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Choosing watering equipment
Water is a precious commodity and all responsible gardeners should
take steps to minimise the amount of water they need to use in
their garden. The two most obvious steps are to mulch beds when
they are moist, with a thick layer of compost, and to collect
rainwater. There are water butts available for this which can
be linked to the guttering.
WATERING CANS
Cans come in many shapes and sizes, but consider ease of use before
style or appearance. For general garden watering, a 9 litre (2
gallon) can is a good compromise between adequate capacity and
weight. Plastic is the most widely used material, but galvanised
metal will usually outlast many of the cheaper plastic versions.
Plastic cans come in a wider range of designs, however, and you
may find some of these better balanced and easier to carry. For
the greenhouse and indoors, a special design with a long spout
will make watering much easier. These usually hold less than the
normal outdoor watering can, because they often need to be lifted
up high to water plants and seedlings on the greenhouse staging.
Make sure you can fit your hand easily around the handle of a
small can.
Interchangeable roses are desirable:
a coarse one for general watering, and a fine one for seed beds
and seedlings. A sprinkler bar attachment enables more precise
watering which is very useful when applying weedkillers.
Watering cans are not expensive and
it is worth keeping a separate one just for weedkillers, to avoid
any accidental contamination when watering.
HOSEPIPES
A hose takes most of the physical work out of watering. Most are
made from PVC, but the design and degree of the reinforcement
varies. Double-walled and reinforced hoses are less likely to
kink. Fold-flat hoses are easy to store, but can be troublesome
to wind up as the water must be drained out, and they are prone
to kinks while in use.
A hose reel will eliminate most of
the frustrations associated with hosepipes.
SEEP & SPRINKLER HOSES
Laid along rows of vegetables, or in beds and borders, these provide
a gentle flow of water to the base of plants. Sprinkler hoses
have rows of fine holes on one side; turned upwards, they act
as fine sprinklers, turned downwards the water goes directly into
the soil.
Seep hoses have small holes which
allow the water to seep out. Some can be buried in the soil, others
are for surface use only; some can be used either way.
SPRINKLERS
Sprinklers are widely used for lawns, but are also suitable for
beds and borders.
The simplest type of sprinkler is
static with a head on a short spike pushed into the ground; this
commonly waters in a circular pattern. They are used mainly for
small lawns.
Rotating sprinklers, which deliver
the spray through rotating arms, also cover a circular area, but
larger than that normally achieved by static sprinklers.
Oscillating sprinklers have a perforated
bar that sweeps from side to side. The area covered by any spray
will depend on the pressure of the water.
There are many refinements to these
basic sprays, including stems to raise the head above the surrounding
foliage, which is useful for beds, and multi-heads which give
a choice of spray shapes.
TRICKLE & DRIP-FEED SYSTEMS
Because of the cost, these are generally reserved for watering
in the greenhouse or for containers outdoors. Some systems can
be fed from reservoirs topped up manually, but most are connected
to a mains supply through a hosepipe. A flow reducer is usually
part of a mains system.
There are many proprietary systems,
but most work on the principle of a network of small hoses, connected
by T-pieces and other fittings, so that each container or plant
has its own small hose delivering a periodic drip of water. The
individual flow can usually be adjusted.
TIMERS
Timers can be used to control the length of time an ordinary sprinkler
is connected, or form part of a more sophisticated automatic watering
system. These devices vary widely in price and complexity: the
more expensive ones have more timing programmes available to them.
Bear in mind that timer-controlled
systems will also water when the ground doesn’t need it unless
you use manual override or have them connected to a system that
detects moisture levels in the soil. Such systems control the
flow by sensors in the soil or compost, or by special cones fitted
to the delivery nozzles that open or close the supply of water
according to the moisture content.
CAPILLARY SYSTEMS
Capillary action can provide a simple way of watering plants on
solid staging in the greenhouse. It is also a useful temporary
solution for the care of house plants or small potted plants during
periods when they have to be left unattended, such as when you
are away on holiday.
Commercial growers sometimes use
sand beds, but the simplest method is to buy proprietary capillary
mats, which can be cut to size. Pots (without crocks in the bottom)
are placed on the mat, one end of which is immersed in a reservoir.
As long as both compost and mat are moist initially, the water
in the reservoir is drawn up into the compost through the mat,
where the mat and compost come into contact.
Special reservoirs and control tanks
can be bought for the purpose, but a length of guttering in front
or at the end of the bench makes an acceptable improvisation.
The reservoir must be kept topped up by hand or by an automatic
system connected to a mains water supply.
Taken from Reader's Digest New Gardening
Year - a month-by-month guide to success in the garden.
Feature: Erica Miller, Homebase
Click
here to see a list of UK suppliers of watering equipment
