It is time to water plants in your yard. Since eastern Iowa has not seen significant rain fall in several months, there is a lot of plant material feeling the brunt of the drought. New plant material installed with in the past five years will suffer quite a bit if you don’t water plants. Just driving through Cedar Rapids today I saw quite a few trees with leaves starting to turn and curl. The first visible sign that a plant is lacking adequate water is the curling or turning of the leaves. I saw quite a few maple trees that had about half of the leaves dead and curled and the other half wilting. Sometimes the wilting can occur in just one day and catch you off guard. The best thing that you can do for your trees and plants is to water them at least once per week with a good soaking.
Plant material such as annuals, perennials and shrubs that are planted under or near a tree can also suffer from lack of moisture. Plants installed under or near a tree will compete with the tree for moisture. Almost always the tree will win the battle for moisture because it has a more extensive root system. It is important to take into consideration water competition when you water plants.
Water plants so they maintain their color.
This is the first time in the summer that I have ever seen established day lily leaves turn yellow and burning bushes leaves turn red. It is too late in the season to undo the changes that have already taken place. To help save the plant, continue to provide water on a regular basis. Your plants may look rough the rest of the growing season, but if you continue to water your plants they will survive. Hopefully next year will not be as dry and our plants will return to normal. But until we get out of this slump, continue to monitor and water.