Water is a valuable resource, so anything we can do to use it efficiently makes sense! When it comes to planting, there are two ways to do it – the waterwise and the not-so-waterwise way. The not-so-waterwise way is to simply dig a home, put the plant in and add water, the waterwise way is to spend time before the plant goes in adding well-aged compost which holds water. Each kilogram of organic matter retains around 14 litres of water. Another waterwise trick to holding water is using water crystals. These are polymers that hydrate when water is added. Plant roots grow through these water filled crystals and, should the ground around dry up, can access moisture from them – good insurance. A handful of these in the planting hole does the job. After planting, apply a seaweed solution to further increase the soil’s wetting capacity and give the plant a top start. And remember the mulch! Around 100 millimetres thick should do the trick, helping cool the soil and reducing evaporation. If you want more waterwise gardening ideas just head to the SA Water website! SA WATER WATCH THE CLIP
