Rain Barrel Refill

Raindrops on roses

Earlier this summer it seemed like it would never stop raining--we had a shower every day for weeks.  During this time, we had over 15 inches of rain.  My rain barrels were constantly full, but I never needed to use them, because everything was kept well watered by the rain.  Then when the rainy period ended, it went to the other extreme, and we had no rain at all for weeks.  I used up all the water in the rain barrels, and with no rain, they didn't get refilled.  Even with five rain barrels, I ended up needing to water my garden with city water.

Clover Lawn

White clover

Once, most lawns had at least some white clover growing in them. Clover has little nodules on its roots that fix the nitrogen pulled from the air into the soil. This nitrogen then helps feed surrounding plants. Until the 1960s, clover was routinely included in grass seed mixtures to help lawns get established faster. When broad-spectrum herbicides came into common use, this changed.  The ideal became an all-grass lawn, and clover was seen as a weed. 

New Rain Barrel

After the City Council recently discussed setting up a rebate on purchases of rain barrels, I started looking around at local stores to see which ones sell them. There aren't a lot of options around here, but on Sunday I did spot a few at one home improvement store. The one I liked best is the same style as the ones I have in the front yard, but in a darker color. They only had a couple of them left. In years past, once they sell their stock of rain barrels in early summer, they don't get any more in until the next year.  Plus, once the rebates are actively available, there will probably be at least a local minor rush on buying rain barrels. They'd already reduced the price on it, so that did it.  I decided to go ahead and get one while I still could.

Rain Barrels

Over the last several years, I have managed to buy four rain barrels.  They're pretty expensive, so my plan has been to get one every couple of years.  Rain barrels really do save a lot on water for the garden.  Even a quarter inch of rain generally fills them back up.  Most of mine hold 50 gallons, and one holds 75.  That's a lot of water for a thirsty garden.

So far this year, I haven't had to use city water once for watering. Of course, it's been the rainiest time of year, and we've only started on the hot season.  Every year when my garden needs water most, the rain barrels are dry. Still, every little bit of rain we get usually fills them back up enough for several days.

Leaf Mold

I'm looking forward to getting out tomorrow to finish raking leaves.  After raking them up into piles, I use my lawn blower/vac to grind them up into small pieces.  You could also use a mulching mower, and collect the shredded leaves into the mower bag. Then I bag them up in large trash bags, moistening them a bit as I go, poke a few holes in each bag, and tuck them away in an out-of-the-way spot in the back yard for the winter.  In about 6 months or so, those chopped leaves will have become leaf mold, an incredible soil conditioner for my garden.

Scorched Leaves

Recently I had someone ask about their plants' leaves being scorched by the hot weather.   That's an issue I'm dealing with as well, so I started reading up on it.  I'd noticed that it seems to happen mostly to plants more recently planted rather than mature ones, so I was not surprised to find out that it is generally an issue with plants that have inadequate root systems.  Many times it happens to plants that have not been in the ground long enough to establish a good root system, so in prolonged very hot weather, and with hot winds, the roots are simply unable to supply water to the foliage as fast as it is lost by transpiration from the leaves.  Other times it may happen to more mature plants that have not developed good root systems or have had damage to their roots, such as roots dehydrated by too little winter moisture, or stunted by compacted soil or poor drainage. Often the effects of a dry winter are seen in mid-summer when plants struggle with scorched leaves.

Gardening in a Heat Wave

Moss rose thrives in hot summers

The high temperature here today was 107. Tomorrow it's supposed to be 106.  The forecast for the next week shows highs of 100 or above every day.  Well, that's summer in Kansas -- thank God for air conditioning!

Heat like this, especially over an extended period, is really hard on the garden (as well as people, animals, utilities budgets, etc.)  There are a few things a gardener can do to help their plants make it through this kind of weather.

Rain Barrels

I got my new rain barrel installed this evening; all ready for the possible rain showers later this week.  I already had two, but have been dreaming of getting several more.  I like to, as much as possible, use the chlorine-free rainwater for my garden, plus avoid the high summer water bills.