Water Saving Tips

See Wizard Mart for details on how to source the equipment mentioned.

Water Saving Techniques

Collect run off water from roofs in water butts or any other containers.
Siphon off suitable domestic waste water into containers or reservoirs. Soap and detergents do no harm but bleaches, disinfectants and strong cleaning products will.
Alternate watering with this recycled water with applications of ordinary tap or rainwater.
Do not on any account store this recycled water but use it right away.
Water in the evenings or early mornings to reduce evaporation. Water under the plant's canopy.
Trickle watering, using a perforated hose, works well. It can be joined to your water butt.
Plastic bottles can be filled then up turned and buried with their neck well into the soil around the plant's roots.

Another option for saving this 'grey' water is if your house has waste water pipes that discharge into a gulley or drain. This would normally be done with plastic piping.

Connect up to this pipe work and discharge into a contianer instead. Arrange things so that excess water drains from the container back into the drain.

There would be many permutations on this idea. Having the container further into your garden if the levels allow it. Digging a hole and sinking your contianer into it, so giving a fall to the piping. If you dont want to take the water out with a watering can etc. you can installa small pump connected to garden hose. If you do install a container at or below ground level, make sure you have the top to it.

Maintenance to Conserve Water

Use the largest containers and hanging baskets that are practical. They hold water better than the smaller ones.
Use water retaining gel in your pots and hanging baskets.
Line any porous planters and pots with plastic but remember to leave a drainage hole.
Don't dig or hoe vigorously March – Autumn. It breaks the bed's surface and allows moisture to escape.
Keep areas weed free. Use a suitable systemic weed killer.
Mulching. This wants to be at least 5cm deep, use bark or shingle. It suppresses weeds and holds in moisture.
Grass cuttings will also act as a mulch. They don't look great but in a drought will do the job.
Well established shrubs and plants should not need watering. Younger shrubs and plants need a soak every 10 – 14 days. Do not constantly water lightly. This encourages shallow root growth which is prone to drying out. If you don't have the resources to mulch the whole bed then just mulch around the plants.

Planting Tips

Choose plants that have not yet come into flower. In dry periods root growth stops once flowering has started.
Buy and plant as early in the season as you can to give roots the best chance to get cracking. Concentrate available supplies of water on any newly planted items.

Lawns

Raise mower blades and cut less frequently when dry weather has set in.
Don't worry if your lawn goes brown. It will recover. If you have to seed or turf a new lawn, do it outside of any dry periods.
If you must do it, whatever the weather, then make sure you can water regularly.

For the Future

If these dry periods are here to stay, then you could consider:-
Creating shingle planting beds. The shingle acts as a mulch as well as being a good colour foil for the planting.

Constructing a pond to take all your rainwater. This can be used as a reservoir for watering purposes. The surface level is going to fluctuate with usage so a natural (wild life?) type pond would probably be best as it will look good whatever the water level.

Wind evaporation depletes the available water for your plants. Hedges, fences and hardy shrub plantings will reduce this wind effect. As a rule of thumb, a barrier will protect an area six times it's height. Beware of brick walls though as they produce dry conditions. They also cause high winds to crash over their tops damaging your plants. The best way to stop this effect of wind is to filter it, not try to stop it altogether.

If you want to be really 'green' you can construct a reed bed filter to take your kitchen and bathroom waste. This will clean it before discharging it into the pond.

Choosing your plants for future plantings should be done with dry conditions in mind. Some plants are much more tolerant of dry conditions than others.