'Best time' of day to water your garden plants to avoid 'killing them' - not the morning

Gardening is a year-round pursuit, but as the UK heads further into summer, certain tasks take centre stage, notably watering. Gardeners need to water plants diligently to ensure their beautiful flowers flourish. Each plant is comprised of 80% water, with roots being the sole mechanism for hydration, thus making correct watering critical.

A key mistake made by many gardeners during the hot weather in summer is watering at inappropriate times of the day. According to gardening pros at MNLGrowkits, there is a two-hour window for the "best time" to water the plants in your garden. They said: "We recommend watering your plants daily in the late afternoon. To be more specific, late afternoon means three to 5pm.

The pros said that there are two main reasons to water plants at this time. The first is that plants are sensitive to temperature changes.

They said, "Plants are sensitive to temperature. You should not do anything to the plants that shocks their system. What that means is no sudden temperature changes.

"Water coming from the tap is almost always cold. So, if you water at noon, when the temperature is scorching hot, you'll be shocking the plants' system.

"That time, when the sun is almost setting, is perfect because the temperature has already started dropping. In addition, there is also enough sun to aid in water evaporation."

The second reason is to avoid root rot and fungus growth. Root rot happens when you put too much water and it has the chance to evaporate. During the noon in summer is the perfect environment for fungus to grow.

The gardeners said: "This fungus attacks the roots of the plants, killing them in the process. The plant suffers because it's not able to absorb the water and nutrients it needs."

The gardening gurus at Phostrogen also agree with late afternoon watering in summer. They said: "In spring and autumn, water early in the morning, but in the summer, it can be best to wait until the early evening as watering during full sun can burn the plants."

While the timing of watering is crucial, the amount of water used is equally important, and when it comes to plants in the heat, less is often more.

Henry Bartlam, founder of Dig, advised against giving "plants a daily light sprinkling of water". He recommended that it's "better to give them a good soak every couple of days (especially in warmer weather) than a quick splash every day".