A drought coming?

It’s the start of Autumn.  However, it still has the balminess of Summer.  The warm nights and the warm mornings.  The rain has stopped in Victoria.  There was a sprinkle here and there but nothing like we had in “summer”.  The lemon leaves are curling but not because of disease or pest infestation, but because of lack of moisture.  Its beginning to be a struggle to keep anything alive unless there is a huge water bill at the end.

On that, Victoria’s water restrictions are lapsed.  In Queensland, they have water restrictions all year round.  This is important.  Especially as fires rage in the West at the moment.

It may be a prediction that we will be heading for another drought.

So, what do we do in the garden?  We still need our plants.  Especially our food.  The kitchen gardens cannot be ignored.  How can they be saved.  Watering is a must.  The best time to water?  At the beginning of the day or the end of the day.  If you must water in the middle of the day, choose a time when it is cloudy.  As if the sun is visible, it will be a waste of water – something we cannot waste at the moment.

Keep buckets out to catch rain, if there are no rain tanks.  This water can be used on the garden!

Also place a bucket in the shower with you, this water can also be put on the garden.  At this point, check your irrigation system (if you have one).  Wastage of water in an irrigation system can be costly to you as well as the plants.

On a big scale, its more difficult, however that is why we need to have water restrictions back in place.  Mr Jones next door doesn’t need to wash his car everyday on the concrete. Mrs Black doesn’t need her 1 hour shower.  Not swallowing the stereotypes here, however I have had many conversations with the Mrs Black’s of the world and they don’t seem to care.  I try to not make these posts political, however sometimes, it just seeps out.  It would be nice to have a government who looked into the future longer than its’ 3 year stint.