I’m a gardening expert – the ‘lifesaving’ buy that will revive your garden after the heat & how to apply it this weekend

IS your garden looking a little worse for wear after the hot weather this week?

Well, don’t worry, there’s a really easy way to revive your outdoor space.

High temperatures can leave your plants looking wilted and your lawn scorched – but experts have shared a simple a natural method to get your blooms back to their best.

Compost can be used by gardening fans to enrich the soil after a hot spell of weather.

Having high quality soil is vital for healthy plants, but it can sometimes lose it’s ability to hold on to moisture after particularly hot summer days.

Experts at Bury Hills Landscape Supplies told Express.co.uk: “Mulch can be a lifesaver when it comes to protecting plants from the harsh rays of the sun.”

They recommended reflective kinds, which “work particularly well as they will deflect the suns rays.”

Mulch also benefits plants by helping with water retention, which will keep roots healthy.

So, how should you use compost to revive your garden?

First, you need to know where the bulk of the damage is and remove about dead plants so new growth can begin.

Then simply spread a layer of compost over the soil – about two or three inches should do the trick.

Work the compost into the top layer of existing soil and around the base of any plants with a fork.

Then water the soil to allow the compost to merge and begin to benefit the soil with it’s nutrients.

According to the pros, you can take things a stop further by adding a layer of mulch on top of the compost too.

This will help protect your plants from further damage down the line, but isn’t necessary.

If you don’t already have some, you can buy compost from any garden centre, as well as some supermarkets for as little as £6.

Other gardening tips for hot weather

Your first thought may be to get the watering can out on your lunch break when working from home and treat yourself to some midday sun. 

But this could kill off your flowers and bushes after months of nurturing. 

“One of the worst mistakes you can make is to water your plants at the wrong time,” presenter and QVC gardening expert Mark Lane previously told The Mirror.

“The best time is early in the morning when the outdoor temperature is cooler, between 5pm and 9am, resulting in less water lost to evaporation.”

He advised that “early morning is preferable to late evening watering” as the plant can “dry off quickly which helps protect against the development of fungal diseases”.

Watering your plants at night causes its own risks, as this could drown them.

In terms of how often you should water your plants, there’s no simple rule of thumb.

This is because every plant has different needs – and some are thirstier than others.

“For example, a container plant in hot sunny weather may need watering daily,” RHS experts said. 

“Whereas a mature shrub might only need a drink in extreme drought. 

“It’s good to remember, plants will use more water if more water is made available to them.

“So you can allow them to dry out a little between watering and they don’t need to be wet all the time.”