For the first time in seven months, I have turned on our system, more to test it than for serious watering.

But flushing out the system cannot be done unless a tap is fitted at the lowest point in the system. Next, clean the filter, which is always recommended even for town water.

Now is the time to add new mulch, but be sure to lift the drip lines on top of the soil or old mulch. Drip lines always go on top of the soil and under the mulch. Finally, dig a few holes in various places to see how moist the ground is and if starting to dry out turn on the drip system.

Normally, I recommend that one hour a week of drip watering is sufficient for most gardens, although new gardens may initially need several hours to build up the moisture levels.

Most drip systems deliver two litres an hour for each outlet. The simplest way to test the system is place an empty two-litre ice cream container under the drip line. After an hour the container should be full.

While this may sound boring, all the above is vital for the survival of your plants through summer.

In Canberra we receive an average annual rainfall of 619mm, but the annual average evaporation rate is 1800mm. Water is vital to all forms of life.

More detailed information at cedricbryant.com, Cedfacts Information Sheets “In-Line Drip Irrigation Systems” and “Mulch Your Garden to Conserve Moisture”.

IT’S always suggested that plants should be grouped according to their water needs, which may be good advice from the garden TV shows or in magazines, but in most cases rarely practical.

Although in saying this, in our front garden I have almost all the plants originating from the Mediterranean, which is ideal for our local climate. You will have the opportunity to see this when we open our garden in a few weeks. I haven’t fixed the date yet, but my readers will know first in “CityNews”.

THE Canberra Bonsai Society Annual Show will be at Daramalan College, Dickson, 9am-5pm, on Saturday October 11 and 9am-4pm on Sunday, October 12. There’ll be demonstrations at 11am and 2 pm and Bonsai Basics sessions at 10am and 1pm each day.

Good book, win it!

THE recently published “Dig Deeper” by Meredith Kirton (Murdoch Books, rrp $69.99) is a serious garden book with appeal to anyone just starting a garden to people like me, who think they know it all until they start reading this book!

Sensibly divided into the four seasons the book has colour photos on every page to accompany the excellent text. I highly recommend it. There’s a copy for one lucky reader to win. Write your name, suburb and contact number on the back of an envelope and send to “Dig Deeper” “CityNews”, GPO Box 2448, Canberra 2601, by Friday, October 24. The winner will be announced in the edition of October 31.

Jottings…

• Still a month to go before planting tomatoes outdoors.
• If finished fruiting, citrus trees can be cut back for shape and more fruiting branches.
• Prune back shrubs that have been frost damaged.
• Prune sasanqua camellias now as flowering has finished.
• Nip out sweet pea shoots when they have reached a desirable height to encourage lateral growth and more flowers.
• Finally, “garden to please yourself, then at least one person enjoys the garden”.