Basic Irrigation Water System

Garden Project #2
Building a Basic Irrigation System
Difficulty: Easy

There are a number of ways to go about irrigating. Perhaps more importantly, there are a number of reasons to irrigate. Let's check some out:

Your garden is getting watered every day and is developing great. But your mother just called and mentioned Aunt Carol is in bad health and is asking for you, specifically. She has always been your favorite aunt and you, of course, will go to see her, although it is 249 miles away and will take 3 days or more, you just know. What do you do? Incidentally, this same situation could refer to a vacation you want to take or any number of things. You don't have anyone who can do your watering for you. So what do you do?

The Quickest and Easiest Solution
(Which could also even be permanent)

Here's what I advise. Supposedly you have enough hose to get the watering done. Also, I am thinking you sometimes rely on a sprinkler of some kind to get your garden wet, although you may be one of those to whom holding a hose in hand is one of the most satisfying things to do in the world. Well, you're not alone. Just the same, you need a hand and this one could serve later if the situation ever arises again.

First, see what the capacity of your sprinkler is. Can it water it all in one fell swoop? If so, you are in a perfect position for an easy fix. If it requires more, you are still fine, which I will explain. First, insure that you know what is required to adequately water your garden. Run one sprinkler and check to be sure it covers adequately. If it does not, try another one as well. When you reach the point where you can see the coverage is sufficient, then we go to the next phase:

The Battery-Powered Timer.

These are sold all over the place. Typically, I look to plumbing and irrigation suppliers but Home Depot and Lowe's for example in the US, have them. Needless to say, eBay is rife with them as well. They typically run around $15-$30 a piece. What they can allow you to do is to run your watering regime up to 3 times per day, at a preset duration. So if your fooling around has shown you that all it takes to water your garden perfectly is about 7 minutes, once a day, then program 7 minutes in, once a day, at a specificly-desired time, and you now have an automatic system in place. Make sure the hose and sprinklers have some sort of sturdy method of keeping them in place in the event an animal or friend trips over them. Some are also already set up for running two hoses as the picture below illustrates. In the end, basically, you are actually done. This is an exceptionally simple solution which can actually be used over a few years if you protect the batteries and detach the timer before frosts take place, which will break the timer if a freeze occurs when water is inside.