Growing a desert garden has several challenges, such as limited water supply, besides the regular challenges facing maintaining a garden. If you follow some simple methods, you can grow healthy plants even with the windy conditions and hot and dry weather common to the southwest.
These desert gardening tips will ensure that your efforts in developing a garden in a desert region are fruitful.
- Find the Right Seeds
Different seeds are suitable for varying regions, and since areas in the southwest require special seeds, your best bet for a successful garden is to get seeds that can thrive in the desert.
You can get a variety of seeds developed to withstand the harsh weather in deserts. These seeds are available at local nurseries and even farmer’s markets.
- Nurture the Soil
Desert soil is full of clay, gravel, and sand, which is unsuitable for many seeds. Before planting, you have to add organic matter such as compost to provide the necessary nutrients that seeds need to germinate.
Before each planting season, you can prepare the soil and plant cover crops to protect the soil off-season.
- Mulch the Soil
Mulching in a desert garden has several benefits. It can reduce the growth of weeds, retain moisture, which is important for a desert garden, and protect the plant’s base and the soil surface. Mulch can be in the form of pulled weeds, bags available at your local nursery, or straw.
- Protect the Garden from the Sun
The desert sun is hot enough to kill your vegetables and even young seedlings. To avoid the impact of intense UV rays, you can adopt these two strategies.
- Companion Plants
Companion plants like chard and kale can serve two purposes: provide shade for growing plants and protect the plants from pests.
- Shade Cloth
Using a shade cloth is an inexpensive and simple way to protect your growing vegetables from heat and the sun’s rays. For example, you can insert PVC pipes in your garden beds and secure shades over the PVC pipes with small clamps. This allows your plants to receive sun, but not enough to destroy them.
- Invest in a Lot of Water
The arid climate in desert regions affects the ability of plants to get water through their leaves and plant roots. When watering your plants, you have to optimize the water for the plants to survive. You can ensure your plants always have water through the following ways.
- Water Catchment
If your state permits, you can divert rainwater into cisterns or large barrels on your property. This can reduce the cost and stress of getting water for your plants. You can also set up rain barrels with a gravity feed and hoses or a timer to water the plants.
- Drip Irrigation
Drip irrigation involves a series of hoses that provide water in drips to the base of the plant and the root area. You can set up drip irrigation with valves, emitters, pipes, and a tubing network.
Depending on the size of your garden, you may need several hours to set up the drip irrigation system, but the result is quite rewarding.