# Forum Home Renovation Water Saving Garden Ideas  When to water

## hughchuck

I have heard not to water your plants or grass in late evening.
Is this true, if so when is the best time to water?

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## nww1969

I have always watered late so the water doesn't evaporate away from the heat of the day.
Also gives the plants approx 10 hours of dark to take up water to recuperate during hot weather.
Have never heard, not to water late before.

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## chipps

I reckon nww1969 is pretty close to the money  :2thumbsup:   
I'll probably get laughed at, but here goes............  
1. Don't water foliage or above plants during full sun, apparently the new tips & buds can actually boil / steam when watering ceases. 
2. Watering at night may increases the risk of root rot in certain situations...Did a google & this site explains it fairly well... Morning vs Evening Watering: Does it matter? - Tips 'n' Ideas

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## Ashwood

You (Chipps, point 1) are correct, you know.  
I used to grow orchids in the tropics, and the practice is to NOT water in the midday hot sun .. in a way you are effectively "boiling vegetables" using the heat from the sun.

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## rrobor

Yep watering late at night is a waste. Water can still evaporate but the plants can not use the water efficiently without sunlight so its a chance for moulds etc. Water on a dry sunny day and the plants have closed up to concerve moisture so will confuse them. Water early morning before sunrise plant gets ready when the sun comes up gets maximum absorbsion before shutting off if its too hot. Like using weedkiller, use that in the sun and its not efficient. !0 times more effective  on a dull looks like rain day.

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## nww1969

> Yep watering late at night is a waste. Water can still evaporate but the plants can not use the water efficiently without sunlight so its a chance for moulds etc. Water on a dry sunny day and the plants have closed up to concerve moisture so will confuse them. Water early morning before sunrise plant gets ready when the sun comes up gets maximum absorbsion before shutting off if its too hot. Like using weedkiller, use that in the sun and its not efficient. !0 times more effective  on a dull looks like rain day.

  Most of the posts make very good sense.
I just don't see myself out watering before sunrise,  I'm a sunset person, hate sunrise.

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## chipps

> Most of the posts make very good sense.
> I just don't see myself out watering before sunrise, I'm a sunset person, hate sunrise.

  Plus it's hard to crack a beer & water the garden................especially when the neighbours are still in their PJ's  :2thumbsup:

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## Fu Manchu

Folks this is an area I have some significant expertise in and have done many studies on.
If watering in the day burns leaves, then commercial nurseries would be out of business. They need to water their containerised stock many times during the day as the small soil spaces dry very rapidly in the wind especially more than the heat. 
Avoid night time watering. This is a very common contributor to many turf diseases and fungal problems on plants. Of course if it's been a bloody hot day then the reasons don't count as the evaporation rates will still be high and moisture on foliage and the soil surface will be minimal in no time. 
The key to watering is small amounts and often. rather than 10mins of irrigation break that up into 5  2min cycles. Far better. It's called pulse irrigation. surface run off is decreased by 25%. Our gardens will never absorb water efficiently at the rates we commonly apply it.  
If using a hose, keep the water moving and use as soft and large a drop size as possible. So don't stick the water there in one spot for ages. 
However with good mulching, less fertiliser use and organic input your watering requirements will plummet. wetting agents are absolutely essential and use them many times through the warmer months  :Wink:

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## murray44

> The key to watering is small amounts and often. rather than 10mins of irrigation break that up into 5 2min cycles. Far better. It's called pulse irrigation. surface run off is decreased by 25%. Our gardens will never absorb water efficiently at the rates we commonly apply it.

  Well that's weird. For years we've been told a big, deep water (but without runoff) once a week is better than lots of little ones.  
If we don't have runoff then surely the garden is absorbing the water?  
And doesn't deep watering encourage deep root growth?

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## Fu Manchu

No it doesn't. 
What we are learning here in WA and educating the public on are very different form the many long held traditional concepts of gardening. What is happening as a result of that is having serious consequences on the environment.  Water management in retail nurseries and garden centres : Nursery and Garden Industry Australia Scheduling irrigation to maximise efficiency : Nursery and Garden Industry Australia Water use in the nursery and garden industry - results of the 2006 Water Use Survey : Nursery and Garden Industry Australia 
and we can thank I am pretty sure Dr John Colwill for this
If not then the Water Corporation   

> *The Standard Drink* 
>                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                               Generally speaking, all plants feed from the top 15 to 20  cm of soil. The roots concentrate in this zone and watering should aim  to replenish the volume of water removed by the plant. Surplus water  will only drain away beyond reach of the roots.
> So irrespective of  size or type, all plants need the same *amount*  of water each watering. On the Perth sand plain, this Standard Drink is  10 mm of rainfall, or 10 litres of water/M2 of watered soil.
> Working  out how long to run your irrigation to provide a Standard Drink is a  simple exercise.
> For *lawn* areas, obtain a  set of catch cups to measure the performance of your sprinklers. To  find out where to purchase catch cups please call our helpline on 13 10  39. For *garden* areas serviced by trickle  systems, the flow rate of the dripper and the area of soil it wets, will  determine how long the system must run. Aim for 10 litres of water/M2 of  watered soil. *Important - Please Note* _The  Standard Drink for Perth is 10 mm. Regional offices of the Water  Corporation can advise the local Standard Drink and the Watering  Schedules for country areas._ _This guide assumes  appropriate soil improvement prior to planting, and that the plant is  well mulched._ _In all cases the watering periods are for  established plants._ _While some plants may survive at a  lower rating than suggested, they may then not perform to expectations._

  Now granted the soil is different here but the concepts are the same and considering that WA leads Australia in domestic water management and public education strategies then it is pretty soild info. John Colwill's work has been copied around Australia by a few state governments.  
Not all plant roots absorb water. They also play a major role in structure. 
The magic layer of soil is mostly 30- 40 cm deep in regard to where the overall action is happening. ie, the living layer of soil.

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## Fu Manchu

Have a read of this also. (I have permission to post the link) Home Renovation & Building Forum &bull; View topic - Rain vs irrigation *Editors Note:* Just paste this into your browser to view

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## Fu Manchu

Ah yes, google topic "rain verses irrigation" and it's the first cab off the rank.
Thanks Watson.

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## Fu Manchu

Oh and to work out how long it takes for 10mm to be applied, use a plastic spc juice container lid. Spot on for 10mm  :Wink:

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## Black Cat

I am actually planning on wicking beds for all my veges and smallfruits That way they can take the water when they want it, and it does not go to waste with evaporation, nor does it induce fungal problems if applied at the wrong time of day. I am on tank water so need to get the best bang for my buck water-wise

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## Fu Manchu

I have used those systems and had an enormous amount of hassle with them. Smell and disease problems. 
They can only work well when coupled with sophisticated water treatment systems that recover the water leached from them. And they do that  :Wink:  
When used in nurseries it can create as many headaches as it solves. 
You'd be far better advised to use some sort of water recovery system instead and maintain better plant health. In my experience I have never found them to wick water up as was specified. We still used the same amounts of water to irrigate the crops. 
 Also it has little effect on plants that are newly planted or much bigger than seedlings. The reason for this is because no matter what the size of the pot, the water will only sit at a certain level in the bottom of the pot, and often that is out of reach of plant roots. The height is determined by the weight of water. No matter what soil, no matter what pot size, line them up and the water forms it's own table. try it with different sized sponges, you see what i mean. A really big sponge in water will hold the weight of the water against gravity at the exact same height of a sponge half it's size next to it. 
I have had issues with plant roots growing into the mats as well and this can be annoying and damaging to plants when removed. It also facilitates the spread of disease.

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## Jethro11

How about pots that don't need watering?  I have seen it in the news sometime back.  Anyone familiar with it?  If I remembered it right, it has to do with a water containment below the pot and a wick or straw that brings the water up the soil.

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## Black Cat

Waterwell pots do work for some plants - you need to ensure, however, that their roots don't extend down to the reservoir or they rot. I use the waterwell principle in my raised beds - with a sand-filled reservoir fed by some ag pipe from the top. It makes for healthy veg even in seriously dry spells, but your beds need to be high enough to provide sufficient soil for the feeder roots of the veg (which are surprisingly long on some plants). 
ETA: sorry, just saw fu manchu's response to my earlier post. I am sorry to say that I have not found the same difficulties that he refers to. My beds are producing well despite deep frosts, and low rainfall in this area over winter. I am picking broccoli and swedes at present and the remaining plants are doing well.

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