Holidaying during the ongoing heatwave? Prepare your garden with these tricks

Ready to jet off on holiday? You’ll need to tell your garden first (Picture: Getty Images) It’s August, and if you’re lucky, you’ll have a summer holiday right around the corner. But before you go, you’ll want to look after your garden. Over the past few months, the nation’s lawns have turned a straw-like colour. The brief scatterings of rain on August 4 and August 5 haven’t been enough to bring back much plush greenery. The forecast is also set to be fairly toasty over the next week or so, as the Met Office is predicting highs of 32°C on Sunday, August 9, followed by 29°C on August 10 and August 11, and 31°C on August 12 and 13. So, if you’re heading for the airport over the next couple of weeks, you’re going to need a contingency plan for your garden. Metro heard from the experts about all the little jobs you’ll need to tick off your list before you go, to give your plants the best chance of survival. Move your plants away from direct sunlight Ask Metro Use AI to go deeper into the stories you care about – powered by Metro and trusted publications. David Denyer, a flower expert at Eflorist, recommends moving any indoor plants away from the sun. Sure, they might love the vitamin D, but if they’re overexposed to it, the intense heat and extra sunlight could dry them out. He says: ‘Shift your houseplants to a cooler, more shaded spot, ensuring you still have some indirect sunlight reaching them.’ Invest in self-watering accessories Next, consider investing in self-watering globes, accessories which hold water and release it into the soil when needed. They’ll do the watering for you, so you needn’t ask a friend to come over and sort it out. You can also make one yourself. David explains: ‘It’s best to use a glass bottle rather than a plastic bottle, to avoid any microplastics in the soil. If you’re going to use this method while you’re away, the best way to do it is with a clay spike or cone attached. Move any particularly sensitive plants out of the sun (Picture: Getty Images) ‘Simply screw or secure it onto the top of the bottle, flip it upside down, and stick it into the soil. ‘By adding this, it means the clay will only let water out when the soil’s dry enough to actually need it, so your plant gets a drink only when it’s thirsty. ‘You can also poke some small holes in the bottle cap instead, and the water will slowly drip over time to allow continuous hydration.’ Deadhead any flowering plants Now, you don’t want to return home to a complete jungle. Before you jet off, it’s best to deadhead any flowering plants, which David describes as ‘snipping off any faded or finished blooms.’ ‘You can do this with your hands, by gently pinching, or using plant snippers/scissors,’ he says. ‘By removing any dead flowers, you can ensure that the plant will stop putting its energy into making seeds, and focus on growing new buds instead. ‘In turn, this means more blooms for you when you’re back from your holiday, as well as keeping things looking neat and preventing disease.’ Don’t underestimate the impact of the weather Now, just because we’ve had a tiny bit of rain in the last week, doesn’t mean your garden will be going back to normal any time soon. In fact, David says sudden heat after a wet spell can actually ‘catch plants out’ quite badly. He explains: ‘After a bit of rain, plants often produce lots of fast, soft growth because water uptake suddenly increases. ‘While that fresh growth looks healthy, the cell walls are thinner and more delicate than older growth, which means strong sun and sudden heat can scorch or dehydrate it much faster. Sudden heat after a wet spell can catch plants out (Picture: Getty Images) ‘The soil can also dry out more quickly than people expect after wet weather, particularly in pots, hanging baskets, and sunny borders. Once temperatures move into the high twenties or above, moisture evaporates a lot faster, and plants that seemed fine can suddenly start struggling.’ One of the best things you can do before another sunny spell is to mulch your borders while the soil is still damp. This will help to trap moisture in the ground before the heat dries everything out again, because if you wait until plants are already stressed, you’ve missed the ‘best opportunity’ to help them cope. David adds: ‘It’s also worth being careful with lawns this weekend. Many people will want to cut their grass nice and short, but this can actually leave it much more vulnerable to scorching once the heat arrives. ‘Instead, slightly longer grass will help shade the soil underneath, keeping roots cooler and helping the lawn hold onto moisture for longer.’ The most common mistake people make with their gardens during a heatwave The worst thing you can do? David says it’s watering ‘little and often’ once the heat actually arrives. He explains: ‘While it feels like you’re helping, shallow watering can actually encourage weaker roots because the moisture never reaches deeper into the soil. ‘A much better approach is to water thoroughly either early in the morning or later in the evening so plants can properly absorb what they need before the heat of the day.’ Do you have a story you’d like to share? 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