Garden watering forecast by postcode
Should I water my garden today?
Enter your postcode to see whether forecast rain is expected to meet your garden's water needs over the next five days, and whether local water restrictions affect how you can water.
Get your watering answer
Enter a full postcode for the weather-led decision in your area. Official restrictions are always shown alongside the advice.
Uses the whole postcode — never a postcode prefix or the nearest reservoir. No complete postcode is sent to analytics.
Latest published forecast run: 19 Aug
9 water-company areas currently have some official restrictions.
Enter a complete Great Britain postcode to see the watering decision.
How the answer is decided
Not millimetres — a decision
Otter compares five days of forecast rain against the water an established garden is likely to need over the same period. The result is one of three practical answers: water, wait, or check the soil first. It is weather guidance for a typical established mixed garden border, not a prediction for a specific plant, pot or soil.
The latest published forecast run is from 19 August 2026. Where the Met Office forecast is fresh, the checker below gives a live per-postcode answer.
Restrictions come first
A hosepipe ban overrides the weather
9 water-company areas currently have some official restrictions. If a Temporary Use Ban applies to your supply area, Otter's watering answer defers to it: do not use a hosepipe, and water only with the methods your supplier's notice permits. Otter never lets a forecast override an official restriction.
Garden profiles
Different gardens need different water
A lawn, a vegetable bed, a hanging basket and a newly planted tree have very different needs. The free answer uses a clearly labelled default for an established mixed garden border. Choose your own profile — lawn, vegetable garden, pots and hanging baskets, newly planted beds, or new trees and shrubs — to personalise the estimate.
The five-day contribution
How much of your garden's need will rain cover?
Each result shows the forecast rain over five days, the estimated water need for the chosen garden profile, and the percentage of that need the rain is expected to cover. Where the model cannot justify a single precise number, Otter shows a range and states the confidence behind it.
Common questions
Garden watering questions answered
Should I water my garden if it might rain?
If forecast rain is expected to cover most of an established garden's water need, the practical answer is usually to wait and check the soil. Pots and new planting dry out faster and should be checked separately, even after rain.
How much rain does a garden need?
A useful rule of thumb for an established border is around 10–20 mm of rain over five days in warm, dry weather. Otter compares the exact forecast rainfall against an estimated water need rather than using a single blanket number.
Do I need to water my lawn in a heatwave?
Lawns usually recover from a dry spell and do not need daily watering. Watering a lawn during a hosepipe ban is normally restricted unless the supplier's notice allows it. See when a lawn needs water.
Can I water my garden during a hosepipe ban?
Usually only with a watering can, bucket or stored rainwater. Read the garden-watering rules and your supplier's notice for exact exemptions.
More watering guidance