Extreme rains sound like a much-needed drink of water for Texas plants – especially on the heels of a months-long drought. But are the sudden storms too much of a good thing for D-FW’s greenery? If so, how can we keep our gardens healthy in the wake of Monday’s storms?
Suffocating soil saturation
For the most part, heavy rains after a drought are a good thing for plants, said Daniel Cunningham, a Dallas horticulturist and co-owner of Rooted In, a horticulture education organization. For “most home landscapes, I would think that the heavy rain would be an asset,” he said, “that we would see most of our plants start to recover from heat and drought stress.”
But in certain conditions, the extreme precipitation can oversaturate the soil with water. This can mean there’s not enough room in the pores between soil particles for oxygen to get down to the roots.
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“When we have severe flooding, the soil is completely saturated to the point where no oxygen can occupy that space,” said Cunningham.
He said soil oversaturation is more likely in low-lying areas where water drains off or drains more slowly. Plants near rooftops with water runoff are a potential risk. Areas with tightly-packed clay soil are also likely to have less room for oxygen to squeeze through.
‘Mother Nature’s Band-Aid’
While certain plants can be in danger of suffocating due to soil saturation, Cunningham says there are a few ways to prevent that from happening.
For one, North Texans can incorporate compost into their backyards. Cunningham said compost acts like “Mother Nature’s Band-Aid,” breaking up heavy clay soil to help it drain better. It even acts like a sponge, holding onto moisture that it can release during future dry periods.
Cunningham also said gardeners could invest in a cistern to collect rainwater that drips down from rooftops.
Location is key: He advised planting native flora that are adapted to severe flooding and drought near areas of high moisture. Those native plants include the Turk’s cap flower, the buttonbush and inland sea oats.
Soil depth is key
Once temperatures cool down in the fall, Cunningham has one more recommendation to avoid soil saturation. He said if Texas gardeners plant drought-tolerant plants like Texas sage, or some varieties of yucca and agave, they should make sure not to dig their holes too deep. That makes the base of the plant, called the crown, more likely to stay saturated for longer.
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“So if you do incorporate compost, and you plant those types of plants … a little bit higher in the ground, it allows that water to drain more easily, right around that crown,” Cunningham said.
Adithi Ramakrishnan is a science reporting fellow at The Dallas Morning News. Her fellowship is supported by the University of Texas at Dallas. The News makes all editorial decisions.
The post After the torrential rains in North Texas, what should I do for my garden? first appeared on Eatory.my.id.
