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A Garden With Better Growth

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By MONICA BRANDIES Tribune columnist

The Tampa Tribune

Published: January 14, 2009

Florida growers know how difficult it is to keep optimum soil moisture levels throughout the day, let alone throughout a week between permitted watering during dry times.
Automatic irrigation systems may seem like the ideal solution, but they need maintenance and can waste a great deal of water. With the most recent restrictions, we can only water by hand in the early morning before 8 a.m. or late evening after 6 p.m. It's dark during those times in winter.

When I wrote the book "Xeriscaping for Florida Homes," I included a chapter on products that can make water go farther. One that I continue to use is Hydretain, a liquid organic compound with hygroscopic properties. It forms a subsurface film that draws moisture through the soil, absorbing and storing it so it is available to hydrate plant root systems.

The large, complex molecules of Hydretain cannot pass through plant cells, but moisture does. So the compound makes 50 percent to 100 percent more moisture available to the plant.

One end of the Hydretain molecule anchors itself to soil particles and root hairs, coating their surface. The other end is available to "grab" free water molecules from humid air circulating in the soil, applied waterings, rainfall and other water sources.

Once Hydretain has "grabbed" a water molecule, it releases the molecule into a plant's root through osmosis, preventing it from being lost to evaporation or leaching. Because the Hydretain molecule is too large to fit through the cell wall of the root, it is left behind, where it is free to "grab" another water molecule.

This process is repeated, continually supplying plants with water. Hydretain does not hold excess water in the root zone and therefore does not promote disease. Because it minimizes stress, which results in better growth and production, it also helps plants avoid pest and disease problems. Hydretain also helps establish transplants, reduces fertilizer use and improves seed germination.

It is being used more and more as water restrictions tighten. Wholesale growers, landscapers, golf course greenskeepers and farmers are using Hydretain to cut labor costs, water use, water bills and plant losses. It is safe for food production.

Homeowners can use it in containers or in the ground to reduce regular watering. The bottle can be attached to your hose with a hose-end sprayer.

But it's pricey. So I added it to rainwater collected in my buckets and use it to water only container plants - especially small ones that dry out quickest, and a few thirsty plants that are too far for the hose to reach.

I checked with Rick Irwin, the president of Ecologel, the company that makes Hydretain, and he assured me it is OK to add fertilizers, enzymes or other liquids - as long as you are not using a sprayer. If you are, be sure the combination of products doesn't produce solid flecks that could clog the sprayer.

Hydretain must be watered right after application so it seeps down to and throughout the root zone, where it can be drawn up against tiny roots. If allowed to remain on the surface of the garden, or within the thatch area, Hydretain will attach to organic materials, and its migration into the root area, with subsequent waterings, will be too slow to show its full effectiveness.

Each application reduces watering for up to three months.

Hydretain can be ordered at www.ecologel.com, which lists a special price of $39.95 for two quarts, and is available at several retailers in Tampa. E-mail me for the list. Lowe's Home Improvements carried it at one time and may again if people ask for it. It is worth the price.

Today's Pick

Lobelia erinus, sometimes called edging lobelia, is one of the hardy winter annuals I buy as soon as I can every fall. The plants stay small and produce an abundance of small flowers in many shades of blue, lavender, purple and white.

It's not too late to buy them for use as bedding plants. They will last until summer.

I love blue flowers and will never forget the hanging baskets of lobelias blooming in many colors in Ireland, where they thrive all summer. I usually can find only one color here, and I have not tried to start them from seeds. They are available in many catalogs.

Now's The Time To ...

•Enjoy the winter garden, and be thankful for the few frosts this season. Most of our gardens have suffered very little damage, if any. But keep the sheets, blankets, boxes and frost cloth ready. Make or check your list of the plants that need protection most. A few of my pots have been on the back porch since November, just to make sure.

•Put Christmas poinsettias outdoors, but if possible, keep them in pots until the danger of frost is past. This allows you to move them gradually, over a few days, from the comparative shade of indoors to full or near-full sun they will need if you want to plant them in the ground later. When you plant them permanently, be sure poinsettias are in a place where they will get no artificial light at night. It won't hurt them once they are in flower, but they won't form next year's flowers unless they get long, dark nights.

Upcoming Events

The Tampa African Violet Society will meet Friday at the Ragan Community Center, 1200 East Lake Ave., Tampa. Barbara Matthews, a Gesneriad Society judge, will talk about tuberous, fibrous and rhizomatous rooted gesneriads. Visitors are welcome. Admission and parking are free. Call Mary Lou Harden at (813) 689-8700 or Mina Menish at (813) 681-1910 for meeting times.

Monica Brandies can be reached at monicabrandies@yahoo.com.

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