Water is the essential ingredient for living things
Here in the Delaware Valley, we are blessed to live in a geographic area that typically gets plenty of rainfall. Of course, there can also be long stretches of dry weather, but there’s an easy remedy: We just open the tap to turn on a hose or sprinkler. In fact, in the 37 years I’ve lived here, I remember only one summer when we were put on drought restrictions. But because of a ready, seemingly limitless supply, it’s actually possible to forget just how important water is to our landscapes and gardens, and what a fragile resource it can be.
Two things have me thinking about water right now.
First, as I write this, we’re in the middle of the first big heat wave of the summer, with realfeel temperatures over 100 degrees. In the space of a day, it became a challenge to keep the container plants on the patio adequately watered over a 24-hour period. My quick solution was to put a deep saucer (take-out containers salvaged from our recycling bin) beneath each pot and keep the saucers/containers filled with water. Of course, I’ll need to remember to remove those saucers before rainy spells: Most of the plants will suffer from too much water, plus I don’t want the standing water to become breeding ground for mosquitoes. I also moved some of the more tender plants into the shade.
More alarming than the heat wave here, though, is what the Pacific Northwest is experiencing — previously unheard of, record-high temperatures, well over 100 degrees. Unfortunately, this is just part of what most of the western part of the country has been experiencing recently. As reported in The New York Times (June 17, 2021), “Much of the Western half of the United States is in the grip of a severe drought of historic proportions. Conditions are especially bad in California and the Southwest, but the drought extends into the Pacific Northwest, much of the
Intermountain West, and even the Northern Plains.”
There’s more. “In California, many of the state’s reservoirs are currently below historical averages due to an absence of strong winter storms and belowaverage snowpack in the Sierra Nevada. As of March 2 (2021), the state closed out its fifth consecutive month with below-average rain and snow. The current event fits the pattern of a long megadrought episode over the past two decades A recent study showed 2000-2018 has been the driest period in the U.S. Southwest since the late 1500s.” (https://earthobservatory.nasa. gov/images/148123/drought-conditions-continue-in-spring-2021)
The second thing is that my husband and I had the most amazing experience last week of watching two juvenile Screech Owls — still sporting a lot of down — show up the birdbath we keep on the patio. Is it the heat that has brought them to drink and bathe here?
In watching the owls — an unprecedented treat — my mind traveled from thinking about water mostly in terms of keeping the plants going, to the fact that the number-one requirement for life is water. A person can potentially survive for up to three weeks without food, but without water will perish in just three or four days.
The owls are a reminder to me that water is the key ingredient for life. It’s no surprise, therefore, that evidence of water is what astronomers look for when exploring the planets and moons of our galaxy.
So, as we swelter through this heat wave — certainly not the last we’ll see this summer — let’s also consider our water resources and how we use them. For instance, let’s opt for more appreciation and less waste. There are dozens of ways to easily save water in the home, and practicing them can help keep us aware of the importance and value of this irreplaceable, lifesustaining resource.
Pam Baxter is an avid organic vegetable gardener who lives in Kimberton. Direct e-mail to pamelacbaxter@gmail.com, or send mail to P.O. Box 80, Kimberton, PA 19442. Share your gardening stories on Facebook at “Chester County Roots.” Pam’s book for children and families, Big Life Lessons from Nature’s Little Secrets, is available on Amazon, along with her companion field journal, Explore Outdoors, at Amazon.com/author/ pamelabaxter.