automatic watering system

I was wondering if anyone had any particular views on what specific features an automatic watering system should have. all suggestions would be greatly appreciated. thanks very much.

 

Hi dt, the ideal watering system would be...

easy to set up
easy to make alterations
easy to program
Invisible, or pretty.
reliable
able to make a decent cup of tea.

 

So we are talking husbands here

 

>>easy to set up
>>easy to make alterations
>>easy to program
>>Invisible, or pretty.
>>reliable
>>able to make a decent cup of tea.

May I propose marriage? :D

But seriously, I have been playing with an automatic watering system for about 7 years. The garden is in S.E.Spain and consists of a 3M square of soil and loads of pots on the patio and balcony. We only get to visit every 8 or 9 weeks, so we needed to set up something. Being greated by crisp plants is very depressing.
The two major problems were:-

Very variable water pressure.
Drippers clogged with lime scale.

The water is very hard, and the usual 2L/Hour dripper heads in the pots clogged up with scale very quickly, about 2 weeks. But using adjustable ones set to deliver 2L in 5 mins or so work well for 3 or 4 months without cleaning.
The garden proper :D is watered with a circular sprinkler/spray head located in the middle. To be effective this needs to run for at least an hour for the water to soak into the soil. To reduce evaporation we have applied a thin "mulch" of plum sized stone chips.
So, one timer valve turned into two, with a pressure reducer on each one. 6mm pipes then convey the water out to the garden/pots. All the stuff is Gardena, which I can recomend.
Watering late at night or in the early hours seems to most beneficial.
Good luck.
Nik

 

Erm - SE Spain? You got a villa in Spain when you live in Cambridgeshire?! Why??

 

I think I have tried every watering system know to mankind and then some - and in the end, nothing is effective as hand watering (if not so palatable!). For me watering systems have always failed at some point - they get clogged, the system installed is never enough to cope with mature shrubs, it just simply degrades into unworkability. I've spent far more time trying to fix them, extend them than I would ever have done watering myself.

But in my case the subject was moot. For the past 4 years I was totally unable to use any watering system at all becaase the region where I lived was under such tight water restrictions my garden could either not be watered at all or could only be watered with a hand held pail (no hoses, nothing, certainly no automated watering systems LOL). I am a huge fan of mulch (who isn't) and I am also a massive fan of diverting household grey water (easy to do, simply attach hoses to your shower or bath or laundry waste water outlets - hardware stores have the thingabejigs to do that)so that every time you wash your hands or have a bath the water goes directly onto the flower beds. Of course, none of this helps the owner not in residence.

[ 03. November 2005, 06:22 AM: Message edited by: ellengray ]

 

Michaelmasdaisy

Hardly a villa. We have one corner of the building, so we are semidetached side by side and fore and aft. But our corner faces south/west and gets the afternoon and evening sun on the balcony, even in the winter. Both being owls, that suites us quite nicely. The one behind never gets the sun, and is sold regularly.
As to living near Cambridge, its a thing called servile work, and our garden there. The hacienda is our pension fund/nest egg and inspiration, but not a place to live. Thanks to EasyJet we can visit quite often, but the plants still need watering in our absence.
Nik

 

Oh, you've quite squashed my vision! I have a friend who retired out to Spain a couple of years ago and they have a big garden but it's full blown love/hate relationship - a full time and heavy task trying to keep it going and watered an' all. Wouldn't wish that on anybody! The views are terrific though!

 

Michaelmasdaisy

Sorry to have squashed your vision. The hacienda is definitely for visiting, but not for living in. Being in a gated enclosure we can leave and not worry too much about burglary etc.
But we had an email from the neighbours yesterday saying that the bougainvillea fronds/thorns were becoming a problem. Doesn't look too bad to me :D



At least the watering is working :D

 

off the subject bit but is your place in La Marina ,or Alicante area by any chance...???it looks quite familiar

 

Steve
Yes, there are a lot of them about :D
La Marina is nearby. We are 50KM south of Alicante, and 5KM south of Torrevieja. Here is a map from Google Earth. The nearest beach is at La Zenia.



As you can see we are just into the rough :D :D