Your plants got fried in the heat wave. Now what?

If your plants got wilted and scorched during the recent heat wave, you’re not alone. Seattle plant expert Ciscoe Morris says some plants in his garden took a hit, too. He shares some tips for reviving them with KUOW.

It might be tempting to prune off the sun damaged leaves, but Ciscoe Morris says resist that urge. “Because if we get another big heat thing like that, those will shade the inner leaves and protect them.”

Morris says plants will need time to recover. One way to know if the plant is completely toast is by scraping off a little bit of the bark. If it’s green or white, it’s fine. If it’s brown all the way down to the bottom, Morris says it might be time to visit the nursery and buy a new plant.

Morris says one of the best protections for plants is mulching with wood chips. An inch of mulch could make a 15-degree difference in temperature on the soil surface.

It also helps to water your plants deeply and early in the morning. He also recommends giving smaller, younger plants some shade, with old umbrellas. “Let’s face it, no one uses umbrellas in Seattle anyway,” said Morris. “We all wear rain gear.”

Morris says it’s not so much the heat that hurts plants, but the intense sunlight.