Read on for some drought-tolerant landscaping ideas and how you could take care of plants in the hot summer weather!
As we move deeper into the summer, dry and hot weather conditions escalate in a lot of areas of the country. A few years bring a solid amount of rainfall, while others do not. It may seem easy to see that one single plant needs water once dry conditions appear slowly, and you see the soil is dry or the leaves are a bit droopy. You could water it and stay ahead of possible heat stress and injury. This is not always the case, and sometimes dry conditions can linger. A few plants don’t let you know they are under stress as clearly as others. The last thing you’d want to do is ignore signs of stress and risk losing precious shrubs, trees, or flowers. Read on for some drought-tolerant landscaping ideas and how you could take care of plants in the hot summer weather!
Difference Between Drought Stress and Heat Stress
Summer brings long periods of humidity and heat in various parts of the country, combined with warmth and sunshine to boot. Add to the lack of rainfall, which could stress your landscape trees and shrubs. What is important to understand about trees or shrubs is that they lose water through their leaves all the time through transpiration. The roots look for water in the soil to replace what the plant is losing. When there is not enough water there to replenish a tree’s nutrients, the plant could start to show real indications of stress. Heat stress in your plants alone has to do with the temperatures and does not happen often in a lot of regions in the United States, except for the hottest ones. This is because air temperatures have to be high stress for the leaves. Typically, what you see is drought stress, which means the plant is using a high amount of water, and it isn’t likely to be stressed.
Signs of Heat Stress in Your Trees and Plants
As you water and care for your landscape’s trees and shrubs during drought, you may wonder if it is working. You may be looking at your plants and find it hard to tell if they’re in good health or not. This is why it could be difficult to know if a plant is stressed. Signs include:
– Wilting leaves or shoots
– Leaf scorch
– Early defoliation
Call Harford Tree for tree care services today!
Tree Care and Maintenance from Harford Tree
Ready to have the beautiful yard you have always dreamed of? Harford Tree Experts & Landscaping, Inc has been in the business for decades, providing customers with quality work and quick responses all at the right price. We service the areas of Harford County, Baltimore County, and Baltimore City areas including Bel Air, Fallston, Perry Hall, Towson, Essex, Parkville, White Marsh and Middle River.
For service during business hours, reach out to us or give us a call at 410-592-7321. We offer 24/7 emergency service as well, just give us a call at 443-250-6649. For updates about our business and more informative tips, follow us on Facebook and Twitter.