creative commons photograph
We love beautiful blooming
gardens, but, hello – we live in the dry Colorado climate! What is the most
sustainable irrigation system for our gardens?
Lucky Colorado residents
are eligible for FREE sprinkler audits, provided by the CRC. These sprinkler
experts will come to your house and check the efficiency of your sprinkler
system.
Even before you check our
your system, it’s a good idea to think about what exactly you watering. Is your
system the most efficient system for your needs?
Most of the experts out
there agree that the best choice for irrigation is a drip irrigation system.
They are inexpensive and highly efficient. The system will put water where you
want it, and not waste water where you don’t. Instead of watering large areas
of land, as is done with sprinkler systems, a drip system carries the water
directly to the base of plants through a system of small pipes so that the
water goes where it is needed. Every drop is used by the plant which minimizes
wasted water.
There are some
disadvantages to drip irrigation systems. The Colorado Extension tells us that
if drip irrigation emitters are poorly placed (too far apart or too few in
number) root development may be restricted by the limited soil area wetted.
Water seeping at ground level is hard to see and makes it difficult to know if
the system is working properly. An indicator device that raises and lowers a
flag to show when water is flowing is available to overcome this issue. If you
are concerned that this may not be the right system for your needs, click
through this
link , which will take you to a concise irrigation system database
from the Colorado State Extension office, and find the system that is!
Drip
irrigation systems
