Next year (or sooner) is there someone who can help you install a drip system? We did that and it makes life much easier watering. It's already 90 here in southern Nevada (Pahrump)...and it's only 8:30am....oh well I am used to it. I had the tomatoe hornworms "visit" :(:(:( my tomatoe plants a few days ago. I have NEVER picked so many off of any tomatoe plants in my life!!! Now it is under control but OMG-hungry little devils.

I installed my own "drip system". I use the 1/4" soaker hose and the Raindrip feeder line and connectors--I get all of it at Lowe's. I don't bother to bury the stuff, because the plants cover it so it can't be seen, and because NOT burying it makes it much easier to service, repair and change as needed. It's light weight, too. I put the "drip system" together one spring, and I just leave it in place year-round, only disconnecting it from the faucet when nighttime temps get below freezing in the fall, and reconnecting once things warm in the spring.

Lisa

I have the exact same as Lisa. Convenient, works great plus is was inexpensive and easy to install!!

Cara

In responce to drip systems...I'm a 'hit or miss' type gardener. I don't always grow the same things in the same place every year, although there are established plants. There is a drip system around the perimeter of the fenced yard which takes care of vines for the most part (also some of my tomatoes which I tried in a different spot this year).

Soaker hoses worked OK for a while, but our nasty water diminished the output. The 1/4" drip line worked well as long as I had a full bed planted at once, but sometimes I was watering where nothing was planted yet! I did put in some old used drip line in my '3 Sisters' plot. My two small apple trees are going to get some kind of drippers next year.

My problem is I have but one faucet for the entire back yard and east-side patio, so I'm dragging around a lot of hose to hook up to the in-place dripper spots as well as general watering. After experimenting (again) I devised a set-up that works well for me, with a length of PVC pipe which has individual micro-sprinklers that can be fined tuned or shut off as need be. I can easily move it to whatever spot needs watering and the sprinklers give a good, fine, slow soak before the water can puddle up and run off in all directions.

Thanks for the words of advice! This forum is starting off well and I'm glad to be in it!!

We have one of those 5 head splitters on one faucet in the backyard which front, side and back drippers are all connected to. I use the remaining 2 faucets for horse trough and hose for wand-watering pots on the patio. When we bought this home, we were 'gifted' with about 500 feet of drip line. Since we finally figured out how to use it, we have plugged old holes in the line and barbed new drips and sprayers.
So Highdesert, maybe a splitter with different lines you can turn on/off very simply will help? Extra hose and a connector fitting might be worth the expense?
Our only faucet in the front is across the walkway to the front door and I really didn't want the hose laying across it so I found the extra bit of expense worthwhile and convenient for my layout.

LOVING THIS FORUM,
cara

One of my sons and I started a small garden area last year here in Washoe Valley. He spent untold hours watering the 6 strawberry, 7 tomatoe, 4 bell pepper, 4 raspberry and 2 grapevines (lost the grapevines over winter). The garden did so-so. This year I interduced him to mulching and he only has to water about every week and a half to two weeks. The plants are doing very well. We used a couple of old bales of hay given to us. By just peeling the flaks off and put them side by side and end to end (patchwork style). Then watered heavy, waited a week, folded back, planted where two flake met and place the flaks back together. It took him several weeks to adjust to not having to water twice a day everyday and he gets to spend more time with his wife and childern. The plants love it, he loves it, the family loves it and so does the well.

I know our water is just full of minerals (especially calcium), but I don't dare add any sort of pre-conditioner to my hose set up. I work in a place with ultra-ultra-pure water setups and I just KNOW I'd get totally carried away if I tried to fix my water at home. And then I'd get tinkering with other things, and I'd end up with a major Rube Goldberg setup before I got done.

Lisa