3 minute read
Liquid Gold
Water conservation and management in the garden
Caroline Knight: Gardendesignideas.co.uk
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As you swivel the magic turnkey that releases a gushing stream of clean and sparkling water into your can, pause for a moment. Marvel at the luck of the draw that finds us living in a part of the world where water is available for us to use and to misuse. The water that you pour into summer hanging baskets and sprinkle liberally on your beds and borders was once excreted by huge reptiles. Your café latte contains dinosaur pee. Indeed, water on Planet Earth has been here for almost five billion years and the total amount is just about the same as ever. It represents the ultimate success story in terms of recycling. So, what’s the problem? Portability is the problem. Gardeners will be familiar with the weight of a big can of water – bringing in water where it’s needed isn’t always easy. And when crops fail in Africa, knowing there’s ample water in the world for everyone is no help. Climate change is causing a warmer atmosphere. We either have too much water or too little; Goldilocks would rarely judge things to be ‘just right’. What we all need to do is our bit, so what ‘bit’ is best in a garden, and how can gardeners help? • Creating space for water within a garden can be life-enhancing. Aim to slow rainfall down – allow some of it to be absorbed in vegetation, then catch and retain some more. Provide a pond that collects water run-off, then enjoy watching the biodiverse-rich habitats that develop. Surround your pond with plants that can cope with flooding and drought. They will help to absorb some of the excess during times-a-plenty, but they won’t die of heat exhaustion during a prolonged dry spell.
Some examples are: Acanthus, Astilbe, Brunnera,
Cornus, Eupatorium, Hemerocallis, Iris, Kniphofia,
Miscanthus, Persicaria, Rudbeckia, Scabious and many more. Experimentation is all part of your gardening fun. • In places that require hard materials, choose porous options through which the rain can drain. • Divert your downpipes into water butts – these can be surprisingly beautiful if you shop around. It means you capture some of the rainwater for use when you need it the most. • Choose drought-tolerant planting for the driest parts of your garden. These plants will generally have silvery-coloured leaves or foliage that is covered in fine hair, which reduces evaporation.
Once established, they should survive the hottest, driest weather that they are ever likely to get, without needing to be watered. Surround them with gravel, pebbles or boulders as this will conserve what little moisture there is in the soil, plus it looks great too. • Use plants to help your plants. One species can prop up another and provide shade if they are planted close together. Avoid bare patches of soil that will dry out in hot weather. • Consider adding structural reinforcement to your shed roof so that you can add plants. It’s such a great look and captures water as it falls. Sedums and wildflowers will give you butterflies and bees all spring and summer long.
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