Predictably Rainless Summers
In the eastern United States, summertime rainfall can support gardens without irrigation but is just irregular enough to be worrisome. West of the Cascades we go into the summer growing season certain...
gardens without irrigation but is just irregular enough to be
worrisome. West of the Cascades we go into the summer growing season
certain we must water regularly.
My own many-times-revised book _Growing Vegetables West of the
Cascades_ correctly emphasized that moisture-stressed vegetables
suffer greatly. Because I had not yet noticed how plant spacing
affects soil moisture loss, in that book I stated a half-truth as
law: Soil moisture loss averages 1-1/2 inches per week during
summer.
This figure is generally true for raised-bed gardens west of the
Cascades, so I recommended adding 1 1/2 inches of water each week
and even more during really hot weather.
Share this guide
Help another gardener grow something good.
Related guides
Windbreaks
Plants transpire more moisture when the sun shines, when temperatures are high, and when the wind blows; it is just like drying laundry. Windbreaks also help the garden grow in winter by increasing te...
WHY YOU SHOULD GARDEN
There are more reasons to-day than ever before why the owner of a small place should have his, or her, own vegetable garden. The days of home weaving, home cheese-making, home meat-packing, are gone....
WHEN TO SOW OUTDOORS
Sow from the end of March to the beginning of May, or when plum and peach trees bloom, the following: Beet Cabbage Carrot Cauliflower Celery Endive Kale Kohlrabi Lettuce Onions Parsley Parsnip Peas Ra...