Rain is generally a welcome sight here in San Antonio, but sometimes we get too much of a good thing. In our city, it seems like it’s feast or famine when it comes to those precious drops of water. This timely, but short, blog is a reminder of what to look out for in the garden after periods of heavy or prolonged rain.
5 Things to Watch for in the Garden after Heavy Rain
Be Aware of Developing Fungal and Disease Issues: Cloudy, wet weather can be the perfect breeding ground for certain types of fungal disease. Make sure you are doing everything else correct to help prevent and avoid fungal disease in the first place, and then if you still develop an issue, you can come see us at Rainbow Gardens and we’ll steer you to the correct sulfur or copper based product that can help you treat the fungal disease.
Watch out for the creepy crawlies. Seems like it was just a couple of weeks ago that we posted our blog about slugs and snails who love the cloudy weather and moist soil that heavy periods of rain bring. Oh yeah, it was! Well, they will be on the hunt for food (i.e. your precious plants) again soon. Round two, here we go!
Get Ready to Battle Weeds. Rain doesn’t just make the plants you love grow, it grows the ones you despise too! If you didn’t put down pre-emergent in spring, and sometimes even if you did (although it won’t be as bad), be on the lookout for the emergence of many sprouts of newly watered weeds. The time to get after these invaders is just after the rain subsides. The soil is pliable and the weeds will give when you pull them out. Don’t wait until the soil dries and clumps a hold around the roots again. Believe me, it is a very satisfying task when you tug on a weed and pull up the entire root. Nirvana! One weed leads to another, so get after it!
Who has soggy soil? Take a second to look for problematic areas of soil that do not drain in a timely manner. There aren’t a ton of plants out there that like their roots to be wading around in stagnant water for very long. This can lead to root rot which ultimately can lead to death. If your soil doesn’t drain, it may be in need of soil amendment products.
Extra lookout: Please check on your potted plants if yo uhappen to have them sitting on turf. Their drainage holes are being blocked and the soil in the turf underneath them is saturated from the rain. They aren’t able to drain properly.
Be on the lookout for good things too! Rain is free water. Rain fills up our Aquifer (our birdbaths too) and keeps us out of water restrictions. Rain promotes deep, healthy roots on plants and encourages beautiful blooms to go ahead and burst open. Rain cools our summer temperatures if even for a moment and by golly, rain is fun to dance in! You’ll never hear me singing, “Rain Rain Go Away”, for I know it may be awhile until we get to enjoy it again!
~The Happy Gardener, Lisa Mulroy
