How to Rescue Dying Landscape Plants
Assess your plants' watering needs., Buy a lawn sprinkler, a garden hose, an automatic water timer, and an inexpensive rain gauge., To figure out how much water your lawn sprinkler is putting out per hour, set the rain gauge in its path while...
Step-by-Step Guide
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Step 1: Assess your plants' watering needs.
Under-watering is a far more common problem than overwatering.
As a general rule, each square foot of the landscape needs about 2-3 quarts of water weekly.
Or, about 20 liters (5.3Â USÂ gal) per square meter.
Put another way, it needs to receive at least one inch (about 25 mm) of rain or water each week.
Most trees need about 2-3 quarts of water once per week for every foot in height (spread evenly around its root system).
Thus, a 20 ft tall tree should get 40-60 quarts of water once per week.
Or, about 18 liters (4.8Â USÂ gal) per week for a 6 meter tree. -
Step 2: Buy a lawn sprinkler
You can get these at most hardware stores or garden centers.
This is a small investment (probably USD$50 or less) compared to replacing thousands of dollars in landscaping.
Most people fail in maintaining their landscape because they try watering all plants by hand.
This usually leads to gross under-watering because of wrongly estimating watering needs.
It is also massively time-consuming. , Check it every 15 minutes.
Once it hits the one inch mark (about 25 mm), note how much time elapsed.
Depending on your home's water pressure and your sprinkling system, this can take anywhere from 30 minutes to 120 minutes. , The automatic timer will shut off the water so you don't waste it.
This also saves you many hours compared to hand watering. , It's unlikely you will over-water your garden even if it does rain. , To do this, water 1 inch (25 mm) every 48 hours for the first week.
During this same period, trees should get 6-9 quarts of water for every foot (about 3 liters per meter) in height, spread evenly around the roots. , To do this, water 1 inch (25mm) every 72 hours for the second week.
At this point, you should notice your landscape greening up quite nicely.
Trees should get 4-6 quarts of water for every foot in height, spread evenly around the roots. ,,, The second most common cause of dying landscape plants is inadequate plant nutrition.
In other words, fertilize your plants.
Inexpensive systems for applying fertilizer are available at most hardware stores or garden centers.
Buy a garden feeder that attaches to your lawn sprinkler.
The garden feeders usually come packaged with a popular brand of balanced liquid fertilizer.
This can usually be obtained for under US$12. ,,, This step should not be ignored.
Fertilizer is only a short term solution for immediate rescue.
Building the soil organically is a must. ,, If the directions aren't printed, a general rule is one bag for every 10 square feet of planted landscape. (about 1 bag per square meter) , Then replace the mulch. , It's best done in the spring in subsequent years, and can be applied more lightly, at the rate of 1 bag every 20 square feet (1 bag per 2 square meters) -
Step 3: a garden hose
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Step 4: an automatic water timer
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Step 5: and an inexpensive rain gauge.
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Step 6: To figure out how much water your lawn sprinkler is putting out per hour
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Step 7: set the rain gauge in its path while watering.
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Step 8: On subsequent waterings
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Step 9: set the timer for the time needed to get an inch of water.
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Step 10: Water your landscape on a regular schedule even if it looks like it may rain.
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Step 11: For the first week of plant rescue
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Step 12: water the landscape so it gets 3 inches (about 8 cm) the first week.
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Step 13: For the second week of plant rescue
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Step 14: water the landscape so it gets 2 inches (about 5 cm) the second week.
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Step 15: For each week thereafter
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Step 16: water once per week so the landscape gets one inch (25 mm) per week.
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Step 17: For each week thereafter
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Step 18: water each tree once per week so each gets 2-3 quarts for every foot in height (per week).
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Step 19: At week three
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Step 20: get nutrients on your landscape.
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Step 21: Follow the fertilizer package directions and apply balanced liquid fertilizer to your landscape using the garden feeder that attaches to your sprinkler.
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Step 22: Fertilize once per month thereafter during the growing season
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Step 23: unless the package directions indicate otherwise.
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Step 24: Amend your soil by applying compost or composted manure.
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Step 25: Compost or manure can be obtained at garden centers or hardware stores in 40-pound bags for under USD$3 per bag.
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Step 26: Follow directions for spreading the compost on the bag.
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Step 27: If your landscape is mulched
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Step 28: rake away the mulch before applying the compost.
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Step 29: Apply compost or manure only once per year.
Detailed Guide
Under-watering is a far more common problem than overwatering.
As a general rule, each square foot of the landscape needs about 2-3 quarts of water weekly.
Or, about 20 liters (5.3Â USÂ gal) per square meter.
Put another way, it needs to receive at least one inch (about 25 mm) of rain or water each week.
Most trees need about 2-3 quarts of water once per week for every foot in height (spread evenly around its root system).
Thus, a 20 ft tall tree should get 40-60 quarts of water once per week.
Or, about 18 liters (4.8Â USÂ gal) per week for a 6 meter tree.
You can get these at most hardware stores or garden centers.
This is a small investment (probably USD$50 or less) compared to replacing thousands of dollars in landscaping.
Most people fail in maintaining their landscape because they try watering all plants by hand.
This usually leads to gross under-watering because of wrongly estimating watering needs.
It is also massively time-consuming. , Check it every 15 minutes.
Once it hits the one inch mark (about 25 mm), note how much time elapsed.
Depending on your home's water pressure and your sprinkling system, this can take anywhere from 30 minutes to 120 minutes. , The automatic timer will shut off the water so you don't waste it.
This also saves you many hours compared to hand watering. , It's unlikely you will over-water your garden even if it does rain. , To do this, water 1 inch (25 mm) every 48 hours for the first week.
During this same period, trees should get 6-9 quarts of water for every foot (about 3 liters per meter) in height, spread evenly around the roots. , To do this, water 1 inch (25mm) every 72 hours for the second week.
At this point, you should notice your landscape greening up quite nicely.
Trees should get 4-6 quarts of water for every foot in height, spread evenly around the roots. ,,, The second most common cause of dying landscape plants is inadequate plant nutrition.
In other words, fertilize your plants.
Inexpensive systems for applying fertilizer are available at most hardware stores or garden centers.
Buy a garden feeder that attaches to your lawn sprinkler.
The garden feeders usually come packaged with a popular brand of balanced liquid fertilizer.
This can usually be obtained for under US$12. ,,, This step should not be ignored.
Fertilizer is only a short term solution for immediate rescue.
Building the soil organically is a must. ,, If the directions aren't printed, a general rule is one bag for every 10 square feet of planted landscape. (about 1 bag per square meter) , Then replace the mulch. , It's best done in the spring in subsequent years, and can be applied more lightly, at the rate of 1 bag every 20 square feet (1 bag per 2 square meters)
About the Author
Jonathan Henderson
Enthusiastic about teaching pet care techniques through clear, step-by-step guides.
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