Irrigating the garden

I just returned from the Penn State Horticultural Research Farm out off state Route 45. We planted a large pumpkin variety trial using black plastic mulch and drip irrigation, and I wanted to finish flushing out the drip irrigation system and make sure that everything was in working order and ready to irrigate the crop.

This weekend we were down in Lancaster County at a family event, and I noticed that some of the field corn looked like they could use a rain. It is important for both commercial vegetable and fruit growers and home gardeners to be prepared to irrigate if they want to harvest high quality vegetables and fruit crops.

As soon as I started to write the column, wouldn’t you know it, it started to rain. Not much, but it did rain. Rain is free and great if it could be scheduled so that the garden and lawns received an inch to and inch and half of water per week. It normally doesn’t work that way and at some point during the summer the garden is going to need to be irrigated.

There are two ways that one can irrigate the garden. One is overhead irrigation and the other is drip irrigation. If you are on a city/municipal water source it is important to remember that when you water your garden you are also being charged for sewage processing even though your water is not going into the sewage system. This means that it is a good idea to be as efficient as possible in watering the garden.

Overhead irrigation can be accomplished using a wide variety of irrigation sprinklers. They come in all shapes and sizes. The important thing is to put a container/can out in the wetting pattern so as to measure when you have applied an inch of water or if you are watering three times a week then  1/3 of an inch for each application. Otherwise you will not know how much water you are putting on the garden and may be wasting water. It is best if you water the garden in the early morning before it gets too hot. This way you will not lose as much water to evaporation and also it will give the plants a chance to dry off. It is not a good idea to water at night because the plants will go into the night with wet foliage, which can encourage the development of diseases. Irrigation systems can be placed on timers, which is handy once you figure how long it takes to apply an inch of water to the garden.

Drip irrigation is a method of applying small amounts of water, often on a daily basis, to the plant’s root zone. I am not referring to soaker hose technology, which is made from recycled tires and from which the water oozes out of the many pores in the hose. I am referring to drip tube or tape in which openings are spaced usually for the home garden at 12 inches apart and the water literally drips out.

There are several advantages to using drip irrigation:

▪ Drip irrigation may require less than half of the water needed for overhead sprinkler irrigation. Saving dollars.

▪ High levels of water management are achieved because plants can be supplied with precise amounts of water and no applications are made between the rows or other non-productive areas. No use watering the weeds in the row middles.

▪ Diseases may be lessened because foliage remains dry.

▪ Activities such as planting, pruning and harvesting can continue in the garden while you water.

▪ Fertigation can be used as a means of introducing soluble fertilizers efficiently to the roots through the drip irrigation system.

▪ Soil erosion and nutrient leaching can be reduced.

There are drip irrigation kits that can be purchased. If you Google “drip irrigation kits” you will find several different kits.

Remember water is a precious commodity so use it wisely, and thank Mother Nature when we have a gentle soaking rain.

This story was originally published June 23, 2017 at 8:44 AM with the headline "Irrigating the garden."