Drip Irrigation

The simplest watering technique for your garden

When it comes to keeping the garden green and saving resources, the age-old technique of drip irrigation is a favorite with gardeners, farmers and professional horticulturalists alike. The process ensures watering plants without any wastage of water or of fertilizer whilst enabling maximum growth from plants and greater yields from crops. The success of this garden watering method has meant that even the most arid areas produce a harvest sufficient to support remote communities.

Drip Irrigation Through the Ages

This simple method of irrigation was a success then, and still is nowadays. Only the mode of delivery has changed over the years.

In the earliest years of agriculture, in ancient times, farmers would use a clay pot buried in the ground to deliver water directly to a plant. They simply filled the clay pot with water, which seeped slowly into the ground so that the plant would benefit from a direct and continuous supply of water.

Clay Pipes Replace Clay Pots

Sometime in the 1800s, this technique was further developed to use clay pipes instead of clay pots, which enabled a more time efficient mode of watering. This system is still in use nowadays with only a slight modification brought about by the use of plastic.

Modern Irrigation Kits

Today, kits use a hose system that has drippers at specific intervals to deliver water from a tap. For convenience many gardeners and horticulturalists use a timer to turn the water supply on and off according to the requirements of a particular type of plant. This provides a convenient solution to garden watering.

The Advantages:

= Increased crops;
= Eliminates soil erosion;
= Eliminates nutrients leaching;
= Grows healthier plants;
= Saves money on fertilizers.

Comparing Techniques

Delivering water straight to the root system also prevents disease, as foliage remains dry. With other techniques, such as a sprinkler, wet foliage can rot or, in sunnier climes, can burn. The damage caused can be potentially devastating and resulting in food shortages if a crop fails.

Special Attachments for Different Types of Crop

Various types of irrigation attachments can be used effectively for different types of crop. Micro sprinklers often replace dripper heads for trees and for vines as the wide root distribution of these types of plant require a more widespread watering technique, creating a versatile method of watering garden plants or a field of crops.