When should you water your vegetables?

This is a super important question and one that I’ve been trying to figure out since I started this gardening project. I think it’s about time that I get to the bottom of it 😊

As soon as I started researching ‘how to grow vegetables’ and learning about the Square Foot Garden method… I feel like I always hear the same advice recycled:

  • Water every 7-10 days
  • Mornings are best!

I’m sorry… but watering once every WEEK in the Texas summertime seems like torture for my poor plant babies. Does that advice hold up in climates where it rains frequently (i.e. NOT TEXAS)? Or perhaps in the north side of the country (i.e. NOT TEXAS)? 

Texas summers are cook-an-egg on the sidewalk HOT… if you know… you know!

As of now, I try to water my garden – the three square foot garden boxes – and my army of container plants once a day, every day. I try to knock this out in the morning time when it’s cooler to be outside (for me) but also because I heard that watering in the morning is ideal. I have to tell you though… come 3pm or 4pm in the afternoon, the boxes are DRY! It literally looks like my babies are thirsty and I’m genuinely curious if I’m doing something wrong. 

I have a theory that you should water to keep soil levels “moist” to touch. In other words, if I touch the soil and it feels moist – then we are good to go. If it’s scratchy and dry… then it’s time to turn on the watering hose. 

Square Foot Garden Box

But since I don’t know… I’m on a mission to research this topic and report my findings back! For the purposes of my research, I am focusing on my current situation… which is growing vegetables in the Texas summer.

Hey again… so after some pretty cool investigating… this is what I’ve concluded:

1. WATER ONE INCH PER WEEK

  • Note that one inch of rain is about 60 gallons! I also read that vegetables need an extra ½ inch per week, for every 10 degrees above 60 F
  • By definition, the average temperature is the daytime high + nighttime low, divided by 2. So for me with a high of 93 F in the day and 75 F at night, my average is about 84 F – which means an extra 1 ½ inches of water per week.
  • Sounds like I need to be aiming for 2 ½ inches total per week
  • However, when it’s hot and dry outside, above 85 F, it is recommended to water daily.

2. WATER YOUR VEGETABLES DEEPLY

It’s best to water 2-3 times per week for longer amounts of time rather than a little bit each day. Watering deeply means that you are moistening the soil about 6 inches into the ground. If you water lightly, more frequently, you are setting your roots up for failure because they won’t grow deep and strong. Also, it’s more likely that the water will evaporate versus sinking down lower.

3. SOIL COMPOSITION MATTERS

If you have a clay-soil, then know that your water will hold longer than something super sandy where it will likely run on through.

I would say that my Mel’s Mix is more on the “sandy” side – remember all the vermiculite we added? This means I probably need to aim for more than one inch… perhaps I should round up to about 3 inches of water per week.

4. MORNING IS BEST

Water early in the morning, preferably before 10am. This is advised because afternoon watering is quicker to evaporate, due to the higher temperature and stronger sun. 

5. DRIP IRRIGATION SYSTEMS CAN BE YOUR FRIEND

Drip irrigations are recommended and there are some that won’t break the bank. However, this is not my season for getting one… therefore I know I’m going to be doing everything by hand. When watering by hand, it’s advised that a SLOW stream of water is better and less wasteful than fast.

6. DO NOT MIST

Avoid Mist! This spreads diseases.

7. CONTAINER GARDENS HAVE HIGHER WATERING NEEDS

Container plants need water everyday. When it’s hot and dry outside, they sometimes even need a second or third watering!

IN CONCLUSION...

It sounds like I need to continue watering every day (at least until the summer passes). I should focus on watering slower and really letting the water seep through the soil versus giving it a heavy stream… just to quickly knock this chore off my list. I should also getting a better grasp on HOW MUCH water and HOW LONG it takes to pump out an inch from the watering hose. To be honest, I have no clueeee…

It might be a good idea to start collecting rain water in a container that measures volume so I’m able to better gauge how much rain I’m getting and also be able to repurpose the water for my plants. 

It also appears that I should probably be giving my container plants a second serving of water – best after 8pm. This will work out nicely because (hopefully) my kiddos will be asleep and I can have a peaceful moment to myself (ahhh sounds so nice, doesn’t it?) 😊

After summer passes, it will be easier to take “off days” for watering but for now it’s going to be an everyday ritual. 

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