Climate change, super El Ninos, and typical Lowveld hot weather: there are so many factors that can lead to a devastating dry spell in the garden.
Obviously, nothing can grow without water. And when the heat settles in and there is not a drop of rain on the forecast, any gardener can feel quite demotivated.
I started growing my vegetable garden at the end of a dry season.
I wasn’t all that committed at that time so I had the attitude of “what dies, dies”. In all fairness, the garden was tiny, about two meters by two meters, and I had packed it with cherry tomatoes. I harvested them by the basket full, even though I had totally neglected them.
By the time the garden bug bit me, we entered a La Nina summer season and the rains really blessed us here in Africa. There were stunning daily storms, loads of rain, and I filled a rain water tank during just a few downpours. The next summer, the rains continued and before the winter of 2022 I put in another big rain water tank and my partner installed irrigation.
The garden thrived on regular watering and some rain, and so when the winter of 2022 came to an end, and I was expecting more spring and summer rain. My tanks were empty, but I was confident.
That September, we were hit by a 3 week heatwave that destroyed my vegetable garden and left all the other garden plants hanging miserably. The summer of 2022 was a strange mix of heat that suffocated and rains that drowned. The veggie garden didn’t perform at its best, and it didn’t help that I was going through personal upsets that took me away from the garden.
When winter started this year, and talk of a dry summer started hitting the news, I decided I had to have a better plan of action to keep my food growing even if we didn’t see much rain.
If you live in a hot and dry place like me, you know how important it is to understand how your piece of earth responds to water and how to improve its retention. I am no pro, but I am going to share what I am going to do to keep my garden alive during a dry spell.
Mulch. Sweet, Straw Mulch
When I started gardening, I totally overlooked the whole mulching scene. I figured it was something only done on bigger, more open spaces and not necessary for my little garden. Then, I decided to try it out, and it has really been a game changer.
I mulch with basic straw.
I start by turning beds (I am not a “no dig gardener”) and after I have worked in some manure and compost, I water the bed heavily and then thickly cover it with a layer of straw. If I still have some plants in a bed, I mulch around the base of the plant after watering it well.
For my needs, the thicker the mulch layer, the better. It really holds in moisture so I only have to worry about watering twice a week rather than every day.
Mulch breaks down slowly but you will need to keep an eye on it and replace your layer as necessary.
Amend your soil with loads of organic good stuff
Most garden soils are the loamy kind, but many can veer more to the side of sandy loam, which isn’t great for holding water. To fix soils that need to be made more water friendly, you need to add loads of organic matter, such as a good quality compost.
I like to start off each season with a new layer of compost added to my vegetable garden beds, just to add some goodness back into the soil so that the new plants can get off to a good start. I gently work the compost into the top, and then I mulch.
When I am ready to plant, I add a handful of compost to each hole, and I water it before adding the plant. This helps to get the growing things off to a healthy start, and it also helps my soil, which in some spots can be quite sandy.
Shade and Shady Plants
During the winter, shade is not as necessary as it is during the summer. My garden is covered with a 40% black shade cloth, but I take things one step further in summer by planting things in my garden that will provide shade to the lower down plants.
I spent a lot of time watching how the sun moves across my garden and planned the space so that I can plant things that will provide some afternoon shade.
For instance, on the side of the garden that receives heavy afternoon sun, I plant bean trellises. These shade the peppers and whatever else is growing nearby.
I also plan the garden to give plants maximum morning light. My cucumbers, for instance, are grown on a trellis that is shaded from direct sunlight by the afternoon.
Drips and Ollas
The first year I had an irrigation system setup, I used sprayers. Since the weather wasn’t overly hot and we were getting bucket loads of rain, the sprayers worked really well and the entire garden was spoiled with water.
But during a dry spell, sprayers are not a good idea because of the high evaporation rate.
This summer, and going forward, I plan to switch to drippers and to also install Ollas (pronounced oh-YAH).
Ollas are terracotta unglazed clay pots which are buried in the ground and filled with water. During a dry spell, the water is pulled from the pot, into the soil, where plant roots can easily get to it. And during rainy periods, the water remains in the pot.
You can buy Ollas ready made, or you can use an ordinary terracotta garden pot, just plug the drainage hole. The pot needs to be buried up to its neck, and then covered to prevent evaporation. The pots can provide water to about 4 plants, but its effectiveness depends on the water needs of the plants.
South Africa has an awesome Olla crafter. You can buy her traditional Ollas here – https://www.kleipots.co.za/ollas/
Think about the bigger picture
Your garden might be spilt up into visible zones, but beneath the soil, it’s a delicate ecosystem in constant competition for water and nutrients. Your lawn will steal water from your plants if it gets the chance and your beautiful tomato plants are constantly taking from one another.
This is important for your water saving plans because during a dry spell, the competition between the plants is going to be tougher than ever.
When you are planting, you need to make sure that aside from your veggies, the rest of your garden is drought resistant, which means doing your best to plant indigenous plants. You can also think of moving grass away from your vegetable garden, or planting your veg in raised beds. This way, the plants will all be able to get what they need.
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To me, droughts and flooding are just different sides of the same coin and require some careful planning. While too much water here in the dry Lowveld can be more welcome, especially as it seems our town is not managing water wisely enough (more and more people are moving to the area, which is changing our micro climate and affecting our water), the flooding destroys crops and home vegetable gardens as much as a prolonged heatwave can.
As backyard farmers, we need to get savvy with our gardens so that we can grow nutritious good food for our pantries, no matter what weather conditions we face.
