When the summer temperatures begin to crank up, we aren’t the only ones feeling the heat. High temperatures can be a challenge for plants and leaf tissue will show signs of heat stress, along with blossoms or fruit. Many will survive the dry, often blistering conditions, and unfortunately some won’t. But there are ways to tip the odds in your (and your plants’) favor.

We have some tips to help prepare your yard and garden for the dog days of summer before plants stress out. Be sure to watch for these signs of imminent heat stress in your flowers, vegetables, shrubs, and trees so you can offer them some extra water when they need it.

Recognize Plant Heat Stress

• Wilting foliage and flowers
• Sunburned foliage
• Leaves rapidly turning brown and falling off
• Vegetables drop prematurely
• Vegetables sunburned

Prevent Plant Heat Stress

The permanent wilting point (PWP) is the point in which there’s the minimal amount of moisture in the soil before the plant wilts. Ideally, you’d like to keep the plant hydrated above this point so that the plant doesn’t wilt at all — and thus, isn’t forced to recover. Of course, if the plant is too far past the PWP, it reaches the-point-of-no-return. Below are ways to keep the moisture in the soil and available to plant roots.

• Add compost (organic matter) to your garden beds whenever you can. Compost (among other great things) adds tilth to the soil and allows soil to easily retain moisture.

• Mulch! A few inches of mulch in your garden beds and landscape will go a long way in retaining moisture.

• Water (or set timers for) early morning hours. There’s less evaporation in the cool of the morning and it allows the foliage to dry before heading into the evening (which can encourage fungus).

• Water plants deeply. If you’re watering by hand, set the nozzle to a slow setting so the water has a chance to seep down into the soil and get to the bottom of the roots.

• Drip irrigation is always a good choice as it delivers water directly to plant roots without wasting a drop of water.

• If you haven’t discovered the water-holding gels that you add to the soil, this would be the right time to seek them out.

• If you’re having a heat wave and fear that you’ll lose permanent plants such as shrubs (as opposed to annuals which are easily replaced), consider using shade cloth draped over a frame over the plant.

If you find that you’re losing the battle because you live in an area that has temperatures over 100 degrees regularly, get down to your local nursery and pick up some heat-loving, drought-tolerant and native plants.

Photo of Black-Eyed Susans by Robert Couse-Baker

Photo of wilted tomato plant by nocivclia

Photo of drip irrigation by JobyOne