So it seems that some plants like to get completely dry, then flooded
and not watered again until dry - but is there an easy way to
determine which will work best for a particular plant or family? I've
been doing the dry/drench on my ficus benjamina and it has been
thriving! Sometimes I go 10 days before adding a drop of water.
However I tried the same with my bougainvillea and it wasn't so happy.
Creeping fig and grape vines also seem happiest with being damp all
the time...

Other than that, I'm adding a little bit of organic fish and seaweed
fertilizer to every other watering or so.

Another curiousity - I spray the leaves every morning on all the
plants - does that actually help them, or just make them look shiny?

Thanks!

- jaydee

On 10/12/2008 3:13 PM, JayDee wrote:
So it seems that some plants like to get completely dry, then flooded
and not watered again until dry - but is there an easy way to
determine which will work best for a particular plant or family? I've
been doing the dry/drench on my ficus benjamina and it has been
thriving! Sometimes I go 10 days before adding a drop of water.
However I tried the same with my bougainvillea and it wasn't so happy.
Creeping fig and grape vines also seem happiest with being damp all
the time...

Other than that, I'm adding a little bit of organic fish and seaweed
fertilizer to every other watering or so.

Another curiousity - I spray the leaves every morning on all the
plants - does that actually help them, or just make them look shiny?

Thanks!

- jaydee

I have an automatic sprinkler system on a clock. It waters my garden
every third day, early in the morning before sunrise. The timing varies
by season. My intent is to keep the soil moist where roots are growing
but allow the top inch or two to get quite dry. For shallow-rooted
plants that need constant moisture, I mulch with leaves and with the
output of my office shredder(*).

In the hottest part of summer (temperatures over 95F), the system also
waters the garden daily for 2 minutes at about 1:00pm. This really adds
very little moisture to the soil but cools the soil and plants.

On my hill in back, all plants are relatively deep rooted. I water
thoroughly once every two weeks. This discourages most weed seeds from
sprouting since the top 4-6 inches of soil is generally bone dry. This
also makes pulling any weeds difficult except during the first 3-4 days
after watering.

(* Yes, shredded paper will deplete nutrients from the soil while
decomposing. However, I use it only around plants that prefer a lean
soil (e.g., camellias).)

--
David E. Ross
Climate: California Mediterranean
Sunset Zone: 21 -- interior Santa Monica Mountains with some ocean
influence (USDA 10a, very close to Sunset Zone 19)
Gardening pages at http://www.rossde.com/garden/

"JayDee" wrote in message
...
So it seems that some plants like to get completely dry, then flooded
and not watered again until dry - but is there an easy way to
determine which will work best for a particular plant or family?



Look to the region where they originated for cues as to preferred cultural
practices.


--
Toni
Hills of Kentucky
USDA Zone 6b
http://www.cearbhaill.com

"JayDee" wrote in message
...
So it seems that some plants like to get completely dry, then flooded
and not watered again until dry - but is there an easy way to
determine which will work best for a particular plant or family? I've
been doing the dry/drench on my ficus benjamina and it has been
thriving! Sometimes I go 10 days before adding a drop of water.
However I tried the same with my bougainvillea and it wasn't so happy.
Creeping fig and grape vines also seem happiest with being damp all
the time...

Other than that, I'm adding a little bit of organic fish and seaweed
fertilizer to every other watering or so.

Another curiousity - I spray the leaves every morning on all the
plants - does that actually help them, or just make them look shiny?

Thanks!

- jaydee

Like someone else said in other words, refer to the general region where the
plant originates. That will cue you in to its general water likes. Why?
Some will form root rot due to constant water, preferring instead to the dry
and drowning scheme. The soil also decides how long the soil will hold its
moisture.

Grapes in general don't like a constant moist soil.
--
Dave

If it looks like fish, smells like fish, its not
a cantaloupe.

"JayDee" wrote in message
...
So it seems that some plants like to get completely dry, then flooded
and not watered again until dry - but is there an easy way to
determine which will work best for a particular plant or family?

YES! With trees, the anatomy of specific species will give you some idead
on watering requirements. E.g., a ring porous trees such as oak, not Live,
would load large amounts of water in the early growth in girth or the spring
wood growth while in summer only loading an moderate amout of water and
elements. BTW, if vessel 1 is 2 times as big as vessel 2, vessel one cannot
load 2 times as much water and essential elements but, rather, 4 times as
much. Expotential factor of 4.
http://www.treedictionary.com/DICT20...ng_porous.html

A diffuse porous tree would load moderate amounts of water and elements
dissolved in it during the entire growing season.
http://www.treedictionary.com/DICT20...se_porous.html

A conifer with the summer wood trachied becoming thicker walled, thus
reducing amount of loading by 4 as well, would follow the water and element
loading pattern of a ring porous tree.
http://www.treedictionary.com/DICT2003/C/conifers.html

So, if you had a white oak and in the summer if you keep the soil soaked it
will not be absorbed thus stimulating root rot.


--
Sincerely,
John A. Keslick, Jr.
Consulting Tree Biologist
www.treedictionary.com
and
http://home.ccil.org/~treeman
Watch out for so-called tree experts who do not understand tree biology.
Storms, fires, floods, earthquakes, tornado's, volcanic eruptions and other
abiotic forces keep reminding humans that they are not the boss.

"Jangchub" wrote in message
...
On Sun, 19 Oct 2008 20:10:45 -0400, "symplastless"
wrote:

Thank you Dr. Irwin Corey.
Victoria


Mind your business please.

symplastless wrote:
"Jangchub" wrote in message
...
On Sun, 19 Oct 2008 20:10:45 -0400, "symplastdless"
wrote:

Thank you Dr. Irwin Corey.
Victoria


Mind your business please.


Would that you would take your own advise, yard boy.