How to Save Water in Your Garden

Use of Mulch

Mulch is the wonder material of the garden. It is inexpensive, easy to apply and very effective.

Take a look at the surface of the soil in a natural habitat - particularly a forest or woodland. The thing that is very obvious is the proliferation of organic matter strewn all over the place. Leaves, stems, rotting branches, whole tree trunks, dead plants. From the living trees and bushes above comes this steady rain of organic material. This is natural mulch. It teems with living organisms:- bugs, beetles, ants, spiders, worms, fungii, grubs and bacteria. They feed on this rich vegetable matter, break it down into useable plant food and recycle it back into the soil below.

You should always be trying to emulate these conditions in your garden beds. As mulch material you can use compost, lawn clippings, raked up leaves, chipbark, small twigs, straw, mushroom compost and whatever else is available. You can even lay down thick sheets of newspaper and put leafy matter on top to hold it in place.

Mulch has 5 main properties which makes it essential in the garden and reduces water use.

Insulates the Soil

Mulch acts like a blanket on your garden bed. Just as a blanket can keep you warm in winter, it can also insulate you from the heat in summer. Hot sun hits the top of the mulch, but because it is a loose, bulked up material, which is full of air gaps, most of the heat does not make it to the soil. Cooler soil means less water lost by evaporation. Plants grow better in more stable temperatures and less water needs to be applied.

Absorbs Water

Water soaks into the mulch where it can be retained for quite long periods. Over time the water is gradually released to the soil where it can be taken up by the nearby plants. So mulch acts as a kind of reservoir.

Improves Soil Quality

As the organic matter in the mulch gets taken down into the topsoil, it makes the top layers more porous, loamy and moisture retentive. The structure of the soil improves, increasing in fibre, in nutrients and in their attractiveness to plant roots.

Stops Erosion

Bare earth is not good in heavy rain. If the soil cannot absorb the water directly, it quickly builds up and starts to run sideways. As it moves, it takes soil particles with it, and, over time, carves out grooves which turn into mini torrents.

In contrast, when there is a thick layer of mulch on the surface, the excess water can be absorbed. The rain droplets themselves cannot dislodge soil and the erosion process has a hard time getting started.

Slows Down Weeds and Pests

With a thick layer of mulch on your garden beds, weeds are greatly reduced. Their seeds become lodged in the surface of the mulch, but the conditions do not favour germination. So your plants can get well ahead of the weeds. The same applies to garden pests. There is so much organic material around to eat that the bugs hardly have time to attack your plants. So, as well as saving water, you will have less garden chores to do.

Our recommendation

Start a compost heap, and spread it around the garden beds. Use chipped trees and branches from your local council or tree-lopper. Buy pea straw, tan bark, pine bark, mushroom straw, and any of the commercial composts and fibres.

There is a golden rule for garden beds: - mulch, mulch and more mulch.