Welcome to Randy Lemmon's 
  "KPRC TALKRADIO Gardenline"
  Tip of the Week Text-Only Edition

  Date- June 13, 2002   Issue #26
 
  
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   IN THIS ISSUE
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    => It's getting hot
       Randy offers some drought tips...
    
    


   
   
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 Gardenline Tip of the Week - Randy Lemmon
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Howdy Gardening Enthusiasts!  This year, The Old Farmer's
Almanac predicts a hot, dry summer for much of North America.
What's a gardener to do? If plants dry out during drought
conditions, they'll starve and, eventually, die.  Here are
some tips that not only gives green thumbs an opportunity
to record their planting triumphs and tragedies, but also
offers the following advice on how to deal with drought.
Some of these suggestions are from The Old Farmers Almanac,
and some are from yours truly.

--Improve the soil organically.   Soil with lots of organic
matter slows the transition of water from the soil to the
subsoil, giving plants a chance to take in what they need.
That's why lawns with higher organic matter in under the
turf don't need to be watered as often.
 
--Focus on plants that can weather dry spells, and avoid
or greatly reduce those that need frequent watering - 
such as the list that I gave you in last week's tip.
 
--Choose bush varieties. Plants that grow low to the 
ground lose less water through transpiration than those
that grow tall and spread rampantly.
 
--Space plants close together. Leaves from neighboring
plants will shade the soil, helping to conserve surface
moisture and reduce weed growth.
 
--Mulch well. You know my mantra:  You Can Never Have
Enough Mulch!  It prevents moisture from evaporating
directly from the soil surface, and it can greatly
reduce competition from weeds.
 
--Speaking of weeds -- Weed diligently. Don't allow
weeds to compete with your plants for moisture. Smother
them, pull them out, and keep on fighting.
 
--Reduce evaporation. Remember the tip I sent out a few
weeks ago on watering schedules for the yard?  Water
your lawn and/or garden early in the morning, allowing
the greenery to actually use the moisture, plus because
of less wind in the mornings you will get less evaporation
- unlike watering in the heat of the day.
 
--Use a drip system. This is a great way to conserve on 
you water bills, but more importantly focus the irrigation
at the base of the plants. Drip irrigation is more
water-thrifty than sprinklers.
 
--Make those tomatoes go naked!  Strip off leaves. Large,
bushy tomato plants lose a lot of water through their leaves.
Once the green tomatoes reach full size, strip off most of
the leaves to reduce evaporation and keep water going to the
ripening fruit.
 
--In vegetable gardens, harvest at once. As soon as a fruit
or vegetable is ripe, remove it from the plant. Pull up any
plants that aren't productive or that are past their prime.
 
--Roll out the rain barrel! Old-time advice extols the
merits of a large barrel, positioned just so to catch
rainfall, especially from downspouts or gutters. There's
wisdom in saving as much rainwater as you can-and in
using it for your plants when the dry days come.
 
--Make your own watering devices. Create mini reservoirs
for tomatoes and peppers from plastic milk jugs. With a 
sharp knife, cut several small X-shaped holes in the bottom,
bury about half of the jug in the soil between two plants,
and refill as needed. The water will seep slowly and deeply
down to where the plants' roots can use it most.


Until next week, here's to Great Gardening from the
GardenLine, heard exclusively weekend mornings from 8 to
noon on Talkradio 950 KPRC. 
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