The hot weather gardening mistake which could be the death of your plants – and it’s so easy to avoid
A GARDENING expert has warned about a fatal watering mistake Brits might be all too tempted to make now the weather is hotting up.
When temperatures are soaring, our plants need a bit more TLC than usual.
Your first thought may be to get the watering can out on your lunch break when working from home and treat yourself to some midday sun.
But this could kill off your flowers and bushes after months of nurturing.
“One of the worst mistakes you can make is to water your plants at the wrong time,” presenter and QVC gardening expert Mark Lane told The Mirror.
“The best time is early in the morning when the outdoor temperature is cooler, between 5pm and 9am, resulting in less water lost to evaporation.”
He advised that “early morning is preferable to late evening watering” as the plant can “dry off quickly which helps protect against the development of fungal diseases”.
Watering your plants at night causes its own risks, as this could drown them.
Lane explained that water “pooling on the soil’s surface”, as well as the roots and foliage, can cause fungal growth, rot, insects and, in the worst instance, death.
The Royal Horticultural Society backed Lane’s advice and explained that watering your greenery at the hottest part of the day will cause them to lose too much moisture through evaporation.
“Water in the mornings, if you can, as this is when the sun comes up and plants will start to use water,” its experts advised.
“The foliage and soil surface is also likely to stay drier for longer than evening watering, discouraging slugs, snails and mildew diseases.
“Plants start to transpire in sunlight, drawing water from the soil, through their roots, up their stems and out through tiny pores on their leaves called stomata.”
In terms of how often you should water your plants, there’s no simple rule of thumb.
This is because every plant has different needs – and some are thirstier than others.
“For example, a container plant in hot sunny weather may need watering daily,” RHS experts said.
“Whereas a mature shrub might only need a drink in extreme drought.
“It’s good to remember, plants will use more water if more water is made available to them.
“So you can allow them to dry out a little between watering and they don’t need to be wet all the time.”