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Dry-tolerant plants are your friends
Mediterranean and prairie plants love a free-draining, sun-baked spot. Lavender, rosemary, salvia, sedum, yarrow, ornamental grasses and many herbs thrive on neglect exactly where more fussy plants would fail.
Planting6 min read
Designing a drought-resistant garden
Save water and still have a beautiful garden. These plants and habits thrive on surprisingly little moisture.
Created by jflgardens.co.uk
Summers in the UK are getting hotter and drier, but a garden that copes with dry spells doesn't have to look brown and bare. With the right plants and a little smart planning, you can have a beautiful, low-water garden.
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Improve the soil to hold what water there is
Adding organic matter to the soil helps it hang onto moisture through dry spells. A generous mulch on top locks that moisture in and keeps the roots cool, cutting evaporation dramatically.
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Water deeply, then back off
The worst thing you can do is give plants a little water every day — it pulls roots to the surface where they bake. Establish plants with deep, occasional soakings and they'll build the deep root systems that carry them through drought.
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Reduce the thirsty lawns
Cutting back on turf — or replacing some of it with gravel, paving or dry-tolerant planting — slashes your watering demands. A smaller, well-kept lawn drinks far less than a large one that's kept green through summer.
Need a hand with this in your own garden?
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