There’s more to keeping up with climate change than just enjoying the fun and freedom of dabbling with growing plants heretofore out of reach.
Now that Bartholomew County has moved to growing zone 6A from 5B, plants that need a longer growing zone like tomato plants and other annual plants are likely to fare better than before. It’s best to resist getting too comfortable, though, with the new normal; you’ll want to be light on your feet to roll with the changes ahead.
Here are some ways things are changing, and suggested ways to adjust:
Do more research
Reading plant tags used to be the best way to assure success with growing everything from green beans to day lilies. With additional planting choices now comes increased responsibility that requires a little more research about plant choices you’re considering, paying close attention to watering requirements.
Get comfortable with experimentation
Very experienced gardeners tend to rest on their laurels and stick with what’s tried and true. Dealing with change may well, at times, feel like when you first tore open a seed packet — including finding out how much water is enough and how little is too little. Keep the faith! Even when it feels like déjà vu at times; only to turn around and feel like the floor is the ceiling.
Consider adding a watering system
Some of the adjustments ahead are likely to be minor tweaks, like watching the weather closer and reacting by watering more often due to more protracted dry hot spells. Of course, that may mean that the time has come for purchasing and installing a watering system you’ve been putting off. Unless you’re exclusively a patio container gardener, you may want to retire lugging that heavy hose and watering can around — especially when full sun beds and planted pots need to be watered multiple times a day. An economical, easier-on-the-back fix is hooking the hose to individual beds equipped with soaker hoses.
Stretch the water that you add
Mulching around plants in pots and around those in the ground can help your beds retain moisture. Mulch vegetable beds with natural materials like leaves, straw, or untreated grass clippings. Annuals potted for patios and decks can be mulched with the same material used for garden beds.
Take a look around for changes
My hostas, day lilies, and peonies started very slowly this year due to cool temperatures slowing their progress; I was convinced that there was no need for me to divide these perennial plants. A few weeks later, after a prolonged week-and-a-half of temperatures in the high 80s, those same plants had transformed. I saw that the early season temperature rise had caused a rapid flush of perennial plant foliage across the board. The big flush of leaves were coming fast (and kept coming) way ahead of buds appearing. Now my daylilies are crowding each other out and I don’t I just got my first blooms this week. Changes like this can take an experienced gardener off guard and make her feel like a newbie again!
The first thing on my task list for fall is to divide a lot of perennial plants that had me fooled this spring.
Relax. The cool thing is, we’re all in this together. We’ve got this, we just need to remember that, after all, for us and Mother Nature. Take the long view: our current climate change situation is just one more of those changes.
