5 Water Conservation Tips for the Garden

Whether you live in a drought-ridden part of the country or you just want to reduce your garden maintenance, following these costs cutting water conservation tips are a smart move. It is possible to have a garden without using up this precious resource. Responsible gardening is important for preservation of our natural resources.

There are 2 ways to save money, use water conservation tips and to learn how to conserve water. Both are important and should be used and your water bill and garden will both be happy!

Water conservation tips for the garden

Train plants to be drought tolerant. By watering deeply less often you train your plant’s roots to dig deeper where water is more readily available in soil during hot summers. Let plants that you would normally trim low such as grass stay a bit longer to encourage deeper roots. When filling spaces with new plants pick ones know for doing well in droughts, aloe vera is a useful succulent that does well in low water situations while having uses around the home.

Kill off weeds. Weeds take water away from the plants you care about. By killing them off you leave more valuable water and nutrients for your favorite plants. A mix of cheap vinegar and salt is a great way to kill off weeds fast but be sure you are covering plants you do want to keep when you spray the weeds. When all else fails old fashioned weed pulling works all of the time.

How to conserve water

Improve the soil. Soil full of organic matter holds water better than soil that is mostly sand. Mixing compost and mulch right into your soil can improve its water retention so your plants have time to absorb the water offered. Clay can hold water well but, makes it harder for roots to move down. A good mix of clay, sand, and organic matter is ideal.

Mulch. Mulch is really the best way to keep water where you want it in the ground while keeping the weeds from growing. Mulch of several layers such as newspaper, dry leaves, and pretty wood chips gives the best results. When maintaining grass a self mulching lawn mower helps you get more for the work you are doing while saving time raking.

Install and maintain a good irrigation system. You can cut water use by half while giving your plants more water they need by installing an irrigation system. Lawns are best watered with a traditional sprinkler for good coverage but, your garden thrives on water applied at the ground level. A drip irrigation system puts water right where your plants need it without encouraging issues such as blight.

Another way to save water is by reusing grey water such as water from rinsing dishes can go right into the garden. You can also use the water you cook veggies in, this acts as fertilizer for your garden too!!

These water conservation tips will change how you run your garden and will help you to be a better steward of the land.