If you live in a major metropolitan area and receive water from a water company, chlorine or chloramine is likely added to the water as a disinfectant . This is actually great news because chlorine or chloramine kills germs that cause diseases like salmonella and norovirus. However, when it comes to using that water for the garden you may be adding bacteria to the soil not to mention the fact of watering with that water. Let’s now know the consequences of chlorine in the garden and what happens to your plants if you water them with chlorine water.
What happens to your plants if you water them with chlorinated water?
Chlorine is one of the main chemicals manufactured. It is produced commercially by electrolysis of sodium chloride brine and is used as a disinfectant and is found in many household cleaning products. It is the base of most cleaning products such as bleach.
But chlorine is also found in drinking water . Mainly due to its disinfectant action and although we may think that it can be a risk to our health, the truth is that chlorine levels of four parts per million or less in drinking water, whether from a private well or a reservoir municipa l, are acceptable from a human health point of view.
How does chlorine affect my plants?
But if we also decide to water the plants in our garden with drinking water (tap water), neither will they be damaged by chlorinated water or at least that is what we can think of when in reality it is not so at all.
We know as we have said, that chlorine is very effective in eliminating harmful pathogens. But there is concern among many gardeners and plant hobbyists that it could harm plants or at least the beneficial microbes that live in our soils . Therefore, the solution would be to let the water sit for one or two days in an open container so that the chlorine can evaporate as if it were gas.
However, this passive method will not work if your water contains chloramines (chlorine / ammonia compounds). These are more persistent and will stay in the water much longer. You would then need an active elimination system.
Of course, the solution then is to accumulate rainwater (in rain barrels) so that you will avoid chlorine in the water and you will have a more than sustainable method to water your plants.
