Saving Water in the Garden

Saving water in the garden: For most of the year, water used outside the home for watering the garden or washing the car accounts for about 6% of domestic water usage. During the summer this figure generally rises and (hosepipe bans allowing) on the hotter summer evenings it can account for as much as 50% of domestic consumption. Of this amount most is used in watering of lawns - so please take a look at our lawn care information page to find out how you can conserve water and keep a healthy lawn.

As in the home, conserving water in the garden is straightforward and you can still have an attractive and productive garden.

The easy things:

• Save free rainwater with a waterbutt, and if you've already got one but it's always used up then think about getting another. With more and more of us having water meters, waterbutts are not only environmentally friendly but will also pay for themselves over and over.
• Water plants and lawns less often but more deeply - this will encourage deeper root growth which means healthier plants more able to withstand the drier conditions. With plants a rule is don't water until they show signs of wilting and for more information on watering your lawn, take a look at our section on lawn care.
• When it is very hot much of the water you give your plants can be lost through evaporation, so to ensure as much as possible gets to the roots where it's needed, water in the early morning or shade of the evening when evaporation rates are lower. Also make sure you direct water to the base of the plant and not on to the leaves.
• Very obvious but make sure you are not watering gravel areas and pathways. If pathways need cleaning try not to get out the jet wash with it's higher water consumption, give it a go cleaning with less water and  a stiff broom first.
• Try to use watering cans to water flowerbeds rather than garden sprinklers. Garden sprinklers can use as much water in an hour as a family of four uses in a day. If you don't want to use a watering can then use a hose with a trigger nozzle attachment so that you can control the spray. Make sure your hose doesn't have a leak - if it does why not use it to make a drip irrigation system (see below).
• Regularly weed your garden so that you are not watering the weeds rather than your plants. Many weeds put down root systems faster than ornamental plants so will out-compete your plants for the limited water supply.

The slightly more involved:

• It takes a little bit of effort (and expense if you don't make your own) but a good thick layer of mulch on your flowerbeds (about 7.5cm or 3 inches deep is ideal) will help to cut down soil evaporation significantly.
• Installing a good drip irrigation/micro spray or porous hoese system for borders and vegetable gardens will dramatically increase the effectiveness of your watering. You can buy DIY irrigations kits from garden centres or an even easier and lower-cost way is to use an old piece of hose, puncture a few holes in it and position it around the areas to be watered. To cover multiple areas you can use more than one hose and connect them to a tap splitter, that way you can just connect as required. Remember to keep the water pressure as low as possible so only a trickle comes from the far end of the hose..
• Sprinkle water saving granules around your beds and borders.
• When planting trees and shrubs insert a watering tube for existing trees and shrubs to get water to the deep roots, but take care not to damage the root systems so you don't end up doing more harm that good.
• Choose plants that need less water such as pinks, lavender, buddleia, French honeysuckle, daisy bushes , rock rose and the African and Peruvian lily.
• Oh yes and when watering the car ...pressure washers whether at home or in the carwash are very convenient, but do waste an awful lot of water (inevitably drinking quality) and energy. Try using saved rainwater, or 'grey' water left over form washing up or bathing, and a bucket and sponge as often as you are able.  it will probably mean your car gets a more thorough wash and may also help you to spot stone chips etc before they turn into irritating and potentially expensive rust spots.