I read an article in the Albuquerque Journal recently about water conservation methods used in gardens of New Mexico and thought I'd start a thread about them. I got the grand tour of Dys's garden a few days ago and noticed he makes good use of some of these methods.
I summarized the ABQ Journal article since they are now charging for online access to their news.
Quote:
Water Conservation Methods for the Garden
Looking for ways to conserve water in your garden while still keeping your plants healthy? Here are a few old and new ideas:
A water-wise garden starts long before vegetables are chosen for the salad. It requires careful space planning to protect vegetables from sun and wind that can dry out soil. A low-water veggie garden starts by adding organic compost to soil to retain nutrients and moisture. Organic matter actually helps hold moisture; it acts like a sponge.
Instead of sprinklers that let water evaporate, a drip irrigation system to target plants or a soaker hose that lets out water in intervals is recommended for efficient use of water.
Another method is to take a jug or milk carton and fit the opening with a cork with a small hole attached to a small tube. Place the jug on its side near the plant. The key is to let the water out slowly.
An even better method is an ancient one. Ollas " porous terra cotta jars buried near plants " also let water seep out slowly without evaporating.
The final step is choosing the right vegetables. Although vegetables like beans and some herbs use less water, most vegetables are not going to be very drought-tolerant. There are specific varieties that do better for specific local climates.
I'm going to be giving the ollas method a try here in the desert of New Mexico. The soil is very sandy here so any nutrients you put into the soil quickly leeches out. The sandy soil and seasonal high winds also makes it difficult to keep garden plants well watered.
I've been studying up on the use of ollas and thought I'd share the info here with other gardeners. Is anyone already making use of them in their own gardens? If so, tell me about your experience.
One thing I've learned is that if you live in a mosquito prone area you'll want to find a way to cover the opening of the olla to prevent moquitos from spawning in the water. It also helps lessen the evaporation of the water via the spout. A flat rock works well for that.
In the meantime, here are some links to learn more about the history and method of using ollas in the garden.
The East Central Ministries in ABQ sells a variety of ollas sizes for half the price I've seen at other places. You can order them online too if you aren't here in ABQ. Ollas are becoming popular in California too, as the drought there progresses and the popularity of home vegetable gardens increase.
Here are some videos for other water conservation methods:
0 Replies
ossobuco
1
Reply
Wed 8 Apr, 2009 05:44 pm
@Butrflynet,
Nice info...
I'll probably set up a drip system once I settle in. Right now I have my plants sitting in sand "wells", and hand water with a watering can. I'm still working out the "architecture" of the yard, moving landscape ties and rocks around.
When I lived in the San Juaquin Valley, we conserved garden water by adjusting our garden season to only occur in the period of time before the area turned into a desert each April through October.
There are edaphic realities that limit the amount of gardening and the timing of same. Forcing mother natures cycle in a xeric environment is not cool.
we do contour planting in our fields and this prevents mostly runnoff damage during high intensity rainstorms. We also have 2 contour water retention features that alos store and redistribute water by infiltration after rains. These are good tools and prevent wash out of soil .
We have to submit a conservation and erosion control plan when we reorder any fields by changing cropping styles.
0 Replies
djjd62
1
Reply
Sat 25 Apr, 2009 05:24 am
we have soaker hoses in a couple of gardens, we don't do vegetables, and our garden plants tend to be chosen for drought resistance
we also have two water barrels for day to day hand watering
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