Drought Conditions
- Treeman
- Cottage_Garden
- Treeman
- CarolWallace
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» Cottage_Garden - Re: Let us know
In response to message posted by Treeman:It is very sad. In Pennsylvania, gardeners in the drought emergency area are not allowed to water gardens except food gardens, and may not fill fish ponds or ornamental water features.
At the Philadelphia Flower show this week and at the Mid-Atlantic Garden and Flower Show in York PA last week many displays included elaborate water features and each one had a big sign up reminding us of the emergency.
Many landscapers had done exhibits based on huge elaborate ponds holding literally thousands of gallons of water, and I'm sure were hoping to sell some of these installations this spring, but even if a customer had a pond put in, right now it could not be filled.
And although nobody seeemed to be mentioning it, it is sort of a dirty secret I guess, if we can't water ornamental plants then we can't really plant anything -- newly planted trees shrubs perennials and annuals require regular watering during the establishement phase and also during dry periods during the following three years or so. Roots will not grow into dry soil, and the potting mixes are so fast draining that new plants really do need regular watering while they develop new roots into the surrounding soil....
Plants including the natives in this area are already stressed, this may be very ugly season unless we get some serious rain soon. I am seeing a lot of dead trees in the woods due to the past few years of accumulated stress.
That is part of the natural selection process, but is it is worrisome nonetheless, for fire danger if nothing else. There are also many ornamental evergreens looking truly terrible, a dry fall and warm dry winter combined to dry them out to the point where they are turning color.
People have asked me about how to water with buckets or gator bags or home-made drip waterers or whatever, but in Harrisburg area it is apparently illegal to use graywater in the yard.... maybe that will change.
In past years we have been allowed to hand water with a bucket, but I have not heard that clarified yet for this season. In any case, watering with a bucket is not very effective when the surrounding soil is bone dry, it just sucks away the moisture almost immediately.
So, I am worried, but I planted sweet peas and garden peas this weekend in the middle of the little rain we had. It is still cool enough that evaporation is slow. Gardeners must be optimists or we would never plant anything anywhere anytime. I have hundreds of seedlings under lights in the basement, too, hoping for rain so they can go into the garden and thrive.
I am not much of a waterer anyway, at home I have developed a pretty much xeriscape and self-sufficient garden already, and so far it has held on ok, but even so I am concerned. The plants for a PA xeriscape are different from the ones one might use in say the desert SW or COlorado because our natural rainfall is actually quite generous and normally spread evenly throughout the year. So my garden will suffer despite its relative drought tolerance unless we resume our typical rainfall.
Apart from my own little garden, I am concerned for all my friends in the nursery business. This has to be terribly difficult for them, totally nervewracking. I suppose though there will be lots to be done once the drought pattern breaks as it doubtless will, sooner or later.
As far as coping at home, we are on private well water as are many of the people in this county. We are all basically scared to death, there are many reports of wells going dry -- wells that have been in operation for decades with nary a problem despite the periodic droughts the area has experienced.
There has been population growth in this area and I think too that people who do not live on wells or who have never experienced living with a well just take water for granted -- turn on the tap and it comes out!!! I know I did, when I lived in the city. It never occurred to me it might not be an automatic thing.
I know too that people in a rural agricultural area are more attuned to the weather patterns and soil moisture and are more likely to recognize the problem much earlier than people who live in the city.
We can literally see the creeks and farm ponds drying up. Today our paper reported how the fire companies are about to let certain fires burn because they can not get to water to fill up fast enough to put the fire out, instead they will try to wet down surrounding area to prevent a related wildfire. (Many of the tankers fill up at farm ponds and now they often have to drive farther to find one with enough water in it.)The brand new house just down the road from me (one of four just being built) has had the well driller back again this week for the third time, they are drilling deeper. That sends a chill down my spine, I can tell you.
So, I would be interested in hearing how other people are coping. It's a good question.
-- posted by Cottage_Garden
» Treeman - Re: Re: Let us know
In response to message posted by Cottage_Garden:
Hi Barbara, The situation is very similar here in western Virginia, except we don't have mandatory water use restrictions yet.
Some localities are currently encouraging voluntary water restrictions by residents. Streams that haven't been dry since the sixties are drying up.
Wells are going dry... springs stopping flow. The growth of the last 2 decades, combined with the lack of recharge of our aquifers is taking its toll. And we haven't yet reached the growing season when the evapo-transpiration demand for surface moisture will furhter deplete infiltration and percolation and runoff to streams and deep aquifers.
Its going to be tough on landscapes and the green industry as first, they have to deal with restrictions and availability and as home owners wake up to the fact that they won't be able to maintain new installations and pull back from the market.
Of course our farmers are in quandry of what to do crop wise. Breaking open the soil right now will release what little moisture is trapped under stubble and crust and there seems to be little prospect for significant change in our pattern in forseeable future. Right now, first cutting hay seems to be in jeopardy, which is a rarity as almost always there is enough residual soil moisture to push at least a half way decent first cutting.
Our local well drillers are booked till July at least. The neighboring poultry farm has lost 4 of the 5 wells they use for production. Ours is a lot deeper than theirs(950 feet thru solid blue lime stone- all our neighbors thought it was funny we had to so deep- maybe lucked out and tapped a different aquifer) , and we are holding our breath.
I will be Veggie gardening with t-tape this season.
Forest fires are getting much larger than usual for the spring fire season. 4200 acres burned nearby last week. That is a big fire for Virginia.
Like you,I fear the accumulate stress of multiple dry seasons will take its toll on the native and long estabished woody landscape. Add in the other environmental insults they have to endure and oppotunistic insect and diseases and the stage is set for widespread problems.
-- posted by Treeman
» CarolWallace - Re: Re: Re: Let us know
In response to message posted by Treeman:As far as wells go I'm just praying. We didn't have to go too dep for ours but when it was drilled (18 years ago) they told us it has enough water to getus though the next millennium (not the one we just began.) I have to wonder if that still holds true. I recall the horror stories in 1999 of people driving to New Jersey to take shower. Plants didn't have a chance.
-- posted by CarolWallace
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