To prepare for a drought, prioritize mulching, establish a water-efficient irrigation system, choose drought-tolerant plants, and improve soil’s water retention. Well-amended soil is the foundation of a vegetable garden that can tolerate drought. Prepare your garden’s soil by adding organic matter, saving and storing rainwater, and choosing drought-tolerant plants to grow. Watering during the middle of the day is wasteful as the sun can evaporate moisture quickly, making the water inaccessible to the garden. The best time to water is early morning, using soaker hoses or drip systems to provide water directly to the soil and plant root system.
Watering plants effectively is essential for many plants during a drought. A good soaking every 10 days is sufficient for many plants, but it’s better to water less often but thoroughly when you do. Basic practices like watering in the morning and using mulches to keep the soil moist remain important. Prioritizing what to water and reusing water are essential. Place soaker hoses or drip-irrigation tubing on the soil directly over roots, while watering cans and hand-held hoses aimed at the soil work.
Water your garden during the early morning to maximize water absorption and minimize evaporation. Use garden drip pipes to water your garden efficiently, laying them straight in the garden. Deep water your tree to encourage roots to go down, let the soil dry out before watering, and water more frequently when the weather is hot and dry. Mulch bare soil in garden beds and around plants to prevent evaporation and water loss and keep plant roots hydrated.
📹 6 Clever Ways to Water Your Garden In a Drought
00:00 – Intro 00:19 – Drip Irrigation 01:26 – Passive Irrigation 05:19 – Planting Close Together 06:08 – Mulching 07:52 …
How to dry out soil quickly?
To quickly dry out waterlogged soil in your garden, apply hydrated lime, compost, and turn the soil thoroughly. This will absorb the water in the soil and distribute it throughout the garden. Overwatering plants can lead to dead plants and waterlogged soil. If muddy soil is common, consider installing a new garden sprinkler system or adjusting your irrigation system design. Resolving waterlogging issues quickly is crucial to prevent plant health issues. This article provides tips, tricks, and information on how to dry out waterlogged soil and how to do so.
How can we save water in dry land?
The organization is assisting communities in Ghana by providing them with tools and training to conserve water from the short rainy season for year-round use. Techniques include half-moons, zai pits, and stone bunding. They are also working with communities to grow trees and restore land around the Daka river, which is a vital water source. The trees planted will stabilize the land, prevent soil washes away in floods, and maintain soil fertility.
What is the best solution for drought?
The text suggests constructing new infrastructure for aquifer storage and recovery, diversifying water supply options, increasing water storage capacity, and installing low-head dams for saltwater wedge and freshwater pool separation. It suggests that increasing groundwater storage promotes recharge when surface water flows are in excess of demand, increasing climate resilience for droughts and taking advantage of seasonal variations in surface water runoff.
The required infrastructure may include percolation basins and injection wells, depending on whether natural or artificial aquifer recharge is employed. Examples of successful adaptation strategies include the Citizens Reservoir in Fishers, Indiana and Tampa Bay’s diversification of water sources.
What are the strategies for drought management?
Drought mitigation, preparedness, and response are crucial measures to reduce vulnerability to drought and its impacts. These measures can be divided into long-term, medium-term, or short-term options. Long-term measures are typically included in development strategies, and revisiting these strategies is essential for developing a National Drought Management Policy. Medium-term measures are implemented in a timely manner, prior, during, and after drought, based on monitoring and Early Warning Systems (Pillar).
Emergency response measures are implemented if a severe drought occurs to respond to the basic needs of the affected population while contributing to long-term development. A 2018 survey by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) assessed countries’ advances in drought management planning, finding that all 28 responding countries had a drought preparedness plan and 18 had drought policies in place. In 2019, a targeted web search was conducted to gather information about mitigation measures mentioned in drought plans and policies in the countries that participated in the 2018 survey.
How do I retain water in my garden?
To save water in your garden, consider watering early in the morning or late in the afternoon, watering the base of plants instead of overhead, adding mulch to keep soil moisture, planting native varieties that require less water and care, and collecting rainwater in buckets and drums. Having a garden can be a great way to relax, get outdoors, and keep active. To improve your garden, sweep paths or driveways, leave lawns 3cm tall or more, and use buckets instead of hoses for washing your car. By following these tips, you can maximize the water efficiency and enjoyment of your garden.
What type of rain is needed to break a drought?
Soaking rains are effective in reducing drought by replenishing groundwater, sustaining vegetation, and feeding streams. A single rain provides lasting relief, but multiple rains over several months may be necessary to break a drought and return conditions to normal. Even after a drought is broken, it may not be truly over. The benefits of substantial rainfall may last for months, but a return to normal rainfall patterns and amounts is necessary for conditions in streams, reservoirs, and ground water to return to normal.
How can we keep water during drought?
During a drought, it’s crucial to conserve water by not flushing the toilet, disposing of waste in the trash, taking short showers instead of baths, and not letting water run while brushing, washing, or shaving. Disaster survivors can visit FEMA. gov for current disaster declarations and call 621-3362 for assistance. Planning in advance for droughts can protect us in dry years, and making water conservation a part of daily life is the best way to prepare.
How do I stop water build up in my garden?
To minimize water buildup and potential flooding, clear gutters and drains, ensure roofs are in good repair, use water butts for rainfall collection, choose driveway surfaces that allow water to flow, plan patios, paths, and decks, keep drains clear, and maintain healthy lawns. Surface water flooding occurs when water is unable to drain away from fallen or flowed surfaces, resulting in large puddles, water sitting on paved surfaces, or flowing water.
How to conserve water in the soil?
Reducing surface run-off through structures or changes in land management can help reduce erosion, which can be higher in semi-arid areas than in other climatic zones due to high proportions of convective thunderstorm rain and poor protective vegetative cover. Some soils in semi-arid areas are particularly vulnerable due to their poor resistance to erosion or their chemical and physical properties.
Gully erosion can be severe in semi-arid climates, and the benefit/cost of gully control needs to be considered. Successful but expensive gully conservation like the Australian example might not be suitable for third-world countries.
There are strong links between measures for soil conservation and measures for water conservation, and this applies equally in semi-arid areas. Many measures are directed primarily to one or the other, but most contain an element of both. Reducing surface run-off by structures or changes in land management will also help reduce erosion. Preventing splash erosion, crust formation, or structure breakdown will increase infiltration, which helps water conservation.
How do you fix soil that doesn’t absorb water?
A soil-wetting agent is a crucial tool in treating hydrophobic soil, allowing water to be absorbed and nutrient penetration. It is often the first step in treating hydrophobic soil, as it increases permeability for nutrients to work. Premade wetting agents are not recommended for organic gardening due to their potential containing petroleum derivatives and alcohol. Alternatives include agar-agar and aloe vera, which are preferred for supporting soil life.
Nopal cactus can also be used as a wetting agent to support water retention in hotter domes. Biodegradable soap is another option. To deal with hydrophobic soil, it is essential to prevent it from occurring and maintain a regular watering schedule. Integrating a well-aged organic compost into the soil is also essential for moisture retention. A simple daily routine can make your dome a healthy source of abundance and life.
📹 How I’m Watering My Plants During This Drought
This weather has been very dry and we are now entering into the dog days of summer. How should you water your plants?
I live in South Africa where we have extreme heat in summer and even winter (currently 27 degrees celsius during winter) and these have all been super helpful tips. Thank you. BTW I do have 2 x 1000L tanks and 12 100L drums that I collect rainwater and store for summer also, as we have come close to Day Zero a few years ago where the dams almost ran dry. I actually don’t own a hosepipe and have watered my veggies and garden solely on collected water with a watering can for the past 4 years. So it can be done guys.
I love the ollas! I’m planning on setting up a raised bed herb garden, and these would work really well. In January 2021, I moved from a suburban home in Sanford, FL, Zone 9b, to a larger, more sustainable property in the N. Florida panhandle, Zone 8b. My friends and family thought I’d lost my mind, as I’m 69 years old and on Social Security. I’ve spent the past year renovating my old Florida cottage and growing and maintaining a 3500 sq ft garden. My garden is on buried drip tape that is fed by a well, and I maintain my garden primarily with a wheel hoe and a single tine cultivator. I can honestly say that using buried drip tape makes the most efficient use of the water. We’ve had very little rain this Spring, and I’m having an amazing garden year!
I put terracotta pots as grow ollas in my containers. I found some without drainage holes, but I’m sure you can cover the holes with something. I also went to a Mexican store and bought unglazed clay cups/mugs (called jarros?) which are even more porous and probably function like the grow ollas. I covered them all with a terracotta saucer. I am happy with the results.
This year, I am trying dry farming, which is growing certain suitable crops using only seasonal rain water stored in the ground. In my area in the Bay Area, California, there is about 17 inches of rain and 5 foot of clay soil, so about 10 inches equivalent can be stored in the ground. This is enough to sustain native plants, many mature trees, and various non-native plants such as alyssum without extra watering. If you have less rain than this, you can use a rain gutter or other collection method to concentrate water in an area. The difficulty with this Mediterranean climate is that the rain falls during the winter and not during the summer when water stress is the highest. I applied a 3-4 inch layer of wood chips to preserve the water as much as possible. The dry farming plants will be Mediterranean herbs, squash, sweet potato, watermelon, sunchokes, yacon, mulberry, white sapote, prickly pear, Chilean guava, pineapple guava, olive, and California natives. Grapes, tomatoes, beans, potatoes, corn and many fruit trees have also been dry farmed commercially in California and Oregon.
I bought downspout diverters. Cut 6″ out of a downspout and the diverter slots in. It has a spout that comes out the side at 45 degrees thst fits into a 3′ tube. In 30 mins rainwater off my roof will fill a 75 gallon rain barrel. I cover the rain barrels to keep out mosquitoes beween times I dip in my bucket to water my raised beds. Costs under $30 each and 10 mins to install (by a woman) 🙂
Many good tips here. To increase drought resilience (Australia), I’ve added permaculture swales, ollas, and wicking beds/self watering pots. For some reason, I always have issues when I try using drip irrigation. Good mulch layers and organic matters in the soil also help with water retention. I had awesome success growing watermelons in a random part of my garden last summer using ollas. Many other plants benefited from them also. But given the option I will chose wicking/self-watering pots over ollas, as you still need to come by and fill up ollas more often than you would a self-watering pot or wicking bed. For areas that are not for food growing and are acting as a bushfire buffer, I plant low-flammable natives and many, many succulents. Plus a few fruit trees spread far apart using permaculture swales for water access.
For ollas, you can also glue two regular terracotta pots together with the hole of the bottom one plugged for cheap. I’ve also bought a few planter stakes for wine bottles and am experimenting with plastic bottles with small holes. Basically anything that keeps most of the water in but with a small opening/way for water to drip out.
I have an older home in Galveston Texas. My air conditioner drain is routed outside and I collect that water to use in my garden. On a hot summer day a properly working AC can produce up to a gallon an hour of clean water… In the future I plan on installing a rain collection system as well…. Thanks for the info Boss and HOWDY from Texas!!! 🤠
Perfect timing. I have irrigation and use DIY ollas but I’m reminded that I haven’t fully mulched. I’m in NorCal (Bay Area) and the drought is pretty severe. I also put a 5 gallon Lowe’s bucket in my shower to capture water as it’s warming up. That water gets used to water parts of my garden, usually containers.
Outstanding article. So full of information. It’s exactly what I’ve been waiting for. Living in SCAL with water restrictions and now record breaking heat we’re looking for ways to conserve while still prioritizing growing food is tough. Really appreciate the great content. We started using olla pots this year and the difference they’re making with our vining crops is amazing!. Unfortunately due to supply chain issues none of our local gardening centers have been able to get more. ☹️ Thanks again for this very helpful and practical discussion.
Also water early morning for less evaporation, which saves water. I been getting my mulch for free at the Miramar Greenery. 2-3″ layer 2-3 times per year is my motto. LIving mulch works great as well. I combine the 2 techniques for added effect and cut my watering in half or more. No sunlight is hitting the dirt/ground if you fill in every square inch with plants.
Hi I’m in South Australia, the driest state of the driest continent in the world. Thankyou for your great information. We have a food forest garden in my 1/3 acre block in a semi suburban subdivision, which struggles in our dry summers. Thankfully most of the fruiting vines and trees are getting established enough now. We’ve set up drip irrigation in the majority of the garden because of the exorbitant costs of overhead watering, as well as the diseases that accompanied it. But every little hint is gratefully appreciated, especially in these times of rising costs and even shortages…and that’s even here in Australia. God bless you.
So cool to see the bottom watering mentioned. I’ve literally just started growing a couple months ago and I’ve been doing the bottom water thing but using red solo cups and a spare food tray I had at my house. Didn’t realize that was a thing to do, I just did it because it saved water and looked like my plants were growing. Thanks for the confirmation
I set up a bottom watering system, in totes that I now have 6 totes of tomatoes, and 1 with hmong cucumbers, that I will have almost no water wasted! I fill them till a little spills out the overflow, (there’s the waste) then the water wicks up to the roots! Last year, I also did the same thing in buckets.
great and timely vid! we’re in a multiyear severe drought here in new mexico. i’ve been watering via drip under thick straw mulch for years and it really saves a ton of money while building the soil. most recently i added a low budget gray water retrofit to the bathtub using a siphon hand pump for a 55 gallon barrel attached to tubing connected to a pvc pipe through the wall that goes to two 1/2″ drip feeder tubes that i can move around in an area with fruit trees. it works great and cost around $40 to make.
I really love perusal your articles. I can’t wait till I have an actual yard that I can plant in ground. Currently use containers as I’m not allowed to dig but it definitely requires alot more water even with mulch. This is my first year gardening and I have learned so much between mistakes and perusal your articles. I really wish I lived closer I’d love to be part of the team or at least get to explore tour garden a little lol. Thanks for all the time and effort you put into this website and all the knowledge you share.
I use large clay pots with a nice looking sauce covering the top. (I use old bicycle innertube /2 rubber pieces/ with a bolt running through it to plug up the hole in clay pot bottom). All my containers and hanging baskets have this and they are also “Wicking Tub” style I made and will never go back to any container growing any other way. ♥️👍
We live in north central WA state. We’re 5 miles from a town between Wenatchee and Leavenworth. We’re on a well. Even the last 2 years of drought, we’ve had a problem getting water from our well, which we are thankful. A neighbor 1/8 of a mile away, their 90 gpm well ran dry and they were without water for over a week.
I’ve been subscribed to your website for a while now and I really appreciate your articles! Especially since I’m in a very similar plant hardiness zone as you. (I’m in Seaside CA.) I’ve started a garden using the help of my mom, my son, and A LOT of your articles. I’ve had so much success! So thank you so much for your expertise. 🙂
Looking great at your house brother. You sold me on the small shredder/chipper a while back and I know have much better soil conditions. I am in northern Canada (zone 2b) so the hearty bushes like raspberries and weeds like thistle really try to pop everywhere. This is really much better then all the broadleaf and vines. Thanks for all the tips and ideas. I have taken a lot away from your website. Keep it coming bro.
Have you guys done a article on growing or taking care of okra? I feel like that’s one underrated crop I feel like not many people talk about. It’s probably just a Texas thing tho because for some reason many steakhouses and bbq restaurants have fried okra or an appetizer with it. If you can’t tell… I like okra XD
Many years ago I lived in California and loved the ocean and the fact that I could grow things all year round. However, I never saw trees like the ones in your neighbor’s yard with blue/purple flowers. What is that? Thanks in advance. And you are giving me some really useful hints that I am trying. Thanks for that as well.
I’m in southern Arizona and use terracotta plant spikes to water a lot of my plants. I’ve also made small ollas using cheap terracotta pots and saucers with a river rock to keep the mosquitos out. I live in an apartment with all grow bags. I also use shade cloth to help keep moisture in the soil while shielding the plants from the ridiculous AZ sun. It’s already set to be another record breaking hot and dry summer well above 105 every day. Are there any types of mulch I need to avoid? I’ve been using kitchen scraps and fallen leaves in my grow bags.
Great timing, Kevin. Thank you. Here in New Mexico, we are being brutalized by drought and wildfire. I use some of these techniques you’ve mentioned, especially ollas made from terracotta pots and rainwater harvesting. But we’ve had so little rain that my barrels are pretty empty. Anxiously awaiting monsoon season. But my question, rather, is do you have any plans for that great seedling table? Looks nice and sturdy. Did you design/build it yourself?
If it hasn’t already been mentioned, read “Gardening with Less Water: Low-Tech, Low-Cost Techniques; Use up to 90% Less Water in Your Garden” by David A. Bainbridge He shows how to make an olla from unglazed clay pots and other techniques for water saving. We also use wicking beds, a popular technique used in Australia. We’ve made ours out of used food grade IBC totes.
A poor man’s olla: Take a few Bush’s Baked Bean cans and use a de-header style opener on them. Once they are rinsed out, use a church key (that’s a bottle opener/can piercer to you younger folks) to pierce a few evenly spaced, small holes around the bottom. Put them in your beds, add water, and put the can head back on. Put mulch or straw over it if you like. It works well in clay soil like here in BFE Northeast Ohio.
Dude is your yard extraordinarily large or is there just nothing, like a fence, dividing back and front? The camera is usually close so I can’t ever see but this time it panned around some and for God’s sakes I want to see! It looks awesome with quite a bit of walking room than what I initially thought. 😍
Been collecting rain water for a couple of years, Just bought a new home and planning to expand the collection-largr barrels set to fill one after another. Got to wondering if, running PVC from a full barrel on a pedestal to the garden then into a soaker would befeasible-it would only have Gravity/water weight for pressure.
I actually found the opposite to be true for transplants. (Maybe being in the desert being a factor?) The smaller containers dried out too fast, and I was constantly watering them. In fact, I ended up overwatering them to try and stay ahead of the evaporation, and some of the seedlings got wilt. As soon as I started direct seeding, everything went smoothly, and I didn’t have to water them as often.
Hell yeah I’ve been collecting rainwater since I started growing just because I have noticed that the rain water makes the plants much happier I don’t know for some reason they love it I guess because it’s natural water there’s not so much metallic s*** like there is in piped water you would have to see some of the pictures I have taken down the sink and I swear to God the clean water looks like Mercury so yeah I highly recommend the rain collecting because I have noticed huge results even and especially with seedlings
The last one only concerns me because I think of things like what if my parents were to come by and use my laundry, and use bleach or something out of ignorance or even maybe they were told and forgot? Just concerns me how quickly and accident inside the house could ruin crops outside the house, especially when hooked up to utilities that have chemicals poured into them. Seems like if done right, could be a great way to save water tho!
Actually, in dallas, TX, we’ve been getting a lot of rain, which is actually a sign of what my area will turn into due to climate change. I think thats something we millennial and gen Z gardeners have to think about when making our gardens. For me, Dallas is actually set to become a little more humid and tropical, kinda like houston, as time goes on, so I have to plan for that. Otherwise certain trees or shrubs that I grow and cultivate for years may end up dying because the climate will no longer be suitable for them.
I want to be more conservative but installing solar panels would take 10 plus years to pay for itself and I don’t really want to mess with 25 year old roof that is suppose to 50 years. Probably pay 100 dollars a year for water just for the house and and another 100 to 200 a year for my lawn and garden. 1300 Sq ft ranch house. 8000 sq lot. In the Atlanta area with 50 inches of annual rainfall.
I live in Northern California, I hate to complain but I cringe when we head towards SoCal and I see all those damn houses in the desert with pretty little green lawns that they are wasting precious water on. I feel that should be a regulation, no lawns. If you’re growing food to feed yourself and others that’s a totally different story but those lawns are draining our water supplies.
THE 500 YEAR SOLUTION: CA got 85,9m acre foot, and The Coloumbia river dumps 191m foot into The Pasific each year. Move water 10-20% south. Make a 365mi long tunnel from Red Bluff to The Columbia, no pumps needed. Pay for the water. CA then dont need Colorado water anymore – Then NZ/AZ/UT/Mexico wins to.
California and west coast people are living in a dream world if they think ten year drought is all you going to get, west coast they had droughts lasting 240 years with 50 year rest before entering another lasting 180 years, past will return one day if not in your lifetime one day you could enter a 200 year drought as it happened before it can happen again. my biggest question governments know this info but they doing nothing to add water storage, instead they save money and put restrictions instead investing. same in uk we had an extra 15 million people since the last dam was built, no reason water shortages we use more than we did and extra 15 million people but they blame weather than there failings not investing for the extra population
Jesus is coming back very soon time is short to be get right with him 2 Chronicles 7:13-14 13 If I shut up heaven that there be no rain, or if I command the locusts to devour the land, or if I send pestilence among my people; 14 If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land. John 14:6 Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.” Roman’s 3:23 23 For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God Roman’s 6:23 For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. 2 Corinthians 5:21 King James Bible For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him Matthew 4:17 From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say, Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand 2 Corinthians 7:10 10 For godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation not to be repented of: but the sorrow of the world worketh death Matthew 24 Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world? 4 And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you. 5 For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many. 6 And ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars: see that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet.
When I had a 3,000 sf garden in Arizona, we used flood irrigation. The water would be about mid-calf deep on the whole property. Our rows were hilled with a furrow in between each row. Our irrigation came every 13 days and we didn’t water in between times, even in the heat of summer. Our garden was incredibly productive. The key is deep water, less often. It encourages the plants roots to go deep. When you water daily, the water doesn’t soak in very deep and encourages the roots to stay shallow.
I’m with you on the get out and water them myself thing. I’m the same when it comes to auto feeders and waterers for the animals. I like going and taking care of that stuff myself. I can keep my eye on my gardens and the animals daily. Not as easy as just throwing out drip systems and auto feed and water but, much more satisfying in my opinion. Have a great day, God bless and lots of love from Ohio.
Living in the high desert of New Mexico, the best way to water here is in the evening. Watering in the morning is usually a big waste, because, the hot days evaporate the water in a heart beat. Watering heavy at night works great here in the desert. Also most of the soil in the high desert is sand or clay. So the water stays on the plant longer at night.
I hand water all my garden, grapes, berrys,etc!! I have 26 8×4 raised beds. It’s a great relaxing time for me besides weeding, pruning and what ever else is needed.. it’s a great habit to be in for a successful harvest. Also keeps ya on top of pest, diseases and session planting… thought about the drip system… but decided that would remove me from being hands on and connected to the process and earth.
We had a terrible dry spring in early spring in Alberta. I’m sure you saw or heard about our massive wildfires all over. Even though most were arson. We are in Northern Alberta and lately have had huge thunderstorms rolling through. Alot of rain from them. Had a day long storm. Inch and a half of water. 34c now .
La nina did finally break. You can see it in the Pacific water temps from satellites. It broke the 3 year drought here in Kansas. Has been raining all spring. Rained again last night. The garden has already produced more food than the entirety of last year’s awful season. What you are discussing is what I had last summer, all season long. Sorry, my friend. It is just the way she goes. Sometimes she comes and sometimes she goes. That’s just the way she goes.
Don’t knock it until you try it. Gives me more time to pick, easy fertilization, and scout for insects and disease. It would be extremely hard to water adequately with overhead irrigation in my arid climate. I will say, most drip line will last a few years but it is priced to reflect that. Water precision and convenience is worth the trade off of replacing the line every few years. Old line doesn’t get wasted, we use in raised beds and flower gardens. I added irrigation supplies to our preps so we will be good for decades.
I have noticed with most of our plants, the super hot, dry weather is great when we have a good deep mulch on our garden. We try to do the Back to Eden gardening method and when we have it 2-3 inches the way it should be, we water maybe once a week and have amazing crops. This year our June has been very cool and wetter than normal, slowing down some of the plants. Our gardens are located in areas that are difficult to get the wood chips to, so we do it as much as we can, but it is not nearly enough for what we want. We are excited to see your viewers testing our seeds to other seeds, and very excited to hear they are doing well. The great fear in providing products like heirloom seeds is you don’t know how much knowledge the buyer has, and therefore may not know how to start seeds properly, or maybe they left seeds in a well lit, hot room or near a window for a few months before using them. It is wonderful to read along with you, the email that the seeds are doing fantastic. I appreciate it. For anyone out there reading this, I would love to see the pictures of your An American Homestead garden. In case you don’t know, this is Clearwater Valley Farms owner. Thank you Zach.
I bought two polyethylene “privacy fence” screens from Wayfair (basically big mesh tarps) and put them over our greenhouses for partial shade. We have an extremely short growing season with hot summers and freezing winters (lucky us!!). The tarps really help keep things from overheating and seeding early. Also, it saves on the amount we need to water.
We had about 3 weeks of no rain (a few weeks ago) so we bought soaker hoses (for tomatoes on one side and cabbage/peppers/broccoli and cauliflower on the other side) to water at soil level which really helped. We still had to water the corn with a hose. We are now being blessed with rain and things are growing nicely! I visit my garden a few times throughout the day.
Over here in New-Brunswick, Canada, we have 3 days of 100° and then a week of Rain. I am 52 years old and it used to be like this: 2 weeks of temperatures above 90° in August. Now it starts in May!!! It’s cold, too cold, then blistering. We used to be more temperate. Something has changed for sure. 😢Also, they have cut most of our forests…could explain it.
We have a 2500 gallon tank that is used for livestock and the garden. I spray with a hose each time I water. I don’t water everything, but focus on those plants which are tender, younger, and have no mulch. My husband likes to put in sprinklers, but I told him it is a waste of water and I would rather use a hand sprinkler.
We don’t know other people situations and why they might have the need to not stand out there for one to two hours in the morning and in the evening watering. Some people are doing the best they can and we would rather have those people grow food whatever way they can then be judgmental to the point that they give up gardening. More people than not in the society are working full-time jobs and raising children and families and they just plain out run out of time. Other people had mobility issues and it’s very difficult for them. The main objective is to make sure the garden gets whatever water it needs however that needs to be obtained. And I totally understand the fact that we need to be able to keep an eye on things. This is not a perfect world. And sometimes doing the best you can the easiest way you can for you and your situation is good enough. It’s better than doing nothing.
We have a few gardens on our homestead, we use impact sprinklers during the summer watering twice a day, I know what you said, however I’d rather be in my garden regardless of an irrigation system or not, so I’ve always got eyes on my plants and with our funky sprinkler setup, I can at least control sectors, then tend to it individually if need be on our garden. We had drip irrigation when we were stationed in California, I liked it, but i doubt it would last in a Midwest scenario, it would be a TON of install and take down, every year if you don’t want it to be out for winter. The cheap material used in those would absolutely deteriorate.
On our Rocky Mtn Homestead I do 15 mil drip tape and have been using it for years…I absolutely love it and wouldn’t do anything else…If I hand watered everything I would not have time to process all of my veggies…BTW – I am a 61 year old woman and did all of the installation myself…It is very simple to install…
I know you are talking about gardening but this article is also about water usage and I thought this info would be of interest to you. I spent 20 years in the Navy and did doing 15 years of that time on Destroyer Escorts. Being an engineer (BT to be exact) I was responsible for daily reports to the captain one of which was water usage. water usage was 20 gallons per man per day which includes drinking, showering, and eating. We were rarely on water hours, the only times I remember water hours was when an evaporator went OOC (broke down) or like in the case of Operation Eagle Pull and Operation Frequent Wind we gave our water away to other vessels in need. Twenty Gallons of water per day per man and we lived just fine.
Timely article as I’m a beginner; just planted (late, but had to start experiencing it) seeds of peppers, pumpkins, tomatoes, eggplants, and squash and as they’re sprouting Ive been wondering how much water each variety really needs. As always, you make such good points. In this article, the fact that irrigation system(s) may keep you too “far removed”, instead of hands on caring for your garden. Sure thing, it also reminded me that “the frog dies in boiling water” and one should not be far removed from what they’ve really care for. Lastly, great and looking forward to the core (physical and cyber) security webinar too!
Hi, it s very dry here during the summer, too. I have not had a chance yet to set up rainwater en masse and a drip system, but I will. Right now Im using a 4 gallon pump sprayer and give each plant about 6 ounces ( a short squirt) early morning and just before dark. Its keeping them from dying. I got sawdust at a mill and have about an inch or two on the beds. That makes a huge difference. This is a no till system. Pull back the mulch when you need to transplant or direct seed. Hopefully I will have a harvest. Its a brutal time for gardening.
The amount of water will depend on factors on the site. Where I live, we tend to use more water than most, our annual rain is 14 inches with 58 of snow. Because of the fact that I have wind most of the time, it will dry our soil quickly. I use mulch to hold moisture. I like soaker hoses for a lot my garden areas, but my favorite areas, I hand water morning and evening. I have not tracked the amount of water I use, I do know our bill goes up (community well).
We use a sprinkler on the in ground garden because our rocky soil drains so quickly. Basically we drench the entire area. Our raised beds get watered by hand at the base. The soil in those hold the water. We’ve been growing up here on our Franklin County MO farm for years. Our watering habits have evolved over time.
I really like my drip irrigation system. The way our soil is, if you hand water, it can’t take up the water fast enough and it will not soak down in well. With the drip, it allows each drop to soak in really well. I found that hand watering wasted LOTS of water for us just because it would run off. This is only our second year using it, but I can’t see changing it. The only downside that I have experienced is rodents chewing on the drip tape. Rainwater is AMAZING to wash your hair in! Unfortunately, in the high mountain desert, we just don’t get hardly any rain.
I thought about a drip line here in Texas. We thought the same thing. We rotate our garden which means we have to move the line every year. If you are interested Texas Prepper 2 seems to be happy with his. It’s the maintenance issue. We have leaf curl on all our tomatoes. The heat is 115 yesterday. Sunburn is definitely happening.
We are on I think three weeks of rain with maybe a day or two break. I am having issues with my plant growth slowing down or stopping, it has been cool too. I usually water every day when there is no rain, it gets very hot and dry and we have raised boxes. As for the Clearwater seeds they are doing better than seeds I planted earlier. And yes overwatering can cause a lot of issues What besides slugs love to eat pepper plants? I am having a heck of a time this year but no signs of anything except eaten plants.
It takes me hours to water everything thoroughly by hand, so if it’s super dry like this I use a sprinkler at night and move it through the sections of my main garden. Thoroughly soaking each area for hours and hours. Then my mulch will hold it in for a long time and I don’t have to water for quite a while unless I have seedlings. I just use my well water. I never really thought about running it dry, hopefully it will be fine, it’s artisan.
I use high quality drip irrigation. It’s as easy to use as a water softener. Set it and forget it! Don’t skip over the first sentence! My drip irrigation uses flat tape with emitters spaced at what ever I want when I buy a roll of 1,000 foot. Then I cut to length and use. They do not last for more than 3-5 years. They also sell repair couplings but the longevity is dependent on how well you treat them. I roll them up and put them away in the barn when they are not in use. I also use tubing with emitters that are inserted after I poke a hole in the tube to water my semi dwarf fruit trees and the berry patch. The controller is similar to the good ones that control many zones of in ground sprinklers for your yard. I’ve use this equipment for about 5 years and it’s great. I never have leaf curl on my tomatoes or anything else. There are so many great options! Like the old commercial on TV for the meat cooker toaster oven “set it and forget it”
Ive got a couple hours before the cherry tomatoes are out of the sun, but i just out two jugs out there to drip water in the soil. I dont top water those, base only. They are about 8 feet now. Ill move them in a bit.. i think there are 6 in the Cow panel garden. We have pecan shade over the big garden til about 11 so morning work is paramount. Lol. I walked through after cleaning house and honestly. Screw the house time is here. We gotta do this because we work too. Rant over. Haha❤
i am in nj and we have had a severe drought as well. ALL my apple trees dropped all their fruit, and now peach trees which the fruit is only the size of golfballs is now dropping its fruit. we had 2 rains in the last 2 days but it is bad. i have drip irrigation also but i am out there several times a day so know whats happening.. i got it 3 yrs ago from Irrigation Mart- they are down south and i LOVE the quality…..blessings – and as for my garden, it has only been watered 3 times so far this summer becasue we have a well, and cant afford to have that go dry. and yup- wont support bakers creek ever. never did actually….. they still say they didnt make anyone get the jabber do… lol
Growing in the Texas dry lands and these things work for us. We’ve tried drip but it turns to crap in the sun in 1-2 years as well as they don’t allow your seed stock to adapt to your location. It’s not a realist gridless solution 1. Only plant varieties that historically grow in your climate or region. For example we grow Hopi Blue and white corn. 2. Grow in inverted zai pits or waffle beds. You can find pics of these online. 3. Water heavily as in flood irrigation… and I mean heavily, as in fill each pit with 3-5 gallons, but only when the crop looks stressed. 4. Grow in semi shade (plant fast growing legume trees every 25 ft) 5. Keep seed stock from what thrives in the abuse.
People who only water with drip lines are the people who bring their kids to sitters constantly so they don’t have to deal with them theirselves. Parenting from afar = gardening from afar. NOW. THAT BEING SAID…..some of us have day jobs that keep us away for extended periods (which is where I am currently) and in that case, a drip line is better than a plant that dies because you had to go to work. Just this past week when I was called out for 2 weeks I said out loud “I should gave got a drip line for these 2 weeks. Now I have to drive home just to water my plants on my lunch hour, and get back late because I’m 30 minutes from home. Ugh!”
I have to disagree to a point on the drip…. I have a lot to do here on our homestead, and occasionally I find myself pressed for time. I put in my irrigation system ( NOT A CHEAP KIT ) because i see it as a fail safe. if we have to make a trip last minute, i have a system that will at least crutch through the day. I have it set to water just enough to keep a life cycle if i cant water for 2 days, the plants wont die but they wont be in prime shape and i can go through and do regular watering when i get home from a trip to the big city for a doctor visit or 2 states away because i have a family issue… it took a whole lot of work getting it installed properly, but take great care in choosing what product/brand and install in a way that you wont have to worry about it for a while, use it lightly just to ease a small amount of labor and it works great. 2 years in and other than a few small repairs its been great.
Please delete this Zack as it is off topic. I am simply spreading the word about his diet here. I don’t garden since I started eating the carnivore diet, and learned our bodies are optimal when we eat only meat, water and salt. It makes our quality of life better and leaves tons of time for living a basic life. You and the boys hunt, which is perfect for this way of eating. It’s the cleanest way of eating since it doesn’t have exposure to the system:) Anyway, thought I’d run it by you to consider, cheers.