Water Conservation

Water conservation is beneficial for our plants, our planet, and our wallets. Using water efficiently just makes sense.

By far, the most important factor in water conservation is soil health. When you have healthy soil, it will

• Absorb rain and irrigation water while limiting erosion, standing water, and run off
• Improve water holding capacity, so plants can use that water during dry periods
• Provide balanced nutrition to plants for optimum plant health, resulting in increased draught tolerance
• Filter pollutants that might damage plants and leave them susceptible to draught

The health and productivity of soil can be improved by adding high quality compost and increasing the population of beneficial organisms in the soil.

Colonial Gardens, PlantRight compost. It is an excellent compost for amending the soil during bed construction or amending a new planting. It can also be used as a top dress or mulch for existing plants. Adding Plant Right compost to your soil will

• Improve soil structure and aeration
• Increase water holding capacity of soil
• Increase organic matter in the soil – which is key to the nutrition cycle of plants
• Store essential plant nutrients – until those nutrients are needed in the nutrition cycle
• Provide a suitable habitat for soil organisms – soil organisms are very important to plant health

Colonial Gardens, PlantRight Bio 800 compost tea is soil biology in a bottle. It is teaming with millions of bacteria, fungi, protozoa, mycorrhizae, and other beneficial soil microbes. Bio 800 also contains many other building blocks of soil that support and maintain soil life. The microorganisms in Plant Right Bio 800 will

• Combine with the compost and the plant roots to become a symbiotic ecosystem. The roots, soil, and organisms will help each other and rely on each other to maintain a healthy ecosystem
• As a result, plant nutrients will be transformed into easily absorbed elements
• Microorganisms will assist with the movement of water and nutrients from the soil into the plants in an efficient manner

When the soil ecosystem is healthy it results in healthy soil. Healthy soil results in healthy plants with improved draught tolerance and water conservation.

Here are a few more tips for water conservation:

• Mulch is an important component of water conservation, especially with newly planted plants Mulching trees and flower beds will
  • Reduce water loss from soil surface
  • Suppress weeds that compete for water
  • Lowers soil temperature, reducing the evaporation of water from the soil
• Planting native plants is another way to reduce water usage. Many of the plants that are native to Missouri require less water, fertilizer, and pesticides.
  • ButtonbushSt. John's Wort, and Chokeberry are attractive, drought tolerant, native shrubs. Coneflower, Indian Blanket, and Blue Star are attractive, drought tolerant, native perennials.
• There are also water conservation strategies for the lawn.
  • Setting your mower to a higher mowing height in the summer can conserve water
  • Keeping your mower blade sharp will produce a clean cut on the grass blade, which causes less water loss than jagged cuts from a dull mower blade

My final tip for conserving water is to invest in quality watering tools. Hoses, sprinklers, and watering wands that leak, kink, and fit improperly will waste water as well as time. They can also be the source of endless frustration. Dramm products are high quality American made watering tools that make watering fast and efficient.

By following these simple guidelines, you can save water, time, and money, while doing something positive for our planet.