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Water is essential for proper plant development. Which one is more advantageous?
Water is essential for plants: yes, but what kind? Tap water seems so much easier, but could rainwater be more beneficial to plants? Our answers.
Is the composition of rainwater softer?
For watering rose bushes, a lawn or a vegetable garden, rainwater is a natural and economical solution for outdoor and indoor plants.
Untreated has the advantage that, unlike tap water, it does not contain limescale. In addition, it is poor in minerals, chlorine and fluorine. Its pH is slightly acidic, but it is rich in nutrients necessary for plant survival. It is also composed of sulfates, sodium, calcium, ammonium and also nitrates in greater or lesser amounts depending on the location.
The temperature of the rain, close to the ambient climate, helps prevent possible thermal shock to the roots that receive it during irrigation.
On the other hand, it is advisable not to use rainwater too often if your home is in a coastal area. In fact, it may contain sea salt, an element that most plants cannot tolerate.
It therefore generally has a less aggressive composition for the health of plants and their development in optimal conditions.
However, according to the Water Information Center “Rainwater is loaded with various mineral elements when it originates and falls pollutants which makes it less clean and sometimes even very polluted in the case of acid rain. Rainwater cannot be compared to drinking water.’
Read alsoGarden: 5 tips for collecting rainwater
Oxygen in rainwater
In general, warm waters contain less oxygen than cold waters. Rainwater is average at room temperature (when collected).
On the other hand, rainwater that falls directly from the sky onto plants is rich in oxygen. This helps prevent plant suffocation.