No Rain? Best Way To Help Your Plants

I think I saw a rain drop yesterday.  That was it.  A rain drop.  Here in Central Florida we are now facing our third month with below normal rainfall and heading into a dry spring season.  Add summer time temperatures to the lack of rain and we have stressful conditions for our landscape. 

The good news is that we know that with these weather patterns that we can control how we take care of our landscape.  We can adjust our irrigation, reduce our fertilization and pruning, replenish our mulch, but what else can you do to help your plants handle the temporary drought cycle?

You can add amendments to your garden beds and surrounding shrubs and young trees. Adding organic materials to your sandy soils will help keep the moisture in the ground, provide nutrients that will help plants thrive, and reduce the amount of garden chores that usually come from having 'less than optimum' sand.

Myakka Sand

Our state soil 'Myakka' was designated in 1989, because Florida (an Indian word for 'Big Waters') has more total acreage of Myakka sand than any other soil type. This native soil which is wet sandy soil with an underground layer of organic subsoils is not found in any other state. 

While most new residents from up North like to complain about our dirt. Its not bad. It just is. Myakka sand can provide good drainage, easy to dig in, and does have macronutrients and minerals in it.

Yet sandy soils do not retain moisture very long and can have microbacterial conditions that allow for quick decomposition, leaching nutrients, and nemotodes. Adding organic amendments to your soils is a great way to help your plants survive easier during hotter, dryer periods.

How much should you add?  For a typical 10 square feet, you can add one bag (20 lbs) of top soil, one bag of peat moss, and one bag of manure.  Or you can substitute similar amounts of mushroom or your own seasoned compost.  Work the amendments into the top six to eight inches of your garden bed or apply it around to your shrubs and trees and work it into the ground.

Be careful not to add green compost ingredients, i.e. coffee grounds, manure, in large amounts to your plants as they can have unintended consequences such as increasing acidity or binding nutrients up.  Add fresh coffee grounds, tea leaves, etc to your compost pile and let them age.

• More information on composting.
• 163 things to add to your compost
• Compost - Living Green - IFAS
• Compost Tips For Home Gardeners - IFAS

Florida Winter Is Driest In 80 Years

Florida set records this year in more ways than one.  Not only did we have colder temperatures earlier (November) but from October through February, it was also the driest winter in eighty years. In December, we had less than an inch of rain for the entire month, January we had 2" - 3" more than normal, and in February, there was less than an inch. March's month totals look to be below the average 3" with no rain anticipated for the next week, leaves Florida in a rainfall deficit.

The lack of hurricanes and tropicals storms last fall, and the lack of adequate rainfall this winter means that lake levels are low, wells will be running dry, and the aquifer will be low with more saltwater intrusion. 

These conditions mean that more landscapes will fail and high maintenance lawns will not survive. Reducing your fertilizing schedule, retrofit your irrigation to be efficient, watering only when your yard shows signs of stress will help your lawn manage till summer rains set in.

Inefficient irrigation system doesn't have head to head coverage.

Want more ways to drought proof your lawn? Check out the University of Florida's recommendations.