How to water a new shrub so it survives its first summer

More new plants die of drowning than of drought, and most of the rest die of a sprinkler that wet the leaves and never reached the roots.

Water the root ball, not the bed

For the first season the roots are still inside the ball you planted. Put the water there: a slow five gallons at the base, not a spray over the whole bed.

Twice a week, not every day

Deep and rare trains roots downward. Little and often keeps them at the surface, where they cook in the first hot week of July.

How to know

Push a finger two inches into the root ball. Damp, skip it. Dry, water it. That test beats any schedule.

Mulch, but not against the stem

Two inches of mulch holds the moisture in. Piled against the trunk it holds rot in instead. Leave a hand’s width clear all the way around.