Easy drip irrigation for garden

[Esaias]

Take an empty 2 liter coke bottle (pop bottle for you northern folks). Leave bottle cap screwed on. Use knife to cut around the bottom, about a couple inches above the base. Do not cut all the way around, leave the bottom still attached by a small piece. Turn bottle upside down. You now have a "cup" type lid at the "top" (as you look at it, holding it upside down).

Pour water into it until just below the cut. Open the cap very slightly until water begins to DRIP out. Place bottle, dripping cap side down, into soil next to plant. Put it in just deep enough to hold bottle upright. Maybe pack some soil around it to hold it up. You now have a water dripper for the plant. To refill, simply pull open the new "top" and pour water in. It should drip for a day or two or maybe 3, depending on heat, humidity, soil type, and flow rate. Flow rate is easily adjusted by loosening or tightening the cap more or less, as desired.

Put one next to each plant.

Alternatively, take a stick and a 20 ounce plastic bottle. The stick should be approximately 2-3 times as long as the bottle. Cut the bottle the same way as with the 2 liter above. Tape bottle upside down to the stick, small tree limb, etc, with the bottom of the bottle near one end of the stick, bottle cap pointing toward other end of stick. Put stick in ground next to plant, so that bottle is upside down and cap is about 3-6 inches above soil surface close to where stalk or stem of plant goes below surface of soil. Open the "top" that you cut and pour in water. Open cap just a bit until it starts dripping, about 1 drop every 3-5 seconds. Refill when desired.

[KeptByTheWord]

Great tips, thanks!

I have found the absolutely best method for keeping a plant moist is mulching. It makes all the difference in the world. The mulch holds the moisture in, and the plant/root system doesn't dry out nearly as quickly, and watering needs are much less. Straw has become my favorite mulch of choice, with hardwood leaves put down in the fall, and then in the spring straw on top.

[coksiw]

Another idea: For trees, I use a 5 gallon buckets and open a 1/16'' hole at the bottom and on the top and place it close to the tree. I also change their place around the tree.

It takes few hours to empty.

[Esaias]

Originally Posted by KeptByTheWord

Great tips, thanks!

I have found the absolutely best method for keeping a plant moist is mulching. It makes all the difference in the world. The mulch holds the moisture in, and the plant/root system doesn't dry out nearly as quickly, and watering needs are much less. Straw has become my favorite mulch of choice, with hardwood leaves put down in the fall, and then in the spring straw on top.

Yes, all my garden beds are mulched with grass clippings, hay, straw, and even old dead shredded leaves. Makes a comfy home for earthworms, keeps the soil from becoming hard from drying out, keeps weeds under control, etc.

[KeptByTheWord]

Originally Posted by Esaias

Yes, all my garden beds are mulched with grass clippings, hay, straw, and even old dead shredded leaves. Makes a comfy home for earthworms, keeps the soil from becoming hard from drying out, keeps weeds under control, etc.

Definitely makes a huge difference in the garden to have mulch! Anything to keep those earthworms happy

[Originalist]

It seems I either have the bottle caps too tight or too loose. The water either does not drip or all leaks out within an hour.

[Esaias]

Originally Posted by Originalist

It seems I either have the bottle caps too tight or too loose. The water either does not drip or all leaks out within an hour.

It can be kind of tricky to get just the right tightness. Are you using the bottles inserted directly into the soil? I believe the leaking water can mud up the soil around the cap which then seals the cap and prevents more water from dripping out. If the only flow rate you can get is one bottle per hour, that's actually still not too bad of a system, because it applies the water directly into the soil instead of pouring it from a container (which can wash away soil at the spot you pour it) or spraying from a hose which wets the entire plant and which can cause sun burn or other issues with the leaves and stems.

It took me a bit to fiddle with each bottle to get a consistent drip that didn't clog up and stop too quickly or that didn't just drain the bottles too fast.

[KeptByTheWord]

How are your gardens coming along? I've yet to plant my warm-loving plants. We wait until the first week of June here because there is always the chance of a late stray frost. It's hard to wait that long, but really in the long run, better for the plants.

I've got potatoes in the ground, and growing. Carrots are doing great. Peas are growing great. I'm hoping for fresh peas in the next week or two. Kale is doing great as well. Strawberries should be ready first of June. Can't wait for those!

What is everyone growing?

[shag]

Potatoes
Tomatoes
Green beans
Radishes
Onion
Carrots
Peppers
Zucchini
Squash
Jalapeño
Kale
Lettuce
Spinach
Broccoli
Cauliflower
Marijuana

Our local butchers are booked out almost a year....I scheduled butchering a steer today for latter April of next year, earliest available.

[Esaias]

Wow, I got some catching up to do! Lol

Gardening is strictly a "hands-on, on the job training" kind of thing.

I have to hill up my potatoes every week or two because they keep thinking they are potato trees or something. Hopefully they turn out good.

I'm thinking next year I'm going to build a big greenhouse, a sort of homemade garden of Eden.