Tap water hurting my Annuals?

I was talking to a local nursery owner today about 'million bells'. I think the official name is calebrocoa or something similar. Anyway I was telling him how they always start out great but by midsummer they start to look ragged. He was saying that they and most other annuals prefer an acidic soil and that our local tap water has a very high PH and that is probably why they start to decline over the season. So I have a couple questions?

My annuals are all planted in pots with a standard potting soil. Miracle grow brand I think. Can I sprinkle a little Aluminum Sulphate in the pots? How often? Is there a better way?

Any ideas, comments suggestion would be greatly appreciated.

Chris

I hate our tap water. I get bottled water in jugs for the house. For my plants I fill a couple of milk jugs and leave them open for a day or two. I forget what it does, but it helps.

While it's certainly possible that the pH of your water is causing problems by midsummer, usually when plants are looking ragged in the summer it's more of a cultural issue (too much sun, not quite the right amount of water, not the right amount of fertilizer, etc). So I'd check on those things first, then if those conditions are all good, test the pH of the potting mix and see if it needs adjustment (if it's a potting mix that has peat in it, it starts out on the acidic side anyway, so you definitely want to check the pH before trying to make it even more acidic)

does anyone have an old fashioned rain barrel anymore? I've been thinking of making one.

I've heard of them but what are they? A barrel that gathers rain?

That's exactly what they are:

http://www.composters.com/rain-barrels.php

I put a rain barrel on my birthday wish list this year. But...I didn't get one. Maybe Mother's Day? ;)

Those are fancier than I pictured in my mind. I was thinking a big metal barrel :) I was way off. My boys would have a great time playing in the water if I had one. LOL

oh I just got 2 rain barrels! the town sells them at a cut rate every spring, but only to residents. If your town doesn't maybe a friend or family memeber in another town can order you one. Mine are completely enclosed, so kids and animals can't get to them. I'm very happy to have the water source.

I remember my grandma had one made of oak. How I wish that was still around. She used to give us kids 2 dixie cups and send us out to catch hummingbirds around her huge lilac bush. Back then they were thick as bees! of course we never did catch one but it kept us busy for hours and kept her entertained while she had her sweet tea underneath the mimosa tree.

That's the latest thing here in Austin, TX. With the drought and water-conservation measures, many of us are looking into installing rain-water collection systems. There are two homes in my neighborhood that have already converted entirely to captured rainwater for all of their water, and a new home is under construction now that will use only rainwater. Most of us are still looking at it for gardening, only.

On the Million Bells, I agree with ecrane3. It's difficult to keep that type of plant looking healthy and happy through an entire summer. In this area, (Central TX), they track with the petunias (with the exception of VIP Petunias) and wimp out when the extreme heat kicks in.

I'm in zone 5 and I had million bells in planters, in full sun all day, and they looked ragged & tired by midsummer too. They did attract hummingbirds before they pooped out on me, though.