After the heat of the summer, you may feel like wilting. Chances are that your plants are feeling the same way. After all, it’s been very hot and very dry. As you move into the fall, you’ll need to take a look at your plants and evaluate them. Have they been permanently damaged by the drought?
Is your plant stressed?
Some plants go dormant during the summer months. Grass turns yellow or brown. Although it can be tempting to water these it, this is normal and if the fall brings moisture, grass will tend to recover.
Plants can suffer from short and long-term damage from drought. Plants that are dry will wilt, lose some leaves, and have leaves that look dry in places. If this happens over a short period of time, the plant will generally come back when moisture arrives.
Long term damage from drought happens over years. Drought-damaged plants grow more slowly. They may lose leaves from specific parts of the plant, making it look patchy. If this continues, the plant will often die. Plants can suffer the effects of drought for up to three years after the drought has passed.
Helping your drought-damaged plants involves good gardener decision-making. If your plant is severely damaged or you realize that you’ve planted a lot of plants that need a lot of water to survive the summer months, you may need to reevaluate those plants. Are there other plants that would fill the same purpose but thrive in drier weather?
Take a good, hard look at your garden. If a plant isn’t thriving but hasn’t died off, you may be able to keep it if you create a better place for it to live. Once your plant has recovered, you may want to relocate it to a place in the garden that is more suited to its needs. Mulching around plant roots helps keep moisture in the soil, and adding organic material to the soil helps the soil store water. Consider installing irrigation close to the plants’ roots so that they can maximize their use of soil moisture. Support those plants that seem to be survivors.
Finally, observing those plants that pulled through the drought very well will help you decide what to plant next year. Look to desert-adapted plants and native species for ideas as to how to shape your drought-proof garden.