Five Tips to Protect Your Garden From the Summer Heat.

Every summer here in Southern Oregon is expected to be hot, dry, and along with that, no expectation for rain for a few months straight. Keeping up with your garden in the heat is certainly no easy task, but here are some tips and tricks to help make your gardening this summer a much-needed breeze. 

1. Use mulch – The main thing you need to worry about in the summer is that hot summer sun. Using a layer of mulch to cover your soil will protect it from direct exposure and will allow the soil to stay moist for longer. We have an excellent variety of mulch to choose from, but if you’re looking for an eco-friendly way to reuse lawn clippings, dry out your lawn clippings and use those as a replacement. 
2. Water early and avoid over-watering – Watering early in the morning helps the plants retain moisture all throughout the day. If you water later in the day, there’s a chance that the water won’t reach the roots before it evaporates. This leads to the second point, avoid overwatering! If you can’t water early in the morning and have to water midday, ensure you don’t water too much and flood your plants! 
3. Touch up with hand watering – If you’re relying on sprinklers or certain irrigation hoses, it’s always safe to touch up those areas at the end of the day with some light hand watering. Don’t overwater the areas, but go in with a light drizzle to make sure your plants will be sufficiently watered, and going over your plants like this can help you locate any potential dry spots that your sprinklers or irrigation hoses are missing. 
4. Use protective covers – In the case of a heat wave in the late summer, it’s always safe to use protective coverings. Protective coverings can protect your plants from the heat, but be sure to not restrict aeration. By placing a cloth even on one side of the plants or above them can help your plants significantly. While there are some protective covers made to purchase, you can also make your own using anything from old fabric to old window screens.
5. Weed regularly – Paying extra attention to your plants this summer can also encourage the growth of some less than desirable weeds. Keeping up weeding regularly as opposed to waiting and pulling them all at a later date is much healthier for your garden, especially in the summer. Weeds grow much more rapidly and will restrict your other plants’ roots from water which they desperately need on a hot summer day.  

Hilton Landscape Supply is your one-stop shop for all your summer landscaping and gardening needs.

If it goes in your yard, you can probably find it at Hilton Landscape Supply!  Whether your garden needs a fresh load of soil, a new layer of mulch, or the best fertilizers and nutrients for your area, Hilton Landscape Supply is the place to go.  We’ve been serving Southern Oregon and Northern California since 1956, so we know what works best for growing healthy plants and vegetation in our regions.  Stop by our retail store in Central Point or contact us for more information about all the products we carry to enhance your garden and outdoor living areas.