No rain in two weeks, all morning dragging hoses!

[RSKY]

Title says it all. I have spent all morning dragging soaker hoses around. Luckily Walmart had their heavy duty, thick, feels like a regular hose, soakers marked down on closeout. Got two of them for the garden and a cheaper $6.50 one for everything else. Also have six tall evergreens around the patio in the back that are on a timer to water every three days. Ran them thru their cycles twice today. They each have one of the three foot long circular soakers around them under the mulch. Two new magnolias in front also have the round short soakers around them. Will get half watered today and half tomorrow. Don't like to water after noon.

This old man is tired.

RSKY

 

[oosik]

I watered my fruit trees with an electric powered pump - down on a platform hard bolted to the lava cliffs. It is three feet above the lake. It was a REAL thrill in the spring and again in the fall. Slide down the cliff - don't fall in the lake - attach/remove the pump intake pipe and prime or drain the pump.

Two years of dragging hoses - reset sprinklers and keep it all running. It got real old - SO........ I used a single tooth harrow to establish a below ground irrigation system. The "ditches" I dug were only 3" deep. Just enough to not worry about hoses, etc when I mowed.

All I had to do - go to the main electrical panel and throw the breaker. It worked for the eight years we kept the orchard.

We quit the orchard after eight years. All we were doing was providing treats for all the local varmints.

 

[WM75Guy]

I feel your pain. I am fortunate that we bought a Micro Rain MR25 sprinkler system to water the riding arena to keep the dust down. I can wheel it to one spot, drag out the 165' of hose, and it rolls it up as it waters. Then off to the next spot. Does a 70' X 200' strip with up to 1/2 inch of water at the slowest setting. Trugreen just fertilized the yard so I will be watering shortly. Down to 96 degrees now, will wait a little longer.

Micro Rain MR25 | www.microrain.net

 

[WVH1977]

Opposite here in VA. July was one of the wettest summer months I can remember. Normally dry and dusty and wishing for a thunderstorm and drop of rain. All the trees I planted are doing well.n Right now it is around 70 and nice out.

 

[ericm979]

It hasn't rained in my part of California since May. We get an average of 50, up to 100 inches a year, all in about six months.

 

[jyoutz]

We have a very predictable pattern here in the high elevation southwest. Springs are dry and windy, June is very hot and dry, then the monsoon rains come in July through October. Winter snows are late November through March. Because of the dry springs and early summer, most people install drip irrigation systems to have our plants survive until July. For my garden I built a hard header pipe that feeds the drip hoses down each row. The 1/2” drip hoses have drip holes every 18”. At the end of the growing season, I roll up the hoses until spring. My orchard is watered with 1/2” or drip line on top the ground, stapled down so I can mow over it.

 

[ponytug]

We have a very predictable pattern here in the high elevation southwest. Springs are dry and windy, June is very hot and dry, then the monsoon rains come in July through October. Winter snows are late November through March. Because of the dry springs and early summer, most people install drip irrigation systems to have our plants survive until July. For my garden I built a hard header pipe that feeds the drip hoses down each row. The 1/2” drip hoses have drip holes every 18”. At the end of the growing season, I roll up the hoses until spring. My orchard is watered with 1/2” or drip line on top the ground, stapled down so I can mow over it.

I am really impressed that you can mow over your irrigation lines. I haven't had such great luck mowing around the drip lines.

All the best,

Peter

 

[jyoutz]

I am really impressed that you can mow over your irrigation lines. I haven't had such great luck mowing around the drip lines.

All the best,

Peter

I get a roll of 9 gauge wire and make staples, then fasten down the drip line so it’s anchored flat to the ground. Also I don’t do this in the lawn, just where I’m mowing native grass. I cut the native grass at 4”.

 

[ponytug]

I get a roll of 9 gauge wire and make staples, then fasten down the drip line so it’s anchored flat to the ground. Also I don’t do this in the lawn, just where I’m mowing native grass. I cut the native grass at 4”.

Got any staple forming tricks?

All the best,

Peter

 

[scootr]

No rain since May. Currently I'm fixing the GDF irrigation valves, wires, and drippers to keep a privacy hedge alive for 2-3 months when hopefully we get some rain.