New Plant Watering Guide
As a rule of thumb: any plant that gets moved or planted needs supplemental watering for at least 2-3 weeks! Exact needs vary by plant and season. Read on for more detailed info.
As a general rule…
Most new gardens or moved plants will need supplemental watering every 2-4 days for 2-3 weeks.
The hotter the daytime temperatures, the more frequently you will want to water (up to every other day).
We generally do not plant when the temperatures are in the 90’s. However, if you have new plants in the ground and it shoots up into the 90’s, water daily.
The shadier the garden, the less frequently you will need to water unless there are particularly sensitive plants (such as ferns).
RAIN COUNTS!
Watering Tool Recommendations
Having a quality hose and easy-to-use, functioning nozzle will make watering much more pleasant than working with battered, kinked, or leaking hoses, and nozzles that barely work. If watering is a task you dread, it is less likely to happen, and your plants are more likely to die.
Buy a hose slightly longer than the distance to your farthest plant, if possible. Or use multiple hoses.
However, don’t set up super long hoses if you don’t need to - they are more likely to get tangled or punctured and may decrease water pressure by carrying the water farther.
My favorite hose brand is the Zero-G Brand - available at Ace Hardware or Lowe’s. I’ve had a good experience with them for years and they come in several lengths. They are one of the lightest yet most durable available, and are much less likely to damage plants than heavier hoses.
Hose nozzles - you don’t need a fancy one, but a really nice feature is a gradient shutoff valve that enables you to leave the hose running at different volumes without holding a trigger, like this one.
If you are watering direct-seeded areas, a pressure breaker wand can be nice (but again, not essential - the ‘shower’ function on most nozzles works fine!).
For committed gardeners, the Dramm shut-off valve is the most durable I have found and the extra-long lever makes it easy to use when wet.
Focus on the roots!
Water the rootzone of each plant (especially trees & shrubs) deeply. Let the water run for a while, don’t just quickly pass the “shower” setting over the foliage!
Watering FAQ
After the first few weeks… then what?
In Baltimore, Maryland, it is unusual to go for more than a week or two without any precipitation. (This would be considered a drought. More on this below.) If we’re getting regular rain, you generally won’t need to do much. Exceptions: bigger/more mature plants and particular species - if we’re planting one of these, we will let you know!
Trees and larger shrubs or transplanted mature shrubs/small trees will appreciate supplemental watering over the summer, in particularly hot weather or if we go for at least a 10-14 days without any rain.
Is it possible to overwater?
Yes. But in my experience this is far less common than under-watering. Situations that may be prone to over-watering include very shady gardens (minimal evaporation) or containers with minimal drainage.
For the first few days after planting/transplanting, it’s fine for most plants to be in continually moist soil (not standing water!). After that, however, it’s generally best if the soil can completely dry in between watering/rain. There are a few notable exceptions, such as many types of ferns and moss - however, these are much less common situations. Constant moisture can lead to fungal and bacterial diseases.
How do I know when/if my plants need water?
Look for leaves drooping and curling inwards (wilting) or getting visibly dry and “crunchy” looking. If plants look pretty far gone but there is still some green (or if you snap a twig and it still has some green interior or a little bend to it)… there’s still hope. Water deeply, at the roots, and then come back the next day and do it again.
It is really important to water the ground, not the foliage!! When plants are first getting established, they are primarily “reconnecting the wiring” underground—finding sources of water and nutrients. You may think you’ve been watering adequately, but if most of the water is going to the foliage, the overall plant may not be getting enough. Switch your watering technique and see if things improve.
During really hot days it is normal for many species to conserve water by wilting a bit during the day. If they bounce back overnight, you do not need to water. However, if you check back in the morning and they haven’t recovered, it’s worth giving them a drink.
Some mature plants that are transplanted will not fully re-root, so there may be some sections that look to fine and healthy and others that appear to be wilting—generally best to cut out those sections and let the plant produce new growth once it has re-rooted. That is not necessarily a sign that the plant needs water.
My brand-new plants look terrible, help!
Sometimes plants look a little shook by the experience of being planted out from the pots they grew up in—that’s transplant shock. It’s okay! Keep watering and give them time.
Also, be sure you are watering around the roots of plants (especially with trees and shrubs), not just the leaves. (See previous question!)
Am I only allowed to water in the morning?
No. The time of day that you water is really not that important, although I generally avoid watering between 10am-2pm in the summer months. However, if you go outside to check your plants on your lunch break and notice them all frying… go ahead and water right away.
If you are not a morning person and the thought of getting up to water your plants first thing is not appealing… water in the afternoon or early evening. If you enjoy the ritual of getting your feet damp in morning dew while moving hoses around, by all means, go for it. If your schedule is chaotic and you just water when you think about it (or you have a reminder set!)… that’s also fine!
During cooler, wetter times of year (think: early spring, late fall), I prefer watering when there will be enough time for the water to soak in before the day starts really cooling down… generally before 2pm. You can also water much less frequently during those periods.
You haven’t mentioned sprinklers—should I use them? What’s up with that?
Sprinklers can be helpful in very specific situations, such as watering a newly-seeded area of lawn. However, most gardens we plant will not really benefit from a sprinkler situation and you will end up wasting a lot of water by watering areas that don’t need it.
In the MidAtlantic region, we typically have issues arising from excessive water (heavy rainfall, poor drainage—clay soils or lots of hardscaping, etc.) and humidity. Sprinklers are not only inefficient at getting water to the roots of plants, they also create a high-humidity microclimate on/around foliage especially in dense plantings. In my view this is a double whammy that can contribute to fungal and bacterial disease.
While it may seem like an easy way to water big areas at once, it’s really challenging to dial in the size/shape of the sprinkler compared to the garden area (especially in small spaces). Inevitably sprinklers will water your sidewalk, the neighbor’s fence, a corner of your porch… etc. The edges of the sprinkler “zone” will also not get as much water as the center (for most designs), so keep that in mind.
Finally, sprinklers remove one of your most important tools—direct observation. Getting closer to your plants while watering them is an excellent way to get better acquainted and start to notice patterns, which will enable you to pick up on signs of distress earlier than you would otherwise. And I like to think that paying close attention to your garden will also bring some joy.
Will I need to water my garden forever?
This depends. As a rule of thumb, the bigger the plant is when it’s moved to your garden, the more water it will need—both in quantity and duration. When you plant trees, the first three years are critical. For most perennials, a few weeks of extra watering attention may be enough, unless there’s a period of serious drought.
Anything planted in containers will also need to be watered, especially in summer (more frequently the shallower/smaller the container) or if the container doesn’t receive much or any rainwater (like if it’s under a porch or roof overhang).
Most native perennials require very minimal or no supplemental watering after the initial adjustment period when they have been planted.
Many plants tolerate a range of shade/sun conditions. If you have a plant that prefers shade but can tolerate sun, it may benefit from additional watering during the hottest parts of the year for its entire lifespan. If you have a plant that prefers sun but can tolerate shade, it likely won’t need supplemental watering and may be more susceptible to fungal issues if it receives too much water.
What counts as a “drought”?
Drought = “drier than normal conditions.” In the MidAtlantic, more than a week or two with absolutely no rainfall is a little drier than normal. A dry period is generally considered worse if it is also particularly hot. Regionally, we can expect an average of about or a little under 1” of rainfall per week.
If you need to make decisions about who gets extra water in a longer period of drought - prioritize young trees and tender shrubs in full sun. You may also want to move potted plants to an area that receives some shade, or shift them up into larger containers.
Do you install irrigation systems?
As a general rule, no. For small properties or garden areas, drip hoses or tree bags can work well to irrigate specific plants. With ornamental gardens, we strive to design and plant in such a way that minimal to no supplemental water is required on a regular basis. However, most edible gardens will need more frequent watering and there are some systems we can recommend if you are interested in that.
