Don’t waste your time giving your garden a daily dribble, a weekly deep-down soaking is best to keep everything growing as Orange waits for rain.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
While the dust-dry paddocks facing farmers has rightly been big in the news of late, local gardeners have been urged to water their flowers and lawns to save them from drought.
Household gardeners are constrained by the Level 2 water restrictions in place in the Orange City Council region.
They limit garden watering to three-hour periods in the morning and evening but only once every second day.
Friends of the Botanic Gardens president Dennis Croucher said the key was to make sure every watering session counts.
“The main thing is too not water frequently for 10 minutes at a time,” he said.
“You are better to give half an hour one day a week. And a deep watering.
“Frequent watering at a shallow level encourages shallow root growth.”
Mr Croucher also said about 50 millimetres of mulch was all you needed at this time.
“If you’ve got 100 millimetres of mulch and you only water for five minutes you don’t even water the mulch,” he said.
Mr Croucher said it was also important to follow the water restrictions which allow watering only in the cool of the morning and the evening.
“Don’t water in the middle of the day when evaporation is going to be at its peak,” he said.
BE WATER WISE
Level 2 water restrictions apply in Orange now
- The odds and evens system defines which day you can water your garden and lawns. If your house has an odd street or unit number you can only water on odd-numbered days of the month. Even numbers water on even-numbered days.
- You can only water between 7am-10am and 4pm-7pm on your allotted days.
- Washing down hard surfaces such as walls, windows and paved areas is banned.
- You can wash your car between 9am-noon any day and the vehicle must be on the lawn.
- Filling up pools and external spas is only allowed 7am-9am and 6pm-8pm any day.
- You can fill up garden water features.
- For more information click here.
David Fitzsimons
I am a senior journalist at the Central Western Daily concentrating on council, government and real estate issues. Before moving to Orange I filled senior roles at the Daily Telegraph, Daily Telegraph-Mirror and the Daily Mirror in Sydney. They included being an editor, news editor, chief of staff and reporter.
I am a senior journalist at the Central Western Daily concentrating on council, government and real estate issues. Before moving to Orange I filled senior roles at the Daily Telegraph, Daily Telegraph-Mirror and the Daily Mirror in Sydney. They included being an editor, news editor, chief of staff and reporter.
