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5 Summer Tips to Save Water, Money and Your Plants

It costs £55 a month to water your garden, if you water an hour a day with a hosepipe. Learn more about garden watering costs and read our tips for reducing your garden watering bill.

Updated 24 July 2019

Recent scorching temperatures spell trouble for UK gardens. Temperatures these days aren’t just warm, they’re hot—the Met Office has just reported that temperatures will continue to climb this week, reaching record breaking levels by Thursday 25 July.

Maintaining a lush garden in the face of conditions more akin to the Mediterranean can cost a fortune in water bills. To find out how much it costs to water your garden, we've run the numbers on the cost to run a hosepipe. We also have top tips to keep the moisture in your garden to reduce dependence on watering.

How Much Does it Cost to Water Your Garden?

Our research shows that households with a water meter could spend around £55 per month of their household budget by watering their garden for an hour a day. During a long, dry summer those with a large garden could spend over £200 keeping their plants hydrated. According to Water UK, around 50% of UK households have a water meter installed, so a significant proportion of households are affected by garden watering costs.

chart showing costs to water your garden over the summer
How Much Does it Cost to Water Your Garden?

Here’s how we calculated the costs to water a garden. South East Water reports that running a hosepipe for one hour will use 1 cubic metre of water (1,000 litres). Assuming a metered charge for water supplied of £1.85 per cubic metre, every hour of watering would cost £1.85 (£1.85 per cubic metre * 1 cubic metre of water per hour). Over 30 days the watering cost for a garden becomes £55.43, assuming you water for an hour every day.

Water Costsif you water 30 min/dayif you water 1 hour/day
Per Day£0.92£1.85
Per Week£6.47£12.93
Per Month£27.72£55.43
Per Summer (June through September)£110.86£221.72

When Rain Doesn't Help the Garden

When heavy rains follow significant dry periods, the parched, hardened ground does not easily soak up the rain water. Instead of soaking into the ground to nourish the roots of thirsty, wilted plants, the rain runs off across the surface.

The recent large June rainfalls have improved soil moisture levels in many areas of England, most notably in central areas with parts of Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire, Staffordshire, Leicestershire and Lincolnshire seeing soil moisture deficits drop more than 30mm. However, the soil is still drier than average in south-east, south-west and east England. Particularly affected are parts of Yorkshire, Kent, Hampshire and Sussex where soil moisture deficits increased by around 20mm by the end of the month.

How to Save Water (and Money!) in Your Garden

In an effort to save water and reduce your water bills, follow these tips when caring for your garden.

1. Mulch to Slow Evaporation

A layer of mulch protects the soil underneath from drying out. A number of university studies from America have shown that mulching can reduce water evaporation anywhere from 33% to 75%, which can mean real savings over the course of a summer.

Without mulch, the sun’s heat on the earth’s surface causes the soil to heat up, increasing the evaporation rate. As this top layer dries, moisture from below wicks up to replace it. Before you know it, the soil is dry.

Mulch primarily helps retain soil moisture levels because water cannot easily wick between the soil underneath and the mulch above. Additionally, the mulch acts as a barrier to the soil below, shading it from the sun and keeping it cooler, further reducing evaporation.

2. Water in the Cool Evening to Slow Evaporation

Watering in the heat of the day means higher water bills. Hot soil causes water to evaporate more quickly. That means you’ll need to run the hose longer for the soil to become as soaked and the plants to get the same amount of water as if you watered in the cooler evening (or early morning). By watering in the lower evening temperatures, plants will have time overnight to have a good drink. Your plants will be happier and your water bill lower.

3. Water the Roots

I once asked my husband to water the garden when I was away. He proceeded to spray the foliage of the plants - hard to argue against that logic since that's what rain does. But it's not the most effective strategy for watering your plants. More water ends up evaporating into the air than absorbing into the soil. Plus if only the surface of the earth becomes moist, a shallow root system is more likely to develop.

To increase drought resistance, we want to encourage the plants to develop deep roots. A really thorough soaking of the soil near the base of the plants will do the trick. Water will hydrate the deep, dark soil, far from the evaporating effects of the sun - a welcome haven for a root system.

4. Invest in Drought Tolerant Plants

According to the Office of National Statistics, British consumers spend over £1 billion on plants, flowers and other garden goods every quarter. That’s around £120 per household per year. Buy the right plants and they’re more likely to survive in lower water conditions. A beautiful investment.

”picture
”Agapanthus”

Keep in mind some general characteristics of drought-tolerant plants. They often have silver-grey leaves – light in colour to reflect the sun’s rays. You may see little hairs on the leaves, which help to trap moisture (e.g., morning dew). Annuals tend to have larger water requirements, since their root systems are young and undeveloped. You can learn more about drought-resistant plants from the RHS or Tips Bulletin.

Below is a selection of our favourite drought-resistant flowering plants. Plant them to bring beautiful colour to your garden from May to October, all while saving water.

Drought-Resistant Flowering Plants

Good ForFlowering MonthsNameCommon NameFlower ColourApproximate Height
BordersMay, June, JulyAlliumAlliumPurple0.6m - 1.8m
Borders and PotsJuly to SeptemberLavandulaLavendarPurple0.45m - 1m
Ground cover, Borders and PotsMay to OctoberGeraniumGeraniumVarious colours0.45m - 1.2m
Borders and PotsJune to AugustScabiosaPincushion flowerVarious colours0.6m
Borders and PotsJuly August & SeptemberAgapanthusAfrican LilyPurple0.6m - 1m
BordersMarch to AugustEuphorbiaEuphorbiaYellow-green0.5m – 1.5m
Back of BorderJune JulyLupinus arboreusTree LupinYellow or Purple2m
Borders and PotsJune to OctoberCalendula officinalisPot MarigoldOrange0.6m
Borders and PotsJuly to SeptemberHebeHebePurple0.2m - 1m

5. Collect Rainwater in a Water Butt

Rainwater can be collected in a water butt for use in your garden. The water butt is attached to the drainpipe. When it rains, water runs from the roof into gutters, the drainpipe and into the water butt. It is especially useful for collecting water in rainy, winter months for use in the hot, dry summer months. The RHS estimates that 150 water butts of water could be collected every year from a roof. This water can sustain plants during the 18 weeks from May to September when plants' hydration needs exceed rainfall.

To set up a water butt with existing, closed drain pipes, you’ll need a rainwater diverter kit. These can be purchased at Homebase for £6.29 or at many other DIY stores.

Erin Yurday

Erin Yurday is the Founder and Editor of NimbleFins. Prior to NimbleFins, she worked as an investment professional and as the finance expert in Stanford University's Graduate School of Business case writing team. Read more on LinkedIn.

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