Gotta love irrigation? Yeah, tell me about it! But you don't have the big biceps and shoulders I have from lugging jugs of water, LOL.
Ugh, yesterday we went to a bridal shower and I could barely fit my arms through the sleeves of my favorite short sleeve shirt!
Since our field isn't near a well I wonder if there is a way I could get a small generator and use that to pump water through drip tape....

Sorry DD, to gripe an complain! I don't know of any problems with drip tape except that (I think) it has to be fairly close to the plants.
Susan

yeah i know what you mean. Thats why I got this stuff because i was sick of lugging water jugs all over tha place! I am running hos3e at least 300 feet to get to my field and even then the hose is kinf of in the way. I know your pain!
Carrie

DD, what is drip tape? Different from soaker hose?

Karen

Susan -- I can relate to the water hauling. Not my idea of fun! We have hauled from town about 3300 gals in the last two weeks. And let's not talk about paying for water!!!! We are drilling a new well in July which will stop this nonsense. But I also think I will have to stop eating to pay for it!!!!

My irrigation is based on the storage of rain water --great idea, USUALLY! But it will use a small low-pressure sump pump for the drip tape. You need to watch the pressure -- a generator could work just fine. You could also create a gravity system by having the water supply at a high elevation than the field. Think water tower. It doesn't take much height. In southern to central Wisconsin --it could work really well with all the hills. May take a little longer -- you'll have to set the timers.

Karen -- drip tape is a flat tape with holes spaces every 8 to 12" --- works best for field work where everything is planted in straight rows. Water radiates out in a 12" circle (roughly) Usually a 3' bed requires 2-3 lengthes of tape --depending on placement of plants and water requiremnts and climate.

For most home gardens, soaker hose is the way to go.

Susan -- you must be in southern Wisconsin to be that dry ---Where do you live? We go to Milwaukee alot to visit our daughter and drive across the state from Dubuque.

Cathy

Wow, hauling the water is bad enough, paying for it is terrible!
I live south of Milwaukee in Racine. Today I was watering amid clouds and thunder, which promptly moved to the south of us, opening up blue skies.
I believe I have invented several new swearwords... LOL, just kidding, sort of!
susan

Yeah I have about an inch and a half main line and we drilled holes and inserted valves for the drip tape. The drip tape slides onto the valve and you screw some things tight and there you have it!

The drip tape itself if a piece of plactic about an inch wide when its flat and it has a little slit about a quarter inch long every 12 inches. When i turn on the valves the tape fills with water and drips water about every second. It really wasnt as expensive as i thought i towuld be and it will last me for YEARS.

I had it on a total of about 3 hours yesterday and it worked really well. I am going to try and figure out how much water we are using an hour but since we have a well nothing comes out of my pocket for water. We have been REALLY dry here on the east coast so this will take a lot of labor out of my dahlia patch. It will hopefully help boost my buds into production!