Dandelion flowers in garden. Taraxacum officinale. Dandelion plant with a fluffy yellow bud. Selective focus. Taraxacum is a large genus of flowering plants in the family Asteraceae.
Expert Tips for Keeping Your Garden Thriving Through Pennsylvania’s Dry September
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Asia Tabb
Dandelion flowers in garden. Taraxacum officinale. Dandelion plant with a fluffy yellow bud. Selective focus. Taraxacum is a large genus of flowering plants in the family Asteraceae.
AIRED; September 17, 2025
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As Pennsylvania moves into September, cooler weather may be on the horizon—but gardeners are facing an ongoing dry spell that’s putting stress on trees, flowers, and vegetable beds.
Horticulturist Erica Jo joined The Spark to share advice on how to keep plants healthy during drought-like conditions. Her first piece of guidance: don’t forget about your trees.
“Any of your trees that have been in three years, five years even—the big ones—they’re hard to water properly,” she explained. “One inch of water once a week or at least once every two weeks. I see so many trees wilting right now, especially younger trees.”
Erica Jo cautioned against what she calls “surface watering,” where people run sprinklers for just 15 minutes and assume it’s enough. “You need an inch of water,” she said. “If you’re using a sprinkler, put a rain gage—or even a coffee cup—out there so you can see.”
When it comes to frequency, thorough deep watering once a week is more effective than a little water every day. “What you might make a mistake doing is watering a little bit every day, which causes the roots to actually come up to the surface and make them more susceptible to drying out and drought,” she said.
She also encouraged gardeners to think about water conservation. “I love rain barrels. I have two at my own house. They’re 65-gallon rain barrels, and one half inch of rain actually will fill them up.”
Container gardens, however, need special attention. “If you’ve done a good job, your containers are all full of roots that are fighting with each other for water,” Erica Jo said. “Some of mine, I’m actually having to water in the morning and again when I get home at night.” Hanging baskets dry out even faster, so she suggests checking them multiple times a day during dry spells.
On plant sales popping up at garden centers this time of year, she offered some buyer beware advice. “First of all, look at it—are the leaf tips brown, does it look extremely yellow?” she said. “Look at the trees especially. See if they look too big for their pots. That’s going to tell you they’re root bound.”
Erica Jo even suggests asking nursery staff to pull a tree out of its pot so you can inspect the root system. “They’re not going to like that,” she laughed, “but you can tell then.”
And for those hoping to add color to their gardens before frost arrives, fall is a great time to invest in late-blooming perennials. “I love asters this time of year,” she said. “There are still some long bloomers, the agastachis are still blooming. When you go, you’re going to be able to see which ones.”
Her final reminder: new plants require care even after leaving the nursery. “They were at a garden center being watered every day. So once they get to your house, you can’t just plant them and forget them,” Erica Jo said. “You have to tend to them—probably watering thoroughly at least twice a week, and then once a week until it’s too cold.”
