Hello friends! Today I will tell you how I water my Coral Bells. In fact, this is a very important aspect of growing because the health of the plant directly depends on it.
QUICK ANSWER: Water Coral Bells when the soil in the root zone is 2 inches dry. Use 1 gallon of water for each bush.
Watering rules
To find out when to water Coral Bells, check the soil at the roots. If it is about 2 inches dry, it is time to water.
On average, water each plant with 1 gallon of water. The exact amount of water depends on the size of the bush. The larger the Coral Bells and the hotter the weather, the more water you need to give the plants.
Avoid watering on a schedule, as this can lead to overwatering. Also, do not water Coral Bells in winter and in rainy weather.
To prevent the soil from drying out quickly, mulch the soil surface around the bush. Use organic material such as pine bark for this purpose. The mulch layer should be about 1-2 inches thick.
Read more: Maintain heuchera healthy and thriving.
Overwatering
If the soil around the roots gets too wet for too long, they will soften. Roots in this condition are very prone to root rot. Root rot can also turn into stem rot and you will lose the plant.
To avoid this, water the Coral Bells only when the soil is 2 inches dry on top. Use no more than 1 to 2 gallons of water per plant.
If your soil is too clayey, improve it by adding 1-2 buckets of soil conditioner.
Heuchera affected by root rot begins to lose its lower leaves and does not grow. In this case, dig it up and clean off the dirt.
Inspect the roots and if they are only partially rotted clean the rot. Treat the wounds with hydrogen peroxide and plant in fresh sterile soil.
If the roots are completely rotted, cut off the stem and re-root it in the pot.
Read more: Can You Overwater Coral Bells?
Underwatering
One problem with growing plants is dehydration. Fortunately, for Coral Bells, this is not that bad as it can tolerate some time without watering.
Of course, this only applies to heucheras that grow in full shade. But if your Coral Bells get some sun, you should water immediately when the soil is 1.5 to 2 inches dry.
If you dry out the soil too much, the leaves will droop and start to dry out, and the plant will begin to shrink in size. In this case, the plant will need some time to recover.
Watering in pots
Potting soil dries out quickly, so you need to keep an eye on it. When it is one inch dry, immediately water your potted Coral Bells.
Use enough water to wet the substrate completely in the pot. The excess water should drain out through the drainage holes.
Be sure to mulch the potted Coral Bells. This will not only slow down the drying of the soil but also reduce the pot’s heating in the hot weather.
Watering newly planted heucheras
Newly planted Coral Bells require special treatment because their root system has not yet spread into the ground.
In addition, nurseries often use pure peat or compost to grow the plants. Such substrate dries out very quickly. As a result, the native soil in the garden may be moist, but the nursery substrate around the roots may already be dry.
To avoid this, check the substrate’s moisture directly near the stem and not let it dry out more than an inch.
In addition, it is good practice to shade the heuchera extra for a few weeks after planting. This is especially true if it is placed in the partial sun.
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