Protecting Your Garden During Rainstorms

1/4/2022 (Permalink)

Although our gardens love a nice rain shower, too much rain can be harmful to all the plants. After all the hard work you have done to manage your garden, do not let heavy rainstorms ruin it! 

Follow these tips to protect your garden during heavy storms: 

Before: 

• Remove damaged limbs and shoots – Removing dead limbs and shoots from your plants will help make them more streamlined and will reduce snapping and tangling. 

• Add compost and mulch – Adding a couple of inches of compost to the top 8 to 12 inches of soil will help with drainage. 
• Support taller plants – Push a wooden or metal support into the ground and tie taller plants to it. This will help keep them stable against rain and strong winds. 
• Drainage – Make sure there is a proper runoff that tilts away from your garden and make sure it is not blocked. Water collecting in your garden can be damaging to your plants, possibly drowning them. 

During: 

• Cover you most delicate plants – Use a waterproof tarp to cover your most fragile plants during heavy rainstorms. Make sure that the covering is not blocking water from draining because it can cause other plants to drown. 

After: 

• Check your vegetable roots – Once the rainstorm has stopped, make sure there are no exposed roots following soil erosion. If there are exposed roots, covered them with soil or compost before they dry out. 
• Check your pots and planters – Pots and planters can easily become flooded if the drainage is blocked. Check them before, during and after rainstorms. You can always cover pots and planters if necessary. 
• Pull weeds up by hand – The moist soil after rain means you are much more likely to retrieve the whole root without it snapping or breaking.