Here is what you need to know before you read this: Stop and go water your trees — now. Wasting another five minutes with this story or any part of the paper may cost you a bundle in lost plants.
All done now? Watered the trees deeply with a long slow soaking? Even the old ones? How about your hedges and screen plants?
I’m talking about all the old and established plants in your garden. Yes your sprinkler waters your lawns and flowers, but their roots are two-to-six inches deep. Trees and shrubs roots are 12 inches-to-10 feet deep, and your system is a tease.
We are in a drought. If the sun sets in a clear sky every night as it has here for weeks, of course the sky is beautiful, but clouds would mean, cooler weather and the chance of rain.
Plain and simple — every year it gets hot in summer and barely rains, but this is a bit drier, especially the southern Cape (the other side of the bay, Delaware, is in a severe drought). When it does rain, it will run off because the ground is so hard.
Look around — dead trees and shrubs turning brown everywhere, highways, front yards and parks. Pease water your neighbors’ plants if they are away, and tell everyone you know to look over their yards, because many plants will not come back as your lawn will.
Even though I write this a week before you read this, there isn’t much of a chance for rain in the 10-day forecast, nor will it matter, we need days of rain to start to make things even again.
. If you hate to see things die, especially when you could have changed it, then follow my advice: water deeply, now.
—Stan Sperlak of Cape Shore Gardens
Cape May – Governor Murphy says he doesn't know anything about the drones and doesn't know what they are doing but he does know that they are not dangerous. Does anyone feel better now?
