HOW DRY HAS THIS YEAR BEEN….
HOW BAD IS THE DROUGHT THIS YEAR??
We have all heard about how dry this year has been. I find myself asking, “well, how dry is it?” and I have had people ask me this same question. Then the next piece is, “what does that mean to my landscape?” So, let's explore this together a little bit. The first step is to zoom into Caledonia County (marked in red below) in Vermont which is where I live. As you can see from the map, below the county I live in has two categories (D1 and D2) so let's take a closer look at these areas and see what this means.
D1 Moderate Drought: Irrigation use increases, hay and grain yields are lower than normal, honey production declines, wildfires and ground fires increase, trees and landscaping are stressed, fish are stressed, voluntary water conservation is requested; reservoir and lake levels are below normal capacity
D2 Severe Drought: Specialty crops are impacted in both yield and fruit size, producers begin feeding cattle; hay prices are high, warnings are issued on outdoor burns; air quality is poor, golf courses conserve water, trees are brittle and susceptible to insects, fish kills occur; wildlife move to farms for food, water quality is poor; groundwater is declining; irrigation ponds are dry, outdoor water restrictions are implemented
Source for information: https://droughtmonitor.unl.edu/CurrentMap/StateDroughtMonitor.aspx?VT
Summary of information: Now that we have some more detailed information, that is pretty scary right? When I first read that, I thought to myself: “that is pretty bad but we also aren't as impacted as some other areas in the northeast.” I then ask myself: “what can I do next to help my plants?” So let's look at what droughts do to our plants.
Most plants get their water and micronutrients from the top 15” of the soil. When there is a drought the soil becomes dry and plants are not able to get the water and nutrients they need to survive. Have you ever seen a root and seen little hairs and wondered what these were? I know I did and wondered why plants have these and in school my curiosity was answered. All plant roots are underground and on the roots are little hairs which serve as the conduit from the soil to the plants. The hairs on the roots collect the water and nutrients and carry them to the plants. When the soil becomes dry the hairs on the roots become dry and die. The amount of hairs that die has a direct correlation to how much of the moisture and nutrients that plants will get. So now you are asking, “what can I do about it?”
Once the drought is over, you can apply a higher percentage of phosphorus slow release fertilizer. This in turn will help repair the roots that were damaged during the drought. You may be wondering, “how do I know which fertilizer to use?” Here are two great options: reach out to me or ask your garden center.
You can prune your plants canopy by ⅓ in size. This will concentrate the amount of water and nutrients going to the plants and have the most impact. When you are pruning, you will want to remove all of the deadwood. Wondering when to prune? As a good rule of thumb, the best time to prune is late winter/ early spring. If you want to know more, feel free to ask me any questions, I am glad to help.
Ensure the plants have at least 3” of bark mulch on top of the soil. The mulch will help retain the moisture and will reduce the amount of evaporation that will occur at ground level.
Lastly, don't stress over if the plants will make it. Plants are very resilient and sometimes all they need is a little TLC and they will be fine.
I hope everybody has found this information to be helpful and gives you some ideas on how to help your plants through this drought. Please feel free to reach out with any questions, I am always glad to help.