Allotment Gardening Advice Help Chat
Chatting => Equipment Shed => Topic started by: Digger the Dog on April 08, 2018, 09:58
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Our new Allotment does not have water supplied. The only water available is either by collection from a small 6 x 4 shed roof and also pumping from a drainage channel when there is water in it.
We have 6 IBC tanks for storage: 1 is connected to the shed roof for collection; the other 5 are connected together for storage of the "ditch" water.
Our Plot measures approximately 10m x 20m.
I have been looking at "Soaker" hose. I am aware that the further the water travels down a soaker hose, the less the flow becomes. I was going to cut the hose into 5m lengths to try and lessen this. The only pressure available will be the mass of 5000 litres of water.
I really don't want to be lugging watering cans as I suspect this would take a considerable amount of time.
Any suggestions based on past experiences would be welcome :)
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I would check whether soaker hose would get water deep into the ground. If it simply keeps the top inch or so wet, then this is unhelpful for plants because their roots stay near the surface to find this water, and they can become stressed in very dry periods where the soaker hose may not be able to keep up with evaporation.
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I's the height difference that will create the pressure for the seep hose, so raise your water but as high as possible. As Yorkie says the seep hose has got to be deep enough to get right down to the roots and not wet the surface.
Other than initial watering-in of transplants, they're on their own on my plot!