Installing a Drip Irrigation System

If you’re looking for ways to keep your garden watered without wasting toomuch time and money, you’ve probably gone through a lot of options in yourmind. Maybe you’ve considered a sprinkler, a hose, or a good old-fashionedwatering can. All of these methods might be convenient, but most of thetime you will end up wasting water on plants that don’t need any more. Ifyou live in a drought stricken area like I do, you know that every bit ofwater counts. I ended up getting a drip irrigation system. I haven’tregretted this decision at all.

When you install a drip irrigation system, you can choose one of twovarieties: above ground and below ground. The above ground version dripssmall amounts of water continuously onto the ground, and allows it to soakin. It is all regulated from a pressure controller, which ensures that thewater just comes out at a drip instead of a spray or a stream. Thesepressure regulators are very inexpensive. The whole drip system can be setup with a pressure regulator and a garden hose with holes poked in it(although it is ideal for you to get a pipe designed for this type of use,I’ve found that the hose method works acceptably).

The underground system is a bit more of a pain to install and maintain.But if you’re really into the aesthetic aspect of your garden and don’twant any visible watering system, then you might consider it worth it.It’s essentially the same as the above ground version, only a small trenchis dug for the hose or pipe prior to any planting. This allows the waterdirect access to the roots for the most watering efficiency. Plus, you canimpress your neighbors by having a beautiful garden without ever goingoutside to water it! They’ll be baffled.

To choose between the two systems, you need to take several things intoaccount. Do you have the same plant layout year round? If it is alwayschanging, you probably won’t want to bury your hose. It can be a pain todig it up and re-align it with all your new plants every year or so. Evenif your plant layout never changes, you need to consider how much youreally mind seeing a hose in your garden. If it really bothers you to theextent that you’re willing to work for a few hours to get rid of it, thenby all means bury it. But otherwise I would suggest staying above groundif for nothing else than the convenience of repairing and rearranging.

One of the main advantages of the drip irrigation system is itsefficiency. Instead of spraying large amounts of water willy-nilly like ahose does, it makes the most of your precious water by putting it exactlywhere it is needed. It can also provide your garden with constantwatering, instead of just having to go thirsty whenever you’re not aroundto water it.

So if you’re looking for an easy, cheap, convenient, and efficientalternative watering method, you should go out to the gardening storetoday and purchase the necessary items to install a drip irrigationsystem. I think you’ll be surprised at how much easier it is to maintain agarden after you have it.

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