DON'T use overhead sprinklers in vegetable gardens. More water is lost to evaporation than is absorbed by the soil. DO use a watering wand to water annuals and perennials, both in ground and containers.
Covering the entire vegetable garden with water from spraying sprinklers wastes water and can contribute to leaf blight. Water that remains on leaves can lead to fungal growth called leaf blight; the leaves can die back and damage the entire vegetable plant. Gardeners also need to take plant height into consideration.
Then before you can pop open a cold one and admire your handiwork, your garden will be thanking you for its own liquid refreshment.
- Drip Irrigation Overview.
- Connect to an Outdoor Faucet.
- Lay out the Tubing.
- Install Ground Stakes.
- Lay Tubing Around Shrubs and Trees.
- Position Sprayers for Ground Cover.
- Close off the Tubing End.
Soaker hoses can be an effective and efficient watering tool for beds, shrubs and trees. If the hose is within a few feet of established plants, the water will move horizontally within the soil and find the plant roots. The most common mistake in using soaker hoses is turning the water on too high.
A soaker hose is a porous tube that looks like a garden hose, except that it 'weeps' water along its entire length. Placed on the surface of your soil, soaker hoses deliver water steadily to your plants. Soaker hoses free from lead, BPA, and phthalates are now available.
The best way to water your vegetable garden with a hose is to leave the hose running at a trickle in a basin near each plant until the water has soaked down at least 6 inches deep. Sprinklers: A sprinkler is effective for watering vegetables planted in sandy soil that absorbs water quickly.
Drip irrigators and soaker hoses attached to timers are great for veggie and flower gardens. They deposit the water where it's needed most – at the plants' root zones. No evaporation and no mold from wet plant leaves. You can get these at your local garden center.
Water your garden so that your plants always have enough moisture. On sandy, well-drained soil, you may need to water twice a week. For soils that hold moisture, such as heavier clay soils, or loamy soils rich in organic matter, watering once a week is fine.
Early in the growing season, watering plants daily in the morning. As temperatures increase, you might need to water tomato plants twice a day. Garden tomatoes typically require 1-2 inches of water a week. Tomato plants grown in containers need more water than garden tomatoes.
It's best to water in the morning. If you water in the middle of the day, much more of the water you apply evaporates, so it's wasteful. If you water in the evening, the plant's foliage may stay wet throughout the night and that creates an ideal environment for disease. So morning is best.
In general, vegetable plants need about one inch of water per week. One inch should be the total amount of water the garden receives – both from rain and your watering.
Of all foods, vegetables provide the most water, often being over 90% water by weight. Vegetables high in water include
lettuce, celery, bok choy, radish, cucumber, zucchini, watercress, tomatoes, green bell peppers, and asparagus.
Up to 95% water.
| Water per Cup | Water per 100g |
|---|
| 99ml (3.5oz) | 95.2ml (3.4oz) |
Drip line is similar to drip tape in that it has emitters of various emission rates installed at evenly spaced intervals, however the similarities stop there. Unlike drip tape, drip line is limited in length to the same limits of poly tubing of corresponding size.
Placing them evenly will ensure that your plants get the proper amount of water without having areas oversaturated. A good rule of thumb is to place a drip emitter evenly spaced along the plant line and a minimum of six inches from the base of the plant.
In sandy soil, water disperses more in a “carrot†shape. I'd run the main supply hose along the row and put two one-gallon-per-hour emitters at each plant, one on each side, six inches from the stem. When the plants are less than 18″ tall, run the system 30 minutes every three days.
- Step 1: Do Your Homework.
- Step 2: Connect to an Outdoor Faucet.
- Step 3: Lay Out the Tubing.
- Step 4: Install Ground Stakes.
- Step 5: Lay Tubing Around Shrubs and Trees.
- Step 6: Position Sprayers for Ground Cover.
- Step 7: Close Off the Tubing's End.
- Step 8: Cover the Tubing With Mulch.
Parts of a Drip Irrigation System
- Battery-operated timer. One nine-volt battery will last an entire season.
- Backflow preventer. Prevents dirty garden water from flowing back into your household water lines.
- Screen filter.
- Pressure regulator.
- Hose adapter.
- 1/2-in.
- Elbow fitting.
- Preinstalled emitter.
