Gardens are a delicate ecosystem, requiring just the right amount of every ingredient to thrive. So when one thing is overdone, it can throw the whole thing off-balance.
A gardening expert has revealed what to do when your garden gets too much rain, as the UK will do today and Tuesday (August 4 and 5). A yellow weather warning has been issued from 6am on Monday until 6am on Tuesday, covering 11 regions of the UK. It will bring heavy rain and strong winds, according to the Met Office. Samantha Johnson, a gardening book author, said in the Northern Gardener that excessive rain can produce a unique set of problems in the garden, from weeds and pests to disease and soil issues. She urged people to buy a rain gauge to see how much water their plants and soil are retaining.
Johnson suggested a range of ways to help your garden deal with this. First, trim the lower leaves on your tomatoes and peppers so they don’t trail in the wet soil. This will also help with airflow.
She also recommended removing mulch around your plants, as this will give the soil underneath a better chance of drying out, and ensuring all containers have lots of drainage holes and are placed in dryer locations.
Watch out for pests and plant disease. Wet conditions and humidity can bring out both, so vigilance is required to remove diseased material and pests quickly.
The expert also said to loosen compacted soil and stop watering, to allow the soil to drain. Then, after the rain, you may need to replace nitrogen in the soil, which may have been flushed away.
Lots of rain “equals plenty of weeds”, Johnson says, but weeds can reduce airflow around your desired plants. Weeding, which is easier when the soil is wet, can improve airflow and help your other plants thrive.
The gardening book author also suggested adding trellises and stakes around your garden to give your plants additional support during a storm and promote airflow.