• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
Urban Farm and Kitchen
  • Recipes
  • Gardening
  • Book
  • Shop
  • Contact
menu icon
go to homepage
  • Recipes
  • Gardening
  • Book
  • Shop
  • Contact
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • YouTube
  • subscribe
    search icon
    Homepage link
    • Recipes
    • Gardening
    • Book
    • Shop
    • Contact
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • YouTube
  • ×
    Home » Gardening

    Vacation-Proof your Garden for Success

    Published: Jun 23, 2023 by Luay Ghafari

    • Share on Facebook!

    Every gardener’s dilemma. Do I go on holiday and leave my garden to fend for itself? Or do I forgo that trip I’ve been planning for a while? Guess what? You can have it all! In this post, I will outline the 7 techniques and tips I use in m gardens when I go away on vacation in the summer months. There's also a shot video at the bottom of the page!

    Aerial shot of the garden with raised beds and containers from above.
    Jump to:
    • Mulching
    • Grouping Containers
    • Watering Deeply
    • Drip Irrigation
    • Fertilizing
    • Using Row Cover
    • Staking and Trellising
    • Video

    I like to focus on 3 areas when I vacation-proof the garden. Irrigation, Pest management and plant support.

    Mulching

    One of the ways to set up your garden for success, in general, is by using mulch. Mulching has many benefits so let’s go through them.

    Moisture retention

    One of the primary benefits of mulching is its ability to retain moisture in soil. When you apply a layer of mulch to the soil surface, it acts as a barrier, preventing excessive evaporation of water. This helps to keep the soil consistently moist, reducing the risk of your plants drying out during your absence.

    Weed suppression

    Mulch serves as a natural weed suppressant. By covering the soil with mulch, you create a physical barrier that inhibits weed growth. Weeds compete with your plants for essential nutrients and water, so by suppressing their growth, you minimize the need for manual weeding or the use of herbicides while you're away.

    A pepper plant with mulch around its base.

    Temperature regulation

    Mulch acts as an insulating layer, moderating soil temperature fluctuations. It keeps the soil cooler during hot weather and helps to prevent rapid temperature changes that can stress plant roots. This thermal regulation creates a more favorable environment for your plants, supporting their growth and health in your absence.

    Nutrient cycling

    Organic mulches, such as wood chips, straw or even compost, gradually break down over time. As they decompose, they release essential nutrients into the soil. This natural process enriches the soil, providing a steady supply of nutrients to your plants while you're away, promoting their overall well-being.

    Erosion prevention

    When you mulch your garden, you protect the soil from erosion caused by wind and rain. The mulch layer acts as a shield, preventing soil particles from being washed away or blown off. This is particularly crucial if you live in an area prone to heavy rainfall or strong winds.

    Enhanced soil structure

    Mulching improves soil structure and fertility over time. As the mulch breaks down, it adds organic matter to the soil, improving its composition, moisture-holding capacity, and overall fertility. This encourages beneficial microbial activity and earthworm populations, which further contribute to soil health and plant growth.

    Grouping Containers

    Containers dry up quickly. Any container gardener knows this. They typically require frequent watering and on really hot days, you might need to water twice!

    Containers can also absorb the sun’s rays and warm up quickly. This warming will cause the moisture in the growing medium to evaporate. One way to help reduce this evaporation is by grouping containers together. This reduces the exposed surfaces so the sun’s rays aren’t blasting them.

    I also recommend moving containers to part shade areas if possible. A few days in part-shade won’t affect your plant’s growth and will provide you with a little extra moisture retention.

    Watering Deeply

    Watering is part art and part science and many gardeners (both new and seasoned) get it wrong all the time. When watering, I want you to think of the root structures of your plants. Watering deeply means giving the soil or growing medium a deep soaking where the water will seep through and encourage the plant roots to grow downwards. It is far more effective to water deeply (and less frequently) than to water lightly (and more often).

    Watering the garden with a hose.

    Before calling that uber for the airport, give your garden a deep watering. This is especially important for containers.

    Drip Irrigation

    Drip irrigation is an excellent solution for saving your garden while you're on holiday. For me, it’s a lifesaver! Here's how it can help:

    Efficient water usage

    Drip irrigation delivers water directly to the roots of your plants, minimizing water wastage through evaporation or runoff. It ensures that water is targeted precisely where it's needed, reducing overall water consumption compared to traditional watering methods like sprinklers or hand-watering. This efficiency is particularly beneficial when you're away and unable to monitor your garden regularly.

    Consistent watering

    With drip irrigation, you can set up a timed watering system, ensuring that your plants receive a consistent water supply even when you're not there. By programming the irrigation system, you can customize the frequency and duration of watering sessions based on your plants' specific needs. This helps prevent under-watering or over-watering, maintaining optimal soil moisture levels and promoting healthy plant growth in your absence.

    Drip irrigation emitter watering a raised bed.

    Disease prevention

    Traditional overhead watering methods, such as sprinklers, can splash water onto the leaves and foliage, creating a conducive environment for disease development. Drip irrigation minimizes this risk by delivering water directly to the soil, avoiding contact with the leaves. By keeping the foliage dry, it reduces the likelihood of fungal diseases and other plant infections, helping to maintain the health of your garden while you're away.

    Customizable and adaptable

    Drip irrigation systems offer a high level of customization to suit your garden's specific needs. You can adjust the water flow rate, install different types of emitters for various plant types, and even incorporate automated controllers for precise scheduling. This adaptability allows you to tailor the irrigation system to your garden's requirements, ensuring optimal water delivery and plant health during your absence.

    Time-saving

    Drip irrigation saves you time and effort by automating the watering process. Once the system is set up and programmed, it operates independently, eliminating the need for manual watering. This is especially convenient when you're on holiday and unable to tend to your garden regularly. You can enjoy your time away knowing that your plants are being watered consistently and efficiently.

    Fertilizing

    If you’re going to be away from your garden for an extended period of time (over 10 days), I highly recommend that you fertilize your container plants before leaving. Nutrients in containers will deplete rather quickly and if they were already low before your holiday, chances are your crops will suffer some nutrient deficiencies.

    Adding liquid seaweed to a watering can.

    To give your container plants the best chance to survive and thrive while you’re away, fertilize them with an organic fertilizer. In-ground or raised bed plants will be fine as they have access to a much larger growing medium area.

    Using Row Cover

    A thriving garden can get completely overrun and decimated by pests in just a few days. Most organic gardeners are attentive and will check plants regularly for pest damage, eggs, and larvae. When you’re on holiday, there’s no one there to perform this important task.

    Using row cover is the best way to reduce the chance of pest damage on sensitive crops. In many parts of the world, Brassicas (cabbage, kale, broccoli, cauliflower, etc.) are under relentless attack by cabbage butterflies all summer long. The best way to guarantee perfect cabbage heads and kale that doesn’t look like Swiss cheese is to cover your brassica crops with insect netting or a light row cover.

    I also encourage you to cover beets, Swiss chard and spinach to prevent leaf miner damage.

    Covering a raised bed with row cover to protect against pests.

    Important note: Do not cover crops that need to be pollinated by insects to set fruit. Most summer crops like tomatoes, peppers, beans, and squash should not be covered.

    Staking and Trellising

    We often forget how quickly plants can grow in a week or two. If you don’t properly trellis or stake your plants before leaving, you could end up with some overgrown branches that could snap. If plant vines grow in problematic directions, they will become difficult to manage when you return and you could end up snapping a few stems. We don’t want that!

    Ensure your plants are well supported and growing in the direction you want them to before you leave.

    Video

    For more, follow along on Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest, visit the Urban Farm Shop, or subscribe for new posts via email.

    More Gardening

    • Cabbage with text overlay: 83 Inspirational and funny gardening quotes and puns.
      83 Inspirational and Funny Gardening Quotes and Puns
    • Hands holding a compost.
      Topsoil vs Garden Soil: What’s the Difference?
    • Harvest basket of peppers.
      31 Best Types of Pepper Plants to Grow in Your Garden
    • Red and orange cherry tomatoes.
      17 Best Tomatoes for Container Gardening
    • Share on Facebook!

    Reader Interactions

    Leave a Reply Cancel reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    Recipe Rating




    Primary Sidebar

    Welcome to Urban Farm and Kitchen!

    Luay Ghafari cover photo.

    Hi! I'm Luay, a cook, recipe developer, gardener, educator and photographer and this is my little slice of the web! I launched Urban Farm and Kitchen as an ode to seasonal, local, garden-to-table recipes and I look forward to continue sharing my passions with you all! More about me>


    Jpeg of book cover, Seed to Table, with a top-down view of salads on the cover.

    Seed to Table, my first book, is available for purchase worldwide!


    Featured in

    Image text: Homes and gardens, Toronto Life, Angi, CBC, Food52, Williams Sonoma California, Medium, Yahoo News

    Footer

    ↑ back to top

    Legal

    Privacy Policy

    Terms & Conditions

    Newsletter

    Sign Up!

    Contact

    Contact

    Media Kit

    Refer to shop page for shipping FAQ and Return Policy.

    Copyright © 2023 Urban Farm and Kitchen.  All rights reserved. The content on this website may not be copied or reproduced in any way whatsoever without prior written permission.