Saving Water with New Irrigation Methods

With our hot weather apparently here to stay, it doesn't take long to get tired of dragging the hose around the garden. Since you may already have an automatic sprinkler for your lawn, many home gardeners seem to have either obsolete or no sprinkler systems for other parts of their garden.

With the advent of today's drip irrigation systems or so-called drip hybrids, it's easy to save time and money. I'm sure if you don't have a drip irrigation system, you've either heard or seen them. Invented by the Israelis in the 1970s, drip systems are designed to supply small amounts of water directly to the root zone through the use of flexible tubes and individual drip emitters. The result is an efficient and water-thrifty way to irrigate your garden. There is no waste from runoff or evaporation as drip systems typically save 25 to 50-percent compared to old-fashioned sprinkler systems.

The components for a drip system are inexpensive and, possibly best of all, simple to install. I converted a traditional sprinkler system to drip utilizing the existing pipes. All I did was replace the sprinkler heads with rubber tubing and installed individual drip emitters. Most spaghetti tubing is one-quarter or one-eighth inches in diameter and is sold in inexpensive rolls. Emitters vary as to how much water is released. A half-gallon per hour (gph) is usually adequate to wet an area 16 inches in diameter. You can purchase emitters that emit from half-gph to 9-gph.

About the biggest problem with the system is maintenance. Due to hard water and debris, emitters often clog. I always have to have extra emitters and tubing on hand to replace clogged ones. Sometimes, all it it takes is a little adjustment; other times replacement is needed. Either way, drip systems save time and water!

Besides drip irrigation systems, so-called drip hybrids are popular. These hybrids don't save as much water as straight drip systems, but they still waste considerably less. Examples of hybrids are:

-- Modified riser sprinkler. These may look like those you see embedded in expanses of lawn, but these risers are designed to water only a small area. Less water is lost to evaporation.

-- Soaker hose. This is a porous hose that leaks water along its length, delivering moisture directly to the ground.

--Misters. These create a fine spray of droplets in a confined area. Misters create a foggy, humid setting that certain plants like ferns will love.

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