over watering vs under watering

[kerryp]

how do i tell the difference when it comes to seeing if a plant needs water or needs me to back off?! (oh god i feel silly asking)

[bustertom]

Hi Kerryp,

are your plants in pots or in the garden? If in pots, depending what they are, the best thing is to let the pots go a bit light and then stand in water for 20 minutes. They should soak up what they need.

Clare

[Alice]

Where are your plants KerryP.
Are they in pots ?
Sometimes plants in pots can be quite dry on the surface and quite damp underneath.
I confess to having one of those moisture readers where you stick the probe in the compost and it gives a damp reading. It works for me.
If your plants are outside then it is a matter of debate whether you should water them or not. I water mine if the ground is dry. Works for me.

[Two_Sheds]

Most people over-water, having got the idea in their heads that veggies need gallons of water. It's not the case.

Things in pots obviously need more watering, because they can't draw moisture from the soil. Pick up the pot: if it feels light, water it by standing it in a tray.
You'll soon get the knack of judging what needs it.

Plants on the allotment need a really good puddling in when you plant them, and if there is a drought.
We get hardly any rain here on the East Coast, but I don't have a watering regime (there aren't enough hours in the day). I just water if something is wilting.

[OllieMartin]

I read on here that outdoor plants don't need watering very often, so I slackened off on them. Then when it rained everything shot up, which suggested to me that it all needed the water.
Perhaps the issue was that I hadn't watered them in enough, or perhaps they hadn't grown particularly substantial roots due to my regular watering previously.

Either way, I went back to watering relatively regularly, my plants seem to appreciate it and will often wilt if left.

[kerryp]

ive backed off on my watering of veg that are in my raised bed... it was the plants in pots i was worrying about but when i was first growing things i killed a lot of bean & pea seeds by overwatering! my tomatoes in growbags are looking a bit wilted & i dont know if its overwatering or underwatering causing the problem... soil isnt dry but isnt waterlogged...
i intially asked coz my sunflowers looked worse for wear but they perked up when it rained & we moved them into bigger pots )

[Two_Sheds]

when it rained everything shot up, which suggested to me that it all needed the water.

I am convinced it's rain water that makes them grow ... my plants always shoot up after a good rain, less so than if they just get (hard) tap water

probably total guff, but it's what I've noticed

[kerryp]

watering the tomatoes....

here's my new problem.... have i over watered or under watered? or done something else wrong? *sigh*

[Snadger]

I am convinced it's rain water that makes them grow ... my plants always shoot up after a good rain, less so than if they just get (hard) tap water

probably total guff, but it's what I've noticed

Acid rain is full of nutrients!

[starloc]

To get the rapid growth you see from when plants get rain water, you can add very small amounts of hydrogen peroxide to tap water before watering ( about 10ml of normal hydrogen peroxide bp from the chemist) to a bucket of water ), rain water contains hydrogen peroxide natrualy, the hydrogen peroxide gives off oxygen to the roots

Plants dont die from too much water at the roots, its lack of air at the roots that causes the problem, so having dissolved oxygen in the water ( hydrogen peroxide ) (as with rain water natrualy) prevents root rot and feeds oxygen to the roots were its needed to give rapid growth,
its just like growing in a bubbleponics or aeroponics hydroponics system you get rapid growth from the oxygen in the water

Overwatered plants wilt and go yellow, and stay that way just getting worse, underwatered plants ( as long as there hardened off ) tend to wilt in heat of the day but recover in the cool at night, its always better to underwater than overwater