Transitive verb (past and past
participle unwatered, present
participle unwatering, 3rd person
present singular unwaters)
To keep dry avoiding
to pour, sprinkle or soak something with
water; (E.g. to unwater a pot of flowers
for a month)
To remove excess of
water from land,
crops or fields.
Many species of plants native of arid region
with hot, dry climates (xerophytes, succulents, bulbs, etc.),
need - when cultivated in gardens and greenhouses - to be
unwatered (kept dry) for a more or less long period to simulate
the natural dry season of the zone of origin.
Particularly most cacti and succulents need a long period of
dryness during the winter-rest, in fact
it is indispensable to unwater many of them from October to
March to avoid rottenness ( as they are very sensitive to
moisture under cold wheatear condition) and to stimulate the
production of flowering the following spring.
It is also possible to unwater plant grown outdoor keeping them
in raised beds, sheltered from rain and snow, a good drainage is
also essential to keep the compost aerated and unwater-logged to
prevent roots rotting in wet soil.
