In the United States, our yards are thirsty.
They drink up 8 billion gallons of water each day. To water them, most people use either sprinklers or surface irrigation, which involves using a watering can or hose to flood the soil and waiting for all that water to seep down. The problem is, up to half of that water goes to waste. Instead of reaching plant roots, it blows away in the wind, evaporates in the sun, lands on hard surfaces, or escapes as runoff. And these methods aren’t just inefficient in their water use — sprinklers also have high energy requirements.
There’s another irrigation method that delivers water only where it’s needed, while delivering great results: drip irrigation.
Drip irrigation systems consist of tubing placed on or just beneath the ground. Water drips slowly onto the plant root zone from holes in the tubing, called emitters. There are myriad advantages to this method:
- If you have a sloped yard, you’re less likely to see runoff. The slow, consistent application of water means that water soaks into the soil before it has the chance to trickle away.
- You’ll get fewer weeds — Instead of feeding opportunists, water goes directly to the plants you want in your garden.
- Drip irrigation tubing can be installed in the tiniest nooks and crannies of your yard.
- It’s easy to adapt or expand a drip irrigation system to accommodate landscaping changes.
- You’ll save thousands of gallons of water each year. Drip irrigation uses up to 80% less water than other irrigation methods, making this method both water-wise and kind to your wallet.
Wondering how to get started?
Of course, you can hire a local landscaping company to install your new irrigation system. But for those who prefer the DIY approach, this is an easy project to do yourself. Adding a drip system starts with just laying a length of flexible rubber tubing wherever you plan to plant, whether that’s a flower bed or a raised vegetable garden. You can purchase tubing that already has regularly spaced “soaker holes” or tubing without holes, which allows you to install emitters exactly where you want water to drip — a more efficient method for most garden beds. In Ashland, ACE Hardware is a one-stop shop for everything you’ll need.
There are videos available to walk you through the process, step by step. This helpful how-to from Garden Answer goes through everything you need to know to install a drip-irrigation system in your shrub bed, from shopping to removing old overhead sprinklers. Another video explains how to install a drip irrigation system on a raised bed, including how to connect tubing to your garden faucet and install a timer. Both videos are included below.
For a more technical deep dive on common installation mistakes, maintenance tips, and layout, check out this in-depth Drip Irrigations for Home Gardens article from Colorado State University Extension.