Keeping Plants Alive in Arizona Heat
How to Help Your Plants Survive the Hot AZ Desert Summers
Jun 1, 2009
Keeping outdoor plants alive during the summer in Arizona can be a challenge, even for those with a "green thumb." Here are some tips for potted plant care in the heat.
While it might be tempting to move all of the potted plants indoors for the hot Arizona summer, with careful maintenance, this is unnecessary. Intense direct sunlight and the bone-dry, oven-like climate are the major enemies of (non-desert) plants in the desert.
The following are a few tips for helping potted plants make it through the summer, preferably without crowding up the house!
Tips for Maintaining Healthy Plants During the Summer
- If possible, consider sticking with drought-proof plants, cacti and succulents, or drought-resistant varieties of potted plants. These will weather the heat and dry climate better than typical plants adapted to moist climates. They come in many shapes and colors, so the outdoor potted plants can be every bit as beautiful as they would be with plants from a temperate region.
- Buy a spray bottle. At least twice a day (before and after work, for instance), mist the leaves and topsoil of each of the potted plants. Covering the leaves with a little water will keep the plant healthier, allowing the water to evaporate from the surface spray before pulling moisture directly from the plant's leaves.
- Give plants a healthy soaking. Use the watering can in the morning and the evening to let the water soak in and reach the plant's roots before the sun can suck it out. This will make the watering more effective than watering mid-day. However, watering as needed is the best way to keep soil moist, if you have the time.
- Avoid over-watering. Too much water can be as bad as too little, choking the roots of the plant and encouraging weed growth and rotting. As long as the soil feels somewhat damp, it may not need a deep soaking.
- Consider self-watering pots. Most of these pots water plants from the bottom up, preventing the water from floating on the top of the soil and evaporating quickly in the sun. There are also accessories available that look like pot decorations but which actually serve as automatic watering devices.
- "Full Sun" does not necessarily translate to "Full Arizona Sun." Six hours of direct Arizona sun may quickly kill your plant or dry out its soil too swiftly to keep up with - consider placing full sun plants in areas that receive only early morning or evening sun, or only indirect sunlight. If this does not do the trick, move the plant inside to a window sill if possible so that it gets the light without the heat.
If fertilizing potted plants for improved growth over the summer, keep in mind that desert plants may require different fertilizers and nutrients than temperate climate plants.
Happy gardening!
The copyright of the article Keeping Plants Alive in Arizona Heat in Desert/Water-wise Gardens is owned by Katherine Brind'Amour. Permission to republish Keeping Plants Alive in Arizona Heat in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.
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