The Drought's Almost Over, Now What? Part 1
First, Let's Access the Damage
Many trees, shrubs and perennials have struggled. Some have died. How will we know the difference? On some plants we may not know the damage until next Spring. I suggest leaving the dead tops on woody plants until next Spring to see what does come back.
Here are a few methods you can use to check your woody shrubs and trees status:
Test One
Are they wilted or crispy? If they are just wilting a bit, a long slow soaking may do them some good. Put your hose on at a trickle at the base of the plant for a few hours just once per week.
Test Two
If the leaves are crispy you will want to move to test number 2. Grab a branch and slowly bend it. Does it quickly break from being brittle or does it flex a bit before it breaks? A flexing branch means there is still some life to it. That plant has a chance. I suggest you make sure it gets watered once per week either by Mother Nature, an inch or so, or by you. You may see it leaf back out, but this late in the season you may not. I would wait until Spring to see what happens over the winter.
Test Three
Did the branch just snap off with no flexibility? You have one more test, number 3. Take a sharp knife and simply make a small slice on the trunk about half the size of a dime, one quarter to three eighths of an inch wide and long. Do you see any green to the bark at all? No green within the bark means the plant did not survive the extremes of the summer. It is highly unlikely there is any life within it. The technical term is "It's Toast".
Here is some good news.
We have had some good rain and Isaac is getting ready to pay us visit here in the Midwest. Our reservoirs will fill, the watering ban will lift and the arid, desert days of 100 degrees plus and 25% relative humidity are behind us. The other good new is this. Fall is and always has been the absolute best time to plant.
Perennials should be in the ground by the end of the first week of October. Trees and shrubs can be planted until the ground is frozen. I had a customer that insisted that we did not plant her trees and shrubs until there was a slightly frozen crust on the ground. We would use pick ax to break the surface. After two years of installing our planting plan she never lost a plant. The sleepy winter weather gives plants a chance to put all of their energy into growing a root system instead of leaves and pretty blooms. While the tops sleep, the roots are busy at work.
Let's take it one step further and look at native plants that take our extreme weather conditions and will use less water in the future to maintain. Watch for "The Drought's Almost Over, Now What? Part 2" coming soon....
Written by Cool Ponds Co-Owner Steve
Many trees, shrubs and perennials have struggled. Some have died. How will we know the difference? On some plants we may not know the damage until next Spring. I suggest leaving the dead tops on woody plants until next Spring to see what does come back.
Here are a few methods you can use to check your woody shrubs and trees status:
Test One
Are they wilted or crispy? If they are just wilting a bit, a long slow soaking may do them some good. Put your hose on at a trickle at the base of the plant for a few hours just once per week.
Test Two
If the leaves are crispy you will want to move to test number 2. Grab a branch and slowly bend it. Does it quickly break from being brittle or does it flex a bit before it breaks? A flexing branch means there is still some life to it. That plant has a chance. I suggest you make sure it gets watered once per week either by Mother Nature, an inch or so, or by you. You may see it leaf back out, but this late in the season you may not. I would wait until Spring to see what happens over the winter.
Test Three
Did the branch just snap off with no flexibility? You have one more test, number 3. Take a sharp knife and simply make a small slice on the trunk about half the size of a dime, one quarter to three eighths of an inch wide and long. Do you see any green to the bark at all? No green within the bark means the plant did not survive the extremes of the summer. It is highly unlikely there is any life within it. The technical term is "It's Toast".
Here is some good news.
We have had some good rain and Isaac is getting ready to pay us visit here in the Midwest. Our reservoirs will fill, the watering ban will lift and the arid, desert days of 100 degrees plus and 25% relative humidity are behind us. The other good new is this. Fall is and always has been the absolute best time to plant.
Perennials should be in the ground by the end of the first week of October. Trees and shrubs can be planted until the ground is frozen. I had a customer that insisted that we did not plant her trees and shrubs until there was a slightly frozen crust on the ground. We would use pick ax to break the surface. After two years of installing our planting plan she never lost a plant. The sleepy winter weather gives plants a chance to put all of their energy into growing a root system instead of leaves and pretty blooms. While the tops sleep, the roots are busy at work.
Let's take it one step further and look at native plants that take our extreme weather conditions and will use less water in the future to maintain. Watch for "The Drought's Almost Over, Now What? Part 2" coming soon....
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