How often should you water a vegetable garden?


Knowing how often and how long to water your vegetable garden will ensure a healthy growing season for your plants. After all, most vegetables consist out of over 80% or even 90% water.

A vegetable garden should be watered two to three times a week, receiving about 1 inch of water over that time. That equals 60 gallons per hundred square feet. Deep watering moistens the soil to a certain depth and will encourage plants to grow their roots well into the ground.

lettuce in a vegetable garden being deep watered

How often to water a vegetable garden

Naturally, the amount you should water your veggies depends on the rain. I recommend putting out a rain gauge next to your vegetables to collect rainwater. The small measuring cup will easily let you know how much rain your garden has received and how much you still need to water it.

When there is no rain, you should water your vegetables with said one inch spread out over one week.

Another factor to consider is your soil type. Clay soil can hold water for quite a bit, while sandy soil lets the water filter right through it. Therefore, if you have sandy soil, you should water your garden four to five times a week and strive for 1 ½ inches of water over that period.

A vegetable garden should be watered every day in hot weather and requires at least 2 inches of water per week. As a rule of thumb, vegetables need up to ½ inch per week extra for every 10 degrees that the average temperature is above 60 degrees Fahrenheit.

If your vegetable garden is not level, you might need to water the plants on top of the slope more often than the ones on the bottom.

If you live in a hot area, mulching your vegetable garden beds can help the soil to keep the moisture for longer.

Overview

 How often to water your vegetable garden
Clay soil2-3 times per week
Sandy soil4-5 times per week
This table shows how often you should water your vegetable garden per week, depending on your soil type.

average temperature
in degrees Fahrenheit
weekly water requirement
for clay soil
weekly water requirement
for sandy soil
60°F1 inch1 ½ inches
70°F1 ½ inches2 inches
80°F2 inches2 ½ inches
90°F2 ½ inches3 inches
100°F3 inches3 ½ inches
This table shows how much water your vegetable garden needs per week in different temperatures.

Should I water my vegetable garden every day?

Generally, you don’t need to water your vegetable garden every day. Deep watering two to three times a week instead of everyday shallow watering is better for the plants. In moistened soil, vegetables grow their roots deep and become more resilient to stress caused by heat and dry weather.

It makes sense; in the natural, it also doesn’t rain every day in most places. Usually, rain falls every now and then and often waters the ground deeply instead of a daily light sprinkle. So, many plants are well adapted to that and grow better if watered deeply a few times a week.

a gardener watering a vegetable garden

How long should I water my vegetable garden?

To avoid overwatering, you might be wondering how long to water your vegetable garden or how long to run the sprinkler over it. The answer depends on how much you are watering:

You need to water your vegetable garden as long until it has received at least 1/3 to 1 inch of water. You can measure that amount easily with a rain gauge next to your vegetables. If you are using a sprinkler, you can measure the time it takes to know exactly how long to let it run next time.

If you are using a soaker hose or drip irrigation system for watering your vegetable garden, you need to figure out how long it takes to leak out 1/3 to ½ inch of water. Then you can let it run for that specific length two to three times a week.

Can you overwater a vegetable garden?

It is very well possible to overwater your vegetable garden. Signs of overwatered vegetable plants are wilting and yellow turning leaves, stunted slow growth, and rotting roots. The plant might even start to drop old and new leaves simultaneously as a sign of too much water.

young tomato plant being deep watered

Here you find more helpful information and all you need to know about your vegetable garden at home you.

How often should I water my raised vegetable garden?

The guidelines mentioned above also apply for raised garden beds:

You should deep water raised vegetable garden beds two to three times a week and make sure your veggies receive about one inch of water during that period. Generally, raised beds tend to dry out a bit faster, so you will have to check the soil moisture and see if it is moist enough.

If the soil appears too dry, simply add an extra day of watering and increase to a total of 1½ to 2 inches of water per week.

Should I water my tomatoes every day?

It is not necessary to water tomatoes every day. Like most other vegetable plants, they should get deeply watered two to three times a week instead of daily sprinkles. However, when the tomato plants are still very young (seedlings), watering them every day makes sense.

How often should Zucchini be watered?

Zucchini also need to be deep watered two to three times per week. 1 to 1½ inches of water per week is required for the plants to grow well. Zucchini has a reasonably high water content and, therefore, can easily tolerate up to 2 inches per week when fruits form.

Which vegetables need the most water?

The following vegetables require the most water and need to be deep watered at least three times a week:

  • Beans and peas
  • Beets
  • Carrots
  • Cucumbers
  • Peppers
  • Pumpkins and butternut squash
  • Zucchini

These are the so-called thirsty plants. They all have a very high water content and can’t yield full fruits when not getting enough water.

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