Does anyone have any sensible tips for minimising water usage whilst keeping shrubs, bushes and plants alive.

Our house in Carvoeiro has many of those laurel type bushes. Do they require much water or do they survive well in drought conditions?

Thx

According to my Med. book notes..Laurels do not need watering in summertime Green Fingers ...
I only have couple of Portuguese Laurels here in my Lincs garden...think they're very adaptable plants..I've noticed they look good whatever the weather.....through periods of drought... or wet & windy as we get here ..
and apparently they're okay in coastal areas..sea spray....

p.s. Mulching is good way of conserving moisture G F..

Thank you Elle - I only water them perhaps once a week and they do seem to cope well in the very dry conditions we are experiening in the Algarve right now.

Any advice on root watering versus covering the whole plant?

Thx

Good idea GreenFingers...I have done this using a pot buried next to plant...pouring water into pot so that it goes direct to roots?
here in Lincs I do this with tomato plants..
you're right in your thinking..a lotta water can be wasted watering 'over' plants and even when directed onto the soil it can take a lot to actually get down to the roots and is sometimes worse than not watering!...
Leaves can scorch too via water droplets in strong sunlight..

I know this might sound weird but a friend of mine showers with the plug in and then collects the water and either uses it to flush the toilet or water the plants.

I think thats a wonderful idea!
I've put plants in the shower with me..2 jobs in one..but don't use bath water that contains 'salts'..

Hi Ellie

What is Portuguese Laurel??

Do you have a picture you can email me. We had a laurel hedge at the back of our old house in the UK. It was a brilliant windbreak, a good screen from nosey neighbours but most importantly, provided a wonderful habitat for nesting birds.

Elle...I am curious...why is shower water different from bath water??

Piglet

Use lots of mulch.
Only plant suitable plants.
Don't water.

If you water plants, the roots stay near the surface. Otherwise they will dig down to find moisture. Out front garden in Sussex consists of a helluva lot of bark chippings and lavender. The lavenders were planted last year and watered to get them going. This year we haven't watered them ,or anything else either. The soil which hasn't been mulched is dust dry, the front garden is lovely and damp.

Evening piglet....
Portugal Laurel...Sorry I haven't got a pic of my own but if you type
'Prunus lusitanica' in google..then click on 'Berries Gallery....you'll get a nice pic of it ...
What I mean't was ..if you have a bath and want to use the water afterwards don't use bath salts which would be harmful to your plants !
With a shower..I use soap for myself( ) then stand houseplants in there and give them a water whilst rinsing meself..are we women crazy? ..
I do washing while I'm bathing sometimes...undies etc.......
and I've been known to wash the bathroom floor after I've bathed..with the bath water..
Like Peter says...the right planting can save a lot of watering.....gravel gardens/herb beds/ and like Peter I have a lot of lavender.English& French which once established don't need watering..I haven't watered my garden at all this year..only my containers..using water-retaining gel mixed with compost can also help too..

Evening piglet....
Portugal Laurel...Sorry I haven't got a pic of my own but if you type
'Prunus lusitanica' in google..then click on 'Berries Gallery....you'll get a nice pic of it ...
What I mean't was ..if you have a bath and want to use the water afterwards don't use bath salts which would be harmful to your plants !
With a shower..I use soap for myself( ) then stand houseplants in there and give them a water whilst rinsing meself..are we women crazy? ..
I do washing while I'm bathing sometimes...undies etc.......
and I've been known to wash the bathroom floor after I've bathed..with the bath water..
Like Peter says...the right planting can save a lot of watering.....gravel gardens/herb beds/ and like Peter I have a lot of lavender.English& French which once established don't need watering..I haven't watered my garden at all this year..only my containers..using water-retaining gel mixed with compost can also help too..

Oops sorry about that....repeating..
and just to say regarding Lavender..think its my favourite plant

I'll take a piccy tomorrow.

Laurel is good, and bay, we used to have a massive bay in the front. Would fuschias be ok? We have some up against the house wall, very dry. Rosemary is nice, cistus http://www.apinguela.com/Plantas/C/Cist ... anifer.jpg . There are masses of these near Monchique and the hill behind our house in Portugal is covered with them. It's a very steep hillside with about an inch of rubbish soil and then rock, they seem to do fine. Figs and olives? We have a couple of figs in the back, and one in Portugal. Difficult to stop them growing!

Hi Peter....
Fuchsias like humidity and wouldn't be good in the garden in the very hot dry conditions of Algarve....think they would deteriorate
better in pots in a shady place where you can keep 'humid' atmosphere
I envy you having figs..d'you have any in your Sussex garden at all?
I've got 2 here which I grew from the seeds of fresh figs that we ate...
they're 2 years old and quite healthy but don't know if i'll get any figs ..
Yes in Portugal they grow any where don't they....my friend in Lagoa had one growing out of the wall of her house..
Look forward to that pic of Port.Laurel...

p.s. I also love the flowers of the pomegranate..and hibiscus..lovely