The heat of summer is back with a vengeance, which is why we went ahead and created a list of the best things that you can do to keep your plants healthy by protecting them from the intense temperatures that we’ve begun to experience. Below are three tips that will help to ensure that all of your favorite plants survive.
Water, water, water
It is imperative that you are watering all of your plants. As these daily highs begin reaching into the 90’s and above, you will need to increase the frequency of your applications. For example, if you typically water every third day you will begin watering every other day instead.
Another important thing to remember is that mature plants need water too! All of your plants need water, regardless of whether you have a shrub that’s been in the ground for five years or a tree taller than your home.
It is equally important that you don’t overwater your plant. Remember, you want to give the roots time to dry out before you saturate the soil again. Be mindful of the species of plant that you are caring for, and if you’re not sure, feel free to ask one of our professionals!
Watch out for pests
As you know, weather is unpredictable. These hot days always seem to appear out of nowhere! It’s times like these when vacations are fun, but there is nothing fun about coming home to dead plants.
If you don’t have an automated irrigation system, be sure that there is someone to maintain your plants. If your plants do go longer than they should without proper care, keep a very close eye on them. It may not seem like a huge deal, but missing water will weaken your plant. While in a weakened state they are more susceptible to attacks from bugs and diseases. Seems scary, but don’t worry, all of those things are completely preventable. If any of your plants are attacked by unexpected visitors, be sure to speak to a nursery professional about the best course of action to fix your problems. For more information about pests, check out our posts about aphids and grubs!
Hold off on the pruning
Pruning plants keeps them healthy, helps them to grow, and just makes them more presentable. All of these are good reasons to trim, but it’s best to hold off on any elective trimming until the plant is dormant.
Making any unnecessary cuts during the hot summer months can cause your plants to drip sap. This can attract those same pests that we covered earlier, they just don’t let up!
If you do notice that any of your plants are leaking sap you should contact us immediately to prevent any unwanted damage from occurring, the sooner the better in these situations.
The best time to prune any plant is deep into winter when they are dormant, which is around February in the Prescott area.
Enjoy your summer!
Now that you learned some of the best ways to care for your plants in the heat you can relax knowing that they are going to flourish. Remember to keep watering them (but not too much!), watch out for pests, and hold off on unnecessary pruning until winter… it’s that easy! Check out our other posts and come on into the nursery to learn even more about how your plants can be healthy as can be.