How to deal with drought

Changes to help the garden survive tough, dry conditions

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IT has been a very dry summer, with May 2023 being one of the driest on record, and even a few days of hefty rain will have little impact on the aridity of the soil.

At the time of writing, another summer of drought is very much on the cards, and if this becomes a trend then we will need to rethink how we garden and what plants we grow.

Where I live we have thin chalky soil that drains quickly even in the wettest weather and so far, this summer has turned the garden into a dust bowl.

Clay soil won’t fare any better, become cracked and solid

The easiest way to garden in extreme conditions is to choose plants that thrive in those situations.

Drought-resistant plants include many with silvery leaves, such as Stachys (lambs ear), lavender and Sinecio cineraria and Senecio ‘Angel Wings’, plus sea holly, many ornamental grasses and palms, verbena varieties, poppies and succulents.

Experts at horticultural charity Garden Organic ( gardengorganic.co.uk) are worried about the effect this developing trend will have, not just on our gardens and how we grow, but also on food production across the country.