by Greg Alder | Nov 15, 2018 | Watering |
Collecting rain is easy. Above is how we did it in Lesotho. The real challenge is in getting that collected rainwater to your plants. This week I spoke about collecting and using rainwater in a garden with the members of the Dos Valles Garden Club in Valley Center,...
by Greg Alder | Nov 2, 2018 | Watering, Weather |
It is the middle of fall and we’re running downhill right now. Can’t you feel it? Dusk already descends before dinner time. Sweatshirts are desired in the morning. And you can comfortably water potatoes in the afternoon in a Kion costume. (Halloween never ends when...
by Greg Alder | Jul 27, 2018 | Vegetables, Watering |
Drip irrigation supplemented by occasional overhead watering is the best way to water a vegetable garden. The best? That’s right. That’s my claim. This method gives you all of the advantages of drip irrigation while compensating for its few disadvantages. Here’s...
by Greg Alder | Jun 22, 2018 | Avocados, Watering |
I’ve always wished there were a simple formula that could tell us how much and how often to water an avocado tree. Alas, the variables are too numerous: weather is ever-changing, different soils have different water-holding capacities, frequencies are partially...
by Greg Alder | May 25, 2018 | Fruit, Soil, Watering |
When some people visit my yard or see photos of my trees, they spot a violation of the rules: Aren’t you supposed to keep mulch away from the trunks of your trees? (That’s my rule-breaking lime tree in the photo above.) It’s true, there’s no real benefit...
by Greg Alder | May 11, 2018 | Watering |
Some say drip irrigation is the best. I half agree. I’d modify it to say that drip, including its cousin the micro-sprinkler, is better than other methods of irrigation for many situations, but that it does come with its own set of downsides and challenges. Yet...
by Greg Alder | Dec 1, 2017 | Avocados, Watering |
One of the many signs of the fall season in Southern California is the browning of avocado leaves that is also called “tip burn” because the browning starts at the leaf tips. The photo above shows leaves on one of my Hass avocado trees in late fall. Why do they look...
by Greg Alder | Jun 30, 2017 | Watering, Weather |
Heat waves make me a worried gardener. What can I do to help my plants? Should I water again? How much? This summer of 2017 has started off with a blast of multiple heat waves for Southern California’s valleys (the beach has been spared by the presence of a...
by Greg Alder | Jun 17, 2017 | Watering |
How do you know if a plant needs water? You can look at the plant’s leaves and make a guess, and you can get a rough idea based on how you’ve watered it in the past. And if you’ve just watered a plant, how do you know if you’ve given it enough?...
by Greg Alder | Apr 1, 2017 | Watering |
Looks like the irrigation season is upon us. My yard hasn’t been rained on in over a month now. As you start to water your plants for maximum yield and efficiency you might wonder, as I often have, what time of day is best: morning, afternoon, evening, middle of...
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