It’s certainly looking like Sydney is heading back to drought. If it hasn’t happened already, your grass will very soon be turning brown and your plants wilting as they try to survive the hot, seemingly-endless days. Here are five tips that could see your garden soldiering through summer while still saving precious water, without having to spend a whole lot of cash on plumbers and plumbing contractors

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1.    Make That Water Work Twice As Hard: Need to wash the car and water the lawn, but you can only afford to do one? Think again. Simply by washing your car on your lawn, you can kill two birds with one stone, but don’t forget to use a bucket rather than letting the hose run!

2.    Does That Lawn Really Need Water?: You can’t always have a lush, green lawn, but there are a few ways you can make sure your lawn stays alive without you having to always run the hose. For starters, choose a grass that’s drought-resistant so it’ll last longer on less water, or even consider pavers or gravel to reduce the size of your lawn. If that’s not an option, learn to know when it’s really time to water it. A good way to find out if you’re lawn’s ready for a hose down is if there’s a slight blue tinge to it, or it doesn’t spring back up after being walked on after two minutes.

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3.    Dig Out Your Rake: Long dry spells can see lots of leaves and bark fall across paths and driveways, and if you’re a stickler for tidiness, you’re better off getting a rake or broom to clear away that mess, rather than being lazy and using the hose to spray it away. Besides, raking or sweeping can actually be a great workout.

4.    Get Mulching: Mulching doesn’t just stop your plants getting cold in winter, and prevent unruly weeds popping up in your garden, a layer of mulch around eight centimetres thick can reduce water evaporation, as well as keeping your plants cool.

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5.    Teach Old Plants New Tricks: As strange as it sounds, you can train your plants to need less frequent watering. The trick is to water them for longer, but less often. By doing so, they’re encouraged to grow deeper roots to help them get as much water as possible.