Garden ForwardDrought-ready garden
Plants survive dry spells with far less watering and less summer loss.
Who it is for
Gardeners facing hotter, drier summers or water restrictions.
Conditions required
Any sunny garden with soil that dries out or a restricted water supply.
Time
A weekend, plus planting time
Difficulty
easy
Cost band
Low to medium
Seasonal timing
Best in autumn or early spring, before heat arrives
Step-by-step
1.Assess your soil
Dig a 30 cm hole and check how quickly water drains and how deep the roots go.
2.Improve soil structure
Add 5 cm of well-rotted organic matter to raise water-holding capacity.
3.Mulch deeply
Apply 7–10 cm of bark, compost or gravel mulch, keeping it clear of stems.
4.Capture water
Fit a water butt to a downpipe and note its capacity against your bed area.
5.Group plants by water need
Put thirsty plants together near the tap; dry-tolerant planting furthest away.
6.Water deeply and rarely
Use drip or soaker lines early in the morning; a long soak beats daily sprinkling.
7.Plant drought-tolerant species
Use the drought-ready palette and plant in autumn or early spring.
Plants for this project
These figures come from the demonstration dataset kept for testing and as a fallback when the measured climate service is unavailable. They are representative, not observed, and are never presented as validated live data.