sunburn is another huge problem that is quite common during the summer season.
- Mist the plant: Misting is a great factor that will maintain the health of the plants during scorching summer. Especially for some plants like ferns, spider plants, and mosaics need high humidity. For that reason, it is important to mist them from time to time. The tiny humid microclimate will help your plants to protect themselves from the heat of the summer.
- Reposition of the plants: Not all plants love the sun and just like that not all plants love the shade. Identify the plants in your garden that are shade-loving and sun-loving and group them accordingly. Remember, not to keep the plants near to AC vents as it will increase their stress level. You can also keep small plants under the shade of big and large plants.
Hopefully, with these tips you will able to regain the freshness in your garden. Before buying any new plant; understand how it will do in your local climate. Treat every plant as per their individual requirements and they will give you lush greenery to make your space beautiful and vibrant.