I will be the first to admit that I hate watering my garden. Why? I really can’t be sure. I just don’t like the long hoses with kinks and lengths that just don’t quite reach where they are needed. The hose gets dirty, water leaks onto my birkenstocks. What a complainer I am! In my opinion, this watering is a necessary evil–lessened drastically by the presence of mulch in your garden.

For example, even with temps reaching 100 degrees farenheit, I rarely water the plants in our front yard. Honestly, I don’t have time for plants that need to be coddled. If I need to water it daily, it’s probably not the right plant for my yard. If it can’t be happy swaddled in oak leaves and rich compost, it probably needs another home. With the water shortage in NW Florida, my theory is really being tested. It’s hard to justify extensive watering of roses and lilies when I know that our water table is being depleted. My solution? Three to four inches of oak leaves and watering maybe once a week. It really works well for us. An added bonus, is the reduction in weeds because they’re not getting water either.

Anything that gives me fewer weeds to pull is a winner in my book!