Photo by Our Enchanted Garden
The Benefits of Deep Watering
Here in the Northwest the grass grows green in the winter and brown in the summer. We solve this problem by either getting rid of the grass or watering a lot. But watering on opposite days isn’t the complete solution. It also isn’t the greenest solution. The water does not go deep enough and what you do use is wasted on runoff. You find yourself in a neverending cycle of watering. Deep watering will encourage the roots to go deep, looking for food and water, which is exactly what we want them to do to end the cycle. It encourages your plants to become stronger because they get more nutrients by getting deeper and creating stronger systems that don’t need as much watering. That makes healthier plants, especially veggies, for you. But let’s take this one step at a time… shall we? First let’s look at the facts then the how to’s.
Joe Lamp’l, in his book The Green Gardener’s Guide, details quite a few methods for efficient methods for getting the most bang out of your watering buck.
Tidbit to Know: A residential system applying 1 inch of water to an average-size 5,000-square foot lawn delivers a total of 3,000 gallons of water.
3000 gallons! That’s more than twice as much as you need. If you water the lawn (or garden) without deep watering methods, your lawn will only grow roots less than 2 inches deep. That will force you to continue to water more often thereby wasting our precious water resource. Even if you water for 20 minutes, the way the soil absorbs will not allow it to seep far enough to avoid evaporation. The ability of soil to absorb water is known as soil percolation. The percolation of the water through the soil stops at the top if it is overwatered to start, especially if the ground is very dry. It simply runs off. The soil near the surface will dry out faster (evaporate) due to the exposure to the elements. Deep watering allows you to water less often with less water and gives your garden the ability to withstand the highs and lows of the temperatures of our Northwest growing season. Thus, you break the cycle of dependency on frequent watering.
“Now, deep watering doesn’t mean turning on the sprinkler and leaving it on while you go and play a quick nine holes! The surface layer of most soils become quickly saturated after watering for only a few minutes, and then all the water applied runs off and is wasted. Research shows that the most efficient and effective way to get water down deep is to water an area for a short time until the upper surface is saturated–say, ten minutes for most soils (less if it’s on a slope)–then stop and let that water soak in for thirty minutes to an hour, and then water again for a few minutes more. This allows the water to be deeply absorbed into the soil while reducing runoff, and ultimately lets you go much longer between watering.” — Joe Lamp’l The Green Gardener’s Guide (reprinted by permission)
Simple, right? Go out, turn on the sprinkler or drip hose for ten or so minutes, wait an hour, then go out and soak it good again for less time. That adds up to less water used, less money spent, and less time of your time spent on watering which frees you up to tending to the garden (or golf or archery or baking bread…).
Now what about those container/raised bed gardens we’re all using now to conserve space and keep the TAGRO in? Here’s a brief tutorial from Anarchy in the Garden on how to solve that problem (see Sources below). Adriana, the author of this piece (used by written permission) takes a 1 gallon pot she saved from a nursery and reuses it for this deep watering project. All Adriana did was simply poke holes into the sides and bury it in the garden. Then she filled it it with water and let it percolate through the holes slowly and naturally as the garden needs it.
Have fun watering and remember that the greener you are the greener your garden will grow.
Joe Lamp’l
Sources:
TAGRO: Tacoma Grow
Anarchy In The Garden
Photo by: Our Enchanted Garden *creative commons attribution*
