"jeff" wrote in message
...
I'm thinking about micro irrigation (drip irrigation) for my micro
garden. I've noticed that leaving the garden alone for a few days during
the dog days of summer is not beneficial.
Any pointers om either equipment or technique?


It is good to get one of the little Raindrip brochures at your local home
improvement stores--it outlines the types of hoses, connections, and outlets
they offer, and helps you figure out what you need. If your local place
doesn't sell Raindrip, see if they have informational brochures on a
different brand.

I got started by buying a basic Raindrip kit. (I would assume other brands
have similar kits.) It comes with a sampling of their products, and it's a
good way to get acquainted with them. After you set up a line or two,
you'll start to intuitively figure out what you need and can then go to the
home improvement store and get specific supplies. (NOTE: in places like
Lowe's and Home Depot, this stuff is in the Plumbing section rather than the
Garden section.)

I use 6' hoses and splitters to maintain lots of different lines all over my
yard. (You can't have too many splitters, as far as I'm concerned!) This
enables me to open just a few streams at any given time, so I can rotate my
watering.

The only caution I have is that you need to check on the drippers and
connections regularly, to make sure the drips are not clogged and that the
lines stay intact. There have been many times my pipes have popped off of
their main lines and deposited gallons of water all over the yard. (Keeping
a rather low flow helps to ease this.) The drippers have worked pretty well
for two years, but every now and then one will get clogged and will need to
be replaced. It's best to notice this before the plant is affected.

If you ever want to talk about various configurations, let me know and I
will be more than happy to share some of my garden plans. I largely operate
out of rows of 3X6 foot raised wooden beds, but I've got all sorts of other
configurations too. Despite the occasional clogged dripper or popped-out
pipe, I find drip irrigation to be immensely beneficial, and I highly
recommend it.
--S.