30 The Organic Way 187

W
riting a piece like this is every garden writers
nightmare. If I extol the virtues of all the
drought resistant plants I can think of and
write about every known way to save water, then 2007
is bound to be the wettest summer since records began.
So much easier to write about how to grow squash or
peonies or to describe that lovely garden I visited one
perfect summer day last July. But water conservation isnt
only relevant in drought years: a water-wise garden will
survive the over-wet periods as well as the over-dry ones
with less intervention by you.
In Goulburn, New South Wales, all
outdoor use of water is banned because
of the extent of the drought there.
A healthy respect for our own water
supplies shows a healthy respect for
these people, and millions of others
around the world trying to grow food
with less than abundant water.
What do plants do with water?
So, what exactly does a plant do with all that water? Just
how much is necessary. and why? Well, broadly speaking,
plants use most of the water they take up to transport
nutrients from the soil to the part of the plant that needs
them. Much of the water absorbed from the soil is then
transpired through the leaves in a process that is a little
like humans sweating. A large deciduous tree can get
through as much as 9000 litres on a hot dry day!
Water evaporating from the leaves helps to keep
the plant, and the air around it, cool, and explains why
grass feels cool on your feet on hot days. Water is an
essential component of plant growth. When combined
with carbon dioxide from the air, during photosynthesis,
sugars are produced that form the building blocks
for all plant growth processes. In fact, growth actually
slows down on a hot, dry day. As the stomata (tiny
holes on the leaf surface) close to limit water loss this
also limits carbon dioxide intake and slows down the
photosynthesis process.
Furthermore, plants stressed by too much or too little
water are far more vulnerable to attack by pests and
diseases, such as aphids and powdery mildew.
Water storage in the soil
Your first step to a water-wise garden should be to
improve the water holding capacity of your soil. Water
stored in the soil itself cannot easily
evaporate and is instantly available
to your plants. Bulky organic matter
improves both the water-holding
capacity of soil and its structure. Well
structured soil is better able to hold on
to nutrients and release them to the
plants growing in it, so its good organic
practice on all fronts.
Bulky organic matter does not need
to be a rich fertilizer such as garden compost or well
rotted manure. In fact, these should only be used where
A large tree can transpire as much as 9000 litres of water on a hot, dry day.

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Adding bulky organic matter to your borders improves its ability to cope with flood or drought. Adding bulky organic matter to your borders improves its ability to cope with flood or drought.
Gardening
with
Water in Mind
Using minimum-dig
techniques
also helps reduce
water loss
The Organic Way 187 31 The Organic Way 187 31
feeding is necessary too much of these nitrogen-rich
additions is not recommended. Elsewhere, low fertility
soil improvers such as leafmould or green waste compost
are the best additions.
Miraculously, a soil improved in this way will also have
good drainage and will be better able to withstand a rainy
season as well as a drought. Because the organic matter
helps to bind the aggregates in the soil (the sand, clay, and
silt) into larger lumps or colloids, the gaps between the
colloids are correspondingly larger, leading to improved
drainage. Any excess water then drains away easily so
the ground does not become waterlogged. But it is this
organic matter that also acts as a sponge and soaks up
lots of available water for slow release to your plants.
Retaining the water
Having improved your soil as much as possible on as
many of your beds as possible, including ornamental areas,
vegetable beds, and around any fruit trees and soft fruit,
you should turn your attention to retaining as much of
that water as possible by slowing down evaporation from
the soil surface. This means mulching.
Lots of different materials are suitable; see the table
for an idea of the advantages and disadvantages of each
type. Some look better than others and some are more
environmentally friendly choices. You must decide what
will be right for your garden, but remember: any mulch is
better than no mulch.
Using minimum-dig techniques also helps reduce water
loss. Tbls ooesn't just mean |orgolng tbe annual wlnter olg,
but cutting down on all soil cultivations such as hoeing.
Try to do only what is necessary to keep the weeds
down theyll compete with your plants for the available
water as less disturbance of your soil means less of it is
exposed to drying air currents.
Mulch Pros Cons
Water-permeable landscaping fabric
Great for new beds, look good
when covered with gravel or
ornamental bark
Difficult to apply to established
beds, non-renewable resource
Compost, well-rotted manure,
leafmould, green waste compost,
spent hops
Free or cheap resource, recycling,
feeds and conditions soil as well as
retaining moisture
Need renewing, may contain weed
seeds
Newspaper, cardboard
Free resource, recycling, adds to
bulky organic matter content of soil
Functional appearance, need
weighing down
Fresh grass clippings
Free resource, recycling, adds to
bulky organic matter content of soil
Can burn delicate plants, use around
fruit trees and woody shrubs
Composted grass clippings
Free resource, recycling, adds to
bulky organic matter content of soil
Straw
Available in large quantities, adds to
bulky organic matter content of soil
Functional appearance, organic straw
is very hard to source
Gravel Looks good, lasts forever
Expensive, may not be sustainably
quarried
Fit water butts to as much of your greenhouse as possible. Fit water-catching containers to as many of your buildings as you can.
Mulc
Water-
Compo
leafmo
spent h
Newsp
Fresh g
Compo
Straw
32 The Organic Way 187
Harvesting water
Your next line of defence against drought should be
to harvest as much rainwater as possible. Most water
authorities now offer water butts at subsidised prices.
You can also buy some rather smart wooden affairs
from garden centres and online suppliers, or reuse any
suitable container you can get your hands on.
Make sure all water butts are covered.
This prevents any nasty accidents to
children, wildlife, and pets; it stops the
water becoming a mosquito breeding
ground in the height of summer; it
keeps out leaves and other debris, and
excluding the light prevents the water
from turning green.
Try to fit butts to every available
downpipe on your house and garage; on
sheds and greenhouses install guttering
connected to butts. Most butts only hold around 200
litres so you may need to connect several together
to see your garden through a severe drought. If rain is
forecast in a dry spell, pop outside and fill up as many
watering cans as possible from your butts this leaves
spare capacity in the butt for more water.
More financially advantaged readers could
consider installing underground storage tanks, taking
rainfall directly from their roofs to an evaporation-
proof container. We have one under the Vegetable
Inspirations Garden here at Garden Organic Ryton.
You can also install such tanks under greenhouse
staging, as we have in our Paradise Garden.
Greenhouses
Speaking of greenhouses, these can be one of the
most water-hungry areas in the garden. Seedlings
are very vulnerable to damping-off disease a
catch-all term for a variety of fungal infections that can
kill an entire tray of seedlings in hours. Because of this
danger, water seedlings with tap water only because
the water companys treatment will
have eliminated almost all pathogens.
Once your seedlings are past the first
potting-up stage, you can safely use
harvested rainwater.
Never place pots directly on
your greenhouse staging as much
of the water applied to them will
simply drain off. Invest in capillary
matting or gravel trays for greenhouse
staging to prevent runoff when
watering and to enable plants to access this
water when needed.
On the market are many automatic watering
systems suitable for use in a greenhouse. These range
from inexpensive watering spikes to entire systems
with porous hose and timers. Some can use harvested
rainwater or be connected to water butts. However,
some need connecting to the mains, and this would be
illegal during a hosepipe ban so think carefully before
deciding which system to buy. Simple measures such
as putting plants in a spot that is shady at midday and
making full use of gravel trays and capillary matting will
reduce the need for watering.
32 The Organic Way 187

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Built-in water storage in Rytons Paradise Garden Alitex greenhouse.
Never place pots
directly on your
greenhouse staging
Soaker hose enables you to make sure water goes where its needed.
The Organic Way 187 33 The Organic Way 187 33
Reusing water
If all your beds are enriched with organic matter and
mulched, and if as much as possible of the rain falling on
your property is being harvested and stored, only then
should you consider using grey water. Each summer
the Garden Organic Information team receives many
enquiries on the best way to reuse bath and shower
water on the garden. Our advice is always to address
first the issues of storing water in the soil and collecting
rainwater. A bath full of clean looking water may seem
like a wasted resource, and maybe you did only use
environmentally sound detergents, but the water may still
be full of any number of pathogens collected on your skin
from all manner of places.
If you really must use it, do not store the water for any
longer than it takes to cool. Then, only water ornamental
areas and top fruit with it. At all costs avoid using it on
any food eaten raw, such as salad crops and soft fruit. To
be able to store it or use it on more of your food crops,
it will need to be cleaned via a reedbed and that is a
topic for another whole article.
If you want more information on small-scale reedbeds,
The Centre for Alternative Technology has an excellent
tips sheet available from their website www.cat.org.uk or
call 01654 705 950. We have a large reedbed at Garden
Organic Ryton and have a factsheet describing this; see
the members area of our website or call 024 7630 8215
for a free copy.
Carrie Pailthorpe
Advisor, Garden Organic Ryton
Water-wise
gardening tips
Having enriched and mulched the beds, a drought has
hit, and your plants are starting to look thirsty. Even
if you have harvested all the rainwater for the last six
months, you will be aware that this is a finite resource.
How and when to use it? Here are some guidelines:
|n summer, water early ln tbe mornlng or ln tbe
evening when evaporation is slower.
Water tbe soll, not tbe |ollage o| tbe plant.
Soak, oon't splasb. llttle ano o|ten ls NOT tbe
way to do it.
Keep weeos to a mlnlmum as tbey com pete wltb
your plants for this valuable resource.
Only water tbose plants tbat neeo lt. Prlorltlse
annual vegetables and flowers and any new plantings
over established perennials, lawns, and trees.
Use wlnobreaks to sbelter vulnerable plants |rom
drying winds.
Lrect temporary sbaoes |or seeollngs on
hot spring days.
Plant oensely to reouce evaporatlon |rom tbe soll
between the plants.
Water only at crltlcal tlmes. peas ano beans neeo
water as the flowers open and as the pods are
swelling; leafy vegetables from two weeks before they
are to be cut; tomatoes should be watered twice
weekly from flowering; onions and leeks only need
watering as they are getting established; sweet corn
benefits most from water when the plant flowers.
Minimise digging and other soil cultivations The best place to store water is in the soil itself.

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