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                                    Watering

At last Summer weather is here so here are a few tips and comments about watering.
 

Firstly our allotment society has to pay for the water
we use as our water is metered. As a result plotholders are only allowed to
use hosepipes (attached to the allotment water points) to fill up containers
(watering cans, water butts etc). Hosepipes can’t be used to water plants
directly via a sprayer or by any other attachment. They are encouraged to attach guttering to sheds and to collect  rain water. It's surprising how much you can collect from even a small shed!

Secondly, the motto is “Water Plants not Weeds”. Dry
conditions are good at reducing weed growth so if you are careful to water just
the plants and not the area in between the plants you will find you will
save yourself a lot of work weeding!

Thirdly, some plants need very little water and others only
need it at certain times during their growth. All plants when they just been planted
need a good watering but once they are established many need very little water
afterwards. Brassicas (cabbages, cauliflowers, broccoli, brussels sprouts, kale
etc) rarely need much watering. The exception for broccoli and cauliflower is
when they are forming their curds/florets. Root vegetables (carrots, parsnips
etc) don’t need a lot of water as does sweetcorn. Beans and peas need a
moderate amount mainly when the pods/beans are forming. Potatoes only
need water when they are forming their flowers (which is when the
tubers are growing underground) but quite frankly I rarely water mine. Bush
fruit such as raspberries and strawberries need a moderate amount of water when
the fruits are forming. The plants that tend to need a fair bit of water are the
cucurbit family (squashes, pumpkins, courgettes, marrows etc). One tip is to
cut the end off a plastic bottle, put a hole in the cap and push it in the soil near the plant.Then fill it with water to act as a reservoir. Other plants that need moist soil all the time to
do well are celery, celeriac and bulb fennel. Of course if you mix lots of good
compost with the soil you will help it retain  any moisture and save yourself work watering!

George Gray