Just a gardener here but I agree. Changed from drip to overhead and just way more productive on our homestead. No clogs or lost plants etc due to maintenance.
I live in the high desert. I find above ground watering useless. I have buried soaker hoses and have had great results. I do not have a farm like you, but it works very well for the home gardener. Love the channel. Great information in this and your other videos.
Seems like wind would be a concern now since you are spraying so high. Nothing takes the place of flood irrigation which has been proven for 1000's of years in dry/high country. I've tried what you did (drip and spray) and never had really good results. Then when I planted my home garden and really thought about it, I setup the water path so that i can flood one side of the field and the water works it's way to the other end of the field and saturates the ground. It really works well here in 100 degree Texas summer.
I have installed enough underground and drip systems to 100% agree! In my opinion impact heads are by far the most cost effective way to go. I absolutely love your content!
Thank you, I live in a place with higher humidity, but I am sick of watering by hand and was looking for a watering option. Your response is a further confirmation that this is a good method.
This is AWESOME! Curtis - I used sprinklers in Central Valley Cali - 2000 ft in arid mediterranean with decomposed granite (though some folks here have the heavy clay and more). It works SO well! Awesome!! Everyone thought I was crazy haha ;)
Hi Curtis, you are a hero of our time and so humble to share all this knowledge freely. I have your book and I am in the process of installing a 50 bed system under overhead sprinklers. I am very interested in what your source is for all the parts, connectors, adapters, couplings, tubing, and filters? also in the book I believe it says poly sprinklers, but the link is for brass. Which do you prefer? THANK YOU!!!
We live in central British Columbia, where gardening is a bit of a challenge. We use drip tape throughout the vegetable garden with great success. But.....we're setting up overhead sprinklers for use in a serious heat wave only. And overhead might be better when trying to germinate direct-sown seeds.
After you get your system set up, you can test the soak by placing a few plastic cups around the plot to see how much water collects after you run your sprinklers thru a com[;ete cycle. Good luck and grow !
Hey Curtis. I'm in the Sierras mountains near Tahoe in cali. And I'm new to this area. I was in east Oakland before hand, homesteading there. Content like this is more valuable to me than my physics degree. I've got high iron clay soil. I've got 1.5 acres I'm farming. Cyber high five on this video! You're a bada$$! Thank you so so much
I'm in Central Utah. We have the problem of desert temperatures during the day and cool sometimes cold temps at night. In the Spring (last week) and the Fall temperatures can drop 40 degrees. We also have the Rocky Mountains to the East (granite mines) and West (copper mines) of us, with those mountains narrowing to form a canyon mouth 20 miles to the North so we can get wind gusts that blow (us) over with the lovely extreme of flat prairie to the South. This makes gardening here a climate contest. Oh, and the altitude is 4774'. Having said all that; the majority of people here grow some type of garden and we're crazy about it. Many of us also take pride in preserving, canning and bottling what we grow ourselves. It's very common to see apartment balconies with tomato plants or herbs growing in containers. So thanks for sharing your knowledge, research and learning about growing and gardening. New ideas and thoughts are always appreciated, especially when accompanied by clear information and step by step instructions.
Hi Mr. Stone, thanks so much for your videos. I enjoy the homesteading and also permaculture. I've also dabbled in aquaponics and decorative fountains. I appreciate all the plumbing you have done. Sometime I had difficulty with equalizing the water pressure throughout. How ever, if you you make a complete circle with your tubing and plug your sprinkler heads into the circle then all the water sprayers will have equal pressure. Thanks again. I look forward to learning more from your channel. Cheers.
Love the videos Curtis. You can make a big improvement to this system by using Rainbird LF series sprinkler heads. These are specifically designed for agricultural applications, unlike the residential lawn sprinklers other people are recommending... The things you'll like are very even coverage, almost impossible to clog, very durable, and longer throw on less pressure and flow compared to normal impacts. The last bit is the most important thing for your application. It looks like you're relying on residential water, which can be sketchy sometimes. The LF sprinklers will work fine over a wide variety of GPM and PSI ranges, giving you more flexibility in how you lay out these systems. The even water distribution saves water $$$ because you don't need to overwater some sections to ensure less covered areas get enough. Also, they are probably cheaper than the impacts you're buying now.
Thanks Curtis , you're bang on. I'm overhead watering for the first time this year (it's a band aid set up right now , proper install is I/P) and the difference with direct seed crops is amazing. If your doing direct seed anything it's the only way to go.
I wish I had seen this years ago; clay soil and a valley that created a wind tunnel every evening - seeds just had such a poor germination rate! Got to the point only planted from starts, which got expensive until the greenhouse finally got built. Just bought your book and digital education; can't wait to get started with more information!
Great video Curtis ! Have looked into using Hunter MP Rotator Nozzles ? The nozzles rotate quietly and they can be set at different degs. Using a simple tool . 90, 180, 270, 360. Check them out. They are designed to have matched precipitation rate from the first to the last head because each nozzle is being regulated. That is why you can run more sprinklers on one system than a traditional one. You will still need to check They are designed to apply water at a slower rate to try and eliminate repeat watering due to run off which I know that you don't have worry about be do have to be concerned that the top 3" to 6, inches do not dry out. Thanks and I love all off your videos !
This is a great idea! We only get 9 inches of rain per year (if we are lucky), and I didn't want to go through setting up a drip system everywhere. I think this would work great! Thanks!
I've always questioned the benefits of a miserly watering system that doesn't feed all the soil. We live in Salt Lake City, a very low humidity, dry climate, very hot in the summer. Last year for the heck of it we ran an oscillating head sprinkler in our backyard in addition to doing some drip irrigation and I'm convinced our soil is better for it.
What I heard you say was to fit your irrigation system to your conditions. Always pros and cons that have to be weighed. There is no single solution that fits every situation. This was a solid presentation clearly explained. Thank you.
To equalize pressure at all spray heads or drip heads run a full loop on each zone. Yes more pipe but solves the problem perfectly. I did this for my drop & spray heads.
Great video and lessons learned: 1. For general sunlight protection I highly recommend - painting outdoor items to protect them from UV sunlight - regular house paint works fine. 'Spar' Polyurethane - 1 qt can $18 has powerful UV blockers can be applied directly to wood, plastic, metal - just wipe the surface, sanding is optional, can be applied with a sponge.
I use galvanized metal pipe for my garden hydrants.... it might work in your situation, and eliminate the wood stakes. - For each hydrant (starting below grade, and working up) : Endcap, 12" nipple (in the dirt), tee (at grade), 36" nipple, then hydrant above grade. Water feeds into the tee from a pipe on the ground with a barb to male pipe thread fitting. - I use a 6' steel bar to pound a 1" diameter hole into the clay. Push the hydrant down into the hole. Stamp around it. I pull them back out during the winter so they don't freeze.
I've heard you mention before that you water at night. People tell me not to do that, because of the increased spread of disease from transpiration droplets that appear in the very early morning on hot days/cool nights. When it's hot I tend to Irrigate at 10am and 2pm, but I have mostly tomatoes on drip. Do you water at night because you are just more interested in the water soaking into the ground well?
Thanks Curtis, I've been thinking about a dual/ hybrid system here. We have the same Cascadian soil and I completely understand your soil crust/ germination problem. On our permaculture side we do a bunch of tricks, well water, rainwater, mulch , cover crop, etc... but on our garden side it definitely needs overhead watering.
problems i notice about your plot. no windbreaks. stop the wind less evaporation if you can get more leaf mould into the soil better and newspaper, grass clippings can act as a mulch slowing evaporation too. shade can also aid plants such as vegetables to grow better though i'm not sure what greens you are growing. so maybe a few fruit trees spaced around the plot could provide a few of these ideas?
Yeah man! I am not a fan of drip either especially for seedlings and any starter plant. Maybe effective for established plants but not for new ones. I currently hand water and chalk it up as a work out. Your sprinkler idea I like. I think I willd deploy.
Great video for me also, I live in dry windy high desert of Idaho. Will put this in my notes for our farm start up. One question, how much did your water consumption go up? Thanks a bunch!
I use T posts. You can get sprinkler heads that are designed to fit on top the T post. There are a couple of thumb screws that you tighten to keep them from coming off. I also use quick connects to connect the water hoses. Great video.
I prefer impulse sprinklers like the ones you've installed because they're durable but if you don't like the noise you could employ single stream rotary sprinkler heads. They spray the same way but they are silently gear driven. The heads closest to my house are rotors. Sometimes they'll need internal filters cleaned which is why the rest of my system is comprised of impulse sprinklers like yours.
You should run two heads on one zone. When you see that much water mist you are wasting water. I recommend using Hunter MPRotators 3000, 90 - 210 degrees distribution. Check your water pressure, you may be able to run three rotators
The number of comments you've received just since yesterday should give you a good idea of just how popular you are. I'm surprised, though, at the number of people who have no idea who you are or what you're trying to do. I for one couldn't be happier that you've ditched drip irrigation (I had my epiphany about twenty years ago). There seem to be so few people who grapple with climates like ours, which is one of the reasons why I benefit so much from both your successes and failures (I love these vloggers who toss a bunch of seeds into their gardens, let the rain take care of the rest, then emerge a few weeks later to a food jungle of every imaginable fruit and vegetable, all weed- and pest-free). You understand that what's best for the plant matters far more than your water bill, particularly since you're in the business of providing plants. I think you're going to be extremely happy with what you've done here. Incidentally, about the clay soil. If driving that hammer begins to rattle your teeth, consider renting an auger from Home Depot. Saves time and joints.
HI! I'm wondering why did you choose that height? The reason I ask is because it seems like there would be more air evaporation with the higher distance to the ground. Do you find this to be the case or is there a risk/reward scenario that I'm not thinking of (maybe ease of adjustment?). Just curious. Any time we've done 'overhead' we've done from the ground an adjustable circular pattern head so you minimize the misting/evap. I'm also curious about watering mid-day. I use to live in an area with hard clay and high heat (100+) and we'd get leaf burn if we watered overhead mid-day.
Oh man you should look up opensprinkler. it's awesome. I've been using it for a couple years. can build it yourself if you are handy that way. next year I will be hooking up soil moisture sensors to run it off of for more efficient watering. one experiment I'm trying this year is running a zone of.misters that run for 2 minutes every 2 hours during the day to keep greens and spinach from bolting
Why didn't you go for a mulch system with your drip irrigation? Mulch layers would have prevented winds drying your top soil off and retained moisture in surface layers, as well as adding humus which would have enrighed your soil. More sustainable don't you think than spraying water (a scarce resource in high-montane/desert climates) on a timer. Just my two cents.
First off he is in Canada the worlds most fresh water rich country on the planet. Second on the scale he is doing in multiple lawns and areas mulch is a pain. The best option for him there is overhead because the drip dose not provide enough water for the climate.
I use a mulch with drip in my raised beds in southern California, and I can tell you it is a lot of work raking up the mulch and adding fresh mulch. While I am only gardening in 3 small raised beds, I would say that it probably would take an unreasonably long amount of time to do a mulch for larger plots because you can not turn over the mulch into the soil , as it will deprive the plants of nitrogen while the wood chips are composting in the soil. So, you have to rake up the mulch before replanting every time, and then compost the spent raked up wood chip/soil mixture . and add more compost and new wood chips to the plot again after planting new crops.
David Barlow tell us how to mulch a bed of densely planted arugula or baby spinach... most of Curtis's crops are not compatible with mulch. plus he needs overhead to keep the greens cool during heat, mulch doesn't do that.
Hey small fix up but I noticed the straps you're using to strap the hose onto the 2x4 are indoor straps. Eventually it will rust with the humidity and break off. Outdoor straps are normally brown.
Dry, windy, clay ... sounds like my farm on Maui! I actually just installed a lot of drip this week for some beets, cukes, squash, peas ... haven't had rain in months!
I really like those impact sprinkler head options with the diff size nozzle...i currently have orbit gear drives...and find them way too costly to replace as i have 10 on my property. very cool for my lawn and future veg garden.
I did like the idea of the Drip(not directly effected by sun(certainly depends on soil conditions)), but I certainly can see the "time saver"(permanent(essentially)) that the timed spray system would introduce.
and I've tried subirrigation and soaker hoses which i haven't got to work well, and settled on pvc in ground to 2 different locations for sets of orbit valves then 1/2" poly with those little coloured spray heads in it to cover areas I need. I have some of the valves terminating in garden hose thread so I hook up some regular garden hose and regular sprinklers. it's good and I can change easily. ps. hi from vernon :)
I have just used sprinklers. One of those tripod sprinklers covers all 6 of my raised beds. Hook it up once and done. I run it for several minutes each day and done. Never had any issues with diseases or anything like that. I feel like those issues are overblown. What do people do when it rains every day down south? Put umbrellas over their beds?
I guess it depends on your environment but getting the plants wet here causes all kinds of problems. Definitely a simpler system. We use pvc drilled, never clogs. Zone 10b.
Awesome advice. I think my DT gets too hot when I don't run it and burns the little seedlings sometimes. Going to get into a little overhead irrigation myself...
THANK you! This was very enlightening. I, too, have heavy soil - silt, not clay - in an arid climate. I'm smack dab in the Blue Hole on the northern Olympic Peninsula in WA.
YOu might still have the same problem with overhead. the hot air and wind will evaporate much of the moisture. I was trying to grow in clay soil and the water had a hard time soaking into the earth. It would just evaporate away. I mixed the soil 50/50 with potting soil and it soaks in much better now. But you have to do it on a plant by plant basis or the cost of potting soil gets very high.
Have you experinced that the plants get sunburned when watering at noon? I avoid misting my tomatoes and chilli in the daytime. The waterdroplets on the leaves turn into mini magnifying lenses
I felt the same, but starting to swing back again. Failed dripper points, and uneven pressure and distribution was my hate! Also clay here, big time. Now that I have a dripper pipe that can clean/unclog itself and evenly spreads water at 0.9 bars only, I am sold again. Overhead is just KILLING me with weed issues. Couch/Bermuda/Kweek loves overhead watering :(
Just a data point: I do the same kind of thing with T posts, often with the posts on double duty holding fence or training wire in addition to sprinkler mounting.
Just 3 days ago bought a 2 zone timer and poly from Home Depot. kinda relieved to see that you use the same product. I have really good soil, and humidity. I am installing drip and it should be fine. Have you ever used 1/4" drip line from HD for smaller plots?
Hi Curtis, Have you ever thought about plating Rapunzel Tomatoes? These are super great and taste really good. They grow quite big but they yield a lot of tomatoes. You're looking at about 30+ cherry tomatoes per truss. Only issue for me is that I get over 100 cherry tomatoes all at once and I have to give them out to friends haha, but I can see myself making serious cash with these. Hopefully you will read this comment :) Love your videos.
If you choose not to bury your distribution lines you may want to place something protective over them to minimize damage to them and tripping. I'd like to suggest used carpet as a possibility. I have used carpet between my 30" beds for the last 5 years. Hula hoes take care of the weeds that DO germinate on it. Also I recommend overshooting each head by 2" to eliminate dry spots at each head. That was always a problem in my lawn installs that I did as a landscape contractor in California. Great site, good info. I'm building a catapillar tunnel for my space this summer.
An expert is a person who has already made all of the mistakes! I live south of where you are, where its even hotter and drier. I'm not a commercial gardener but after 3 years of gardening here I've converted my drip systems to "shrubblers" (basically, mini overhead sprayers). Even though I have an ideal soil, I've found that drip systems do not provide enough dispersion watering for germination. Summer and winter squash as well as cucumbers seem to do well with drippers and overhead watering or these plants is a killer. Tomatoes, peppers seem to prefer "disperse" watering but not from overhead. I liked your idea of watering twice daily in our hot, windy climate.
My apologies for not reading previous comments... I guess I don't have time. But, looking at your video, it seems the sprinkler height is excessive and too in the wind. I realize you're going to get that with any overhead system, it's just that I think your operation could be more efficient with a low-lying system. From what I've seen on your videos, you do lots of lettuce... Seems like your system could be a foot and a half up and still work well. And, the heads are pretty archaic. I would splurge on a different sprinkler head as others have brought up. Either way, great job on making a decision and moving forward. That's been one of the things that irk me about myself. HESITATION sucks! But it's more often a budget restriction to make changes right away.
Drip irritation is more like it...Have you given thought about overhead sprinklers in high tunnels, but so you can water each bed separately? I saw photos of Neversink farm using it. My problem is I want to use both overhead for the baby greens and drip for the crops that grow through landscape fabric. Something that I am trying to figure out now and how it works with the water pressure and getting the timing right.
Try soaker hoses, you'll get better coverage and less evaporation. I would keep the overhead sprinklers and drip so you can adjust your watering accordingly. On a real hot day where you need to cool them off fast you can use the overhead first, then move to the soakers to get a deep water, and when the temp isn't extreme drip them when they are more mature.
In Las Vegas overhead is the only way to go. Shade cloth as well. I got shit for it (evaporation blah blah blah) but I have great germination and still rocking it with lettuce as well. FYI, teflon tape should be applied thin at the first part of the thread and thick towards the end thus giving a perfect seal. Perfect vid at a perfect time as always.
Here in northern Colorado, it is dry and high. Water is expensive and in short supply, so overhead watering is just too much of a waste of water. More than half goes to evaporation. I used overhead sprinklers for years, but the cost of water has made this impractical. Drip is more work, the drip tape clogs, need replacement, etc. The bottom line for us is it saves hundreds of dollars per season in water costs and is better for Mother Earth. If I had an inexhaustible well, I'd go back to overhead tomorrow.
My water bill is super expensive. I'm concerned that if I use overhead, it'll be much higher. Does it make sense to start the season with overhead until germination, then switch to drip?
That’s how I do it. I also have clay so surface becomes like a rock in no time. I’m presently contemplating misting inside my floating covers attached to the hoops or the drip line.
How much more water does this use compared to drip? Is water not a consideration in the high desert? Central Valley California has frequent droughts and urban irrigation is severely limited. How do you cope? Water usage just not a problem?
Impact heads in wind and arid conditions? I can't say that seems like a very good choice to me. And I can't see how drip would be a major cause of dried out seedlings in clay and wind if your irrigation schedule is correct.
Agreed, windy here in Tulbagh, and the overheads are mad. When the south-easter comes up, I over irrigate one side, and under irrigate the other side. Also, water wastage.
hugelkultur for the win. I've been trenching 3' down and tossing in wood chips and logs to a little under grade (mixing in soil) then mounding the remaining soil to form a mound.
I think the best drip irrigation is just drilling 3/32 holes into 3/4 PVC pipe. Those black hoses you see with those pin-hole connections are crap. It also depends on the application. I have cedar hedges so a sprinkler would not do anything for them. Plus I find the drip system works well for tomatoes because it brings the water to the roots and not just getting the leaves wet. I also use a rain barrel collection system with a pump so I hardly have to pay for water. There is no universal way to water a garden though. I think it is all what best works for you and also cost vs. time.
Hey Curtis super cool video man your vids are always top shelf and informative. I have a couple questions about the differences with drip and overheads, hopefully you can answer them. Firstly I was wondering if you use the overhead system in the zones where you are using landscape fabric? my thinking here is that a lot of the water from the overheads would not penetrate the soil very well because of the landscape fabric and therefor a lot of water would end up pooling in the pathways. Is this something to consider? Secondly I'm curious as to how much difference there is in water usage compared to drip irrigation? Have you ran any numbers on this in the past? or is it something your not too concerned with since Canada has ample stores of fresh water? I live in a semi-arid environment in Australia and water usage is a hot topic in these parts since its quite scarce. Thanks for all your input your youtube channel is a game changer for the industry.
Hey i also forgot to ask, how even is the spray pattern of the sprinkler and does the water tear soft leaf vegetables? I have had some issues with other impact sprinklers which has made me sceptical about their suitability in the vegetable garden.
Yes, I'm ready to toss drip irrigation, I have the hoses which seem to clog in spots with my well water. The plan next year is to pin prick the hoses systematically to turn it into sprinkler hoses
I'm not understanding how sprinklers negate the problems cited of the surface drying out. Won't the soil dry out regardless of if the water is dripped on it or sprayed on it? What makes the difference?
We run an ancillary system with sprayers when we plant seeds. This wets the surface. Once the plant emerges, we turn it off and go back to the regular system.
Question: Do you find it better to use a pipe for each circuit, keeping all valves at the source, or to run control wire with less pipe, putting valves at various places in the field?
Thanks for this video! NOT using drip is almost taboo...... glad somebody said something. Seems like it would be a pain in the ass to maintain anyhow. And easy to break.
For about 2 years I installed in ground sprinkles. And there was a fair amount of drip. We'd always come back and repair ad re-repair drip. Overhead is better in many cases, and in the case of the noon watering, if the water is say 68 degrees when it comes out can reduce the local air temperature for a while giving the crops a much needed afternoon break from the heat. I would use a Toro timer rather than a home depot timer, but that's just what I worked with. Granted I haven't installed in 13 years, I'm sure there's app based timers now!
The reason I said the previous is because you did mention you get a lot of wind. Well, overhead system is going to be way too subject to the windiness. How has it worked so far and what have you done to mitigate the blowing effect?
try using a 5/16 bit with your hose clamps, since you have the driver there next to you already. those phillips screws you're using can be replaced with 5/16 head screws (probably 3/4" sheet metal screws are more than sufficient, as opposed to the longer ones you're using. I say this from experience) i know you probably aren't setting up systems all the time, but a little bit of automation goes a long way!
Hello Curtis. I´m Rui and follow you from Angola - Africa. Can you tell me what the crops you do, using the overhead sprinkler system? Thank you. All the best
Cool irregation system. I have just installed a drip irregation system in my greenhouse. In that enviroment it works great. I use the Gardena Smart System.
Is there a more recent follow up video to this? did the sprinklers do the job? Anything about this original setup you'd change? I plan to buy the book, just curious if you've changed things since then
How many labor hours do you think this saves by not having to deal with drip when turning over beds and such? Is it significant? Fortier talks about this as a reason for why he goes pretty much full sprinklers.
PE is vastly superior for this application. It can be reconfigured indefinitely. Some of the PE on my pool is over 40 years old, having been pulled from the well at my parents' old house by the previous owner. His timer does have zone valves. You can see them when he's showing the box. That's why it's a $100 timer instead of a $30 timer.
I use lawn irrigation timers and valves for my system. They are relatively inexpensive and they work well for pretty much any small system whether is low volume drip or impulse sprinklers. I like to pick up spare parts in the fall when they mark them down at the home improvement store. I installed water taps and power outlets at the same time down the middle of the garden. It allows me to rotate my crops.
Are these sprinkler heads sustainable? We've had issues with the mechanism and since then switched to micro sprinkler heads on 12mm poly tubing. The mist covers 6ft radius.
if you water early in the morning you will have less evaporation, than if you water late in the afternoon. covering your soil with straw or some sort of mulch will also help keep your water demands down, but it may be a little messier than your row covers.
oh, I know an a little late, but the timer is the same as the ones I use, the solenoid wire can be sliced and extended, I got on running good and is under ground about ten feet from the timer
You might till too much for this to apply, but soil microbes/worms will be happier if all of the soil stays moist, not just around plant roots. I know that drip saves water, but in closely planted or mulched beds using no-till, I like to keep the entire bed moist. That keeps it ready to add more plants later.
Do you think if you set your sprinklers to come on a lot more frequently (but go off sooner too) it could help suppress/deter pests without becoming waterlogged? I imagine flying things are less likely to invade if they are being bombarded by water.
im not sure i understand, if you have dry air wouldn't air water lose water in the watering process? you have soaker type drip right? what about the kind that u put holes in a solid plastic tubing? i believe that is still called drip system but it waters at the plant lvls, and it works best if its burried so the hoses don't overheat the plants. Im very new to farming and learning!
I'm confused, so please say more about drip irrigation. I thought it was the ultimate for irrigation because it delivers the water right where it's needed...especially important for arid environments. Overhead sprinkling, on the other hand, is supposedly bad, bad, bad...because you're mostly water the air (ie, facilitating wasteful evaporation). Apparently these things are not true. Please educate me. Why is overhead better (and drip worse) in your locale??? Thanks!
He explained that the soil surface in his climate dries out quickly, resulting in poor germination with drip irrigation because it does not keep the soil surface evenly moist. Overhead sprinkling covers the soil evenly with water which improves germination of seeds.
TitusLivy777 Drip irrigation is great for plants that are in pots... in field production situations where Curtis is growing Enmass, drip irrigation is simply not practical as you would require a massive network of pipes and drip nozzles to sufficiently soak the soil. Again, drip is amazing for growing deep rooted species that require at least a few square feet per plant, but not when you have a lot of plants per square foot as in the type of production Curtis is doing. From the beginning drip should have never been considered in this production set up.
It really is crop-dependent. I believe he mentioned in an earlier video this year that he would still do it for things like tomato where targeted distribution, especially under row cover with cut-outs, is still better suited for drip. Salanova, which uses the 6" spaced cut-outs, would also be good as that is also on cut-out row cover*. Drip is also preferable on steady crops where powdery mildew and pollination disturbance are concerns. Again, pretty much all solanacae and cucurbitae apply. Mulch and drip are both more competitive for these steady crops as they do not need turning over so often. So essentially, what One Green Thumb said, but I'd disagree on the scale point and say that drip networks are still manageable at this scale. In my recent experience, basil also doesn't seem to respond well to overhead. I'm using a hybrid lo-flow system where some beds are using driplines and others micro-spray for leafies. My basil is on the driplines but one row of them is receiving overspray from its neighbors. They're not dying or languishing by any stretch but they are definitely growing slower with more apparent stress discoloration on lower leaves than the rows immediately next to them. Considering they are getting more water (drip + overspray) but doing worse, this suggests that they aren't responding well to either the cooling effect or it's impairing their respiration. Same variety. start and transplant time. Curiously, their overall color and leaf shape are slightly different (more inclination to canoe-style reverse camber vs the expected lofty crowned shape). Overhead, particularly these high-flow impact heads, do brute-force the amount of water you use and there's no two ways around that. But I suspect there's actually a benefit in doing so, even at the hot no-no time of solar noon through late afternoon: the water evaporating from the leaves (and soil) is cooling them. Think about how sweat works in cooling our bodies. I'd love to see some testing on the matter but I suspect this is suppressing heat stress on cool-weather crops like arugula, spinach, and kale during the hottest time of day. Maybe it's an insignificant amount. Maybe it means you can get another cut before they bolt. One last point, on the soil type, is that I think that the clay soil is probably helping Curtis' point-distribution of water rather than harming. Do an image search for "clay vs sand infiltration pattern". One of the top results looks like two down-pointing gas flames. Given the slower infiltration and higher capilary force, clay actually allows the water to spread further from its point source before infiltrating below your seeds and roots. The deeper water in sand will lose less to evaporation, but these are shallow-rooted crops; it will be out of their reach anyways. I'd guess that Curtis is getting poor germination despite the clay soil, not because of it. * - According to manufacturer, Agrifim, though the 1/4" OD dripperline cannot span a 50' bed even on a flow-through and I haven't found 1/2" OD (which can run longer lengths from your header) tubing with 6" spacing. If anyone knows of such a thing, please let me know. Hope that helps.
Just a gardener here but I agree. Changed from drip to overhead and just way more productive on our homestead. No clogs or lost plants etc due to maintenance.
I live in the high desert. I find above ground watering useless. I have buried soaker hoses and have had great results. I do not have a farm like you, but it works very well for the home gardener. Love the channel. Great information in this and your other videos.
Right? Wasn't drip irrigation discovered in a desert climate (Israel).
Seems like wind would be a concern now since you are spraying so high. Nothing takes the place of flood irrigation which has been proven for 1000's of years in dry/high country. I've tried what you did (drip and spray) and never had really good results. Then when I planted my home garden and really thought about it, I setup the water path so that i can flood one side of the field and the water works it's way to the other end of the field and saturates the ground. It really works well here in 100 degree Texas summer.
I have installed enough underground and drip systems to 100% agree! In my opinion impact heads are by far the most cost effective way to go. I absolutely love your content!
Thank you, I live in a place with higher humidity, but I am sick of watering by hand and was looking for a watering option. Your response is a further confirmation that this is a good method.
This is AWESOME! Curtis - I used sprinklers in Central Valley Cali - 2000 ft in arid mediterranean with decomposed granite (though some folks here have the heavy clay and more). It works SO well! Awesome!! Everyone thought I was crazy haha ;)
When at scale...the details matter. Great video...overhead is my go to for larger, more uniform watering.
Hi Curtis, you are a hero of our time and so humble to share all this knowledge freely. I have your book and I am in the process of installing a 50 bed system under overhead sprinklers. I am very interested in what your source is for all the parts, connectors, adapters, couplings, tubing, and filters? also in the book I believe it says poly sprinklers, but the link is for brass. Which do you prefer? THANK YOU!!!
We live in central British Columbia, where gardening is a bit of a challenge. We use drip tape throughout the vegetable garden with great success. But.....we're setting up overhead sprinklers for use in a serious heat wave only. And overhead might be better when trying to germinate direct-sown seeds.
After you get your system set up, you can test the soak by placing a few plastic cups around the plot to see how much water collects after you run your sprinklers thru a com[;ete cycle. Good luck and grow !
Hey Curtis. I'm in the Sierras mountains near Tahoe in cali. And I'm new to this area. I was in east Oakland before hand, homesteading there. Content like this is more valuable to me than my physics degree. I've got high iron clay soil. I've got 1.5 acres I'm farming. Cyber high five on this video! You're a bada$$! Thank you so so much
I'm in Central Utah. We have the problem of desert temperatures during the day and cool sometimes cold temps at night. In the Spring (last week) and the Fall temperatures can drop 40 degrees. We also have the Rocky Mountains to the East (granite mines) and West (copper mines) of us, with those mountains narrowing to form a canyon mouth 20 miles to the North so we can get wind gusts that blow (us) over with the lovely extreme of flat prairie to the South. This makes gardening here a climate contest. Oh, and the altitude is 4774'. Having said all that; the majority of people here grow some type of garden and we're crazy about it. Many of us also take pride in preserving, canning and bottling what we grow ourselves. It's very common to see apartment balconies with tomato plants or herbs growing in containers. So thanks for sharing your knowledge, research and learning about growing and gardening. New ideas and thoughts are always appreciated, especially when accompanied by clear information and step by step instructions.
Hi Mr. Stone, thanks so much for your videos. I enjoy the homesteading and also permaculture. I've also dabbled in aquaponics and decorative fountains. I appreciate all the plumbing you have done.
Sometime I had difficulty with equalizing the water pressure throughout. How ever, if you you make a complete circle with your tubing and plug your sprinkler heads into the circle then all the water sprayers will have equal pressure. Thanks again. I look forward to learning more from your channel. Cheers.
Love the videos Curtis. You can make a big improvement to this system by using Rainbird LF series sprinkler heads. These are specifically designed for agricultural applications, unlike the residential lawn sprinklers other people are recommending... The things you'll like are very even coverage, almost impossible to clog, very durable, and longer throw on less pressure and flow compared to normal impacts. The last bit is the most important thing for your application. It looks like you're relying on residential water, which can be sketchy sometimes. The LF sprinklers will work fine over a wide variety of GPM and PSI ranges, giving you more flexibility in how you lay out these systems. The even water distribution saves water $$$ because you don't need to overwater some sections to ensure less covered areas get enough. Also, they are probably cheaper than the impacts you're buying now.
Thanks Curtis , you're bang on. I'm overhead watering for the first time this year (it's a band aid set up right now , proper install is I/P) and the difference with direct seed crops is amazing. If your doing direct seed anything it's the only way to go.
Thanks man! Setting up my irrigation here in Missoula Montana, you just answered a lot of the obstacles I was working through plus some.
I wish I had seen this years ago; clay soil and a valley that created a wind tunnel every evening - seeds just had such a poor germination rate! Got to the point only planted from starts, which got expensive until the greenhouse finally got built. Just bought your book and digital education; can't wait to get started with more information!
Great video Curtis ! Have looked into using Hunter MP Rotator Nozzles ? The nozzles rotate quietly and they can be set at different degs. Using a simple tool . 90, 180, 270, 360. Check them out. They are designed to have matched precipitation rate from the first to the last head because each nozzle is being regulated. That is why you can run more sprinklers on one system than a traditional one. You will still need to check They are designed to apply water at a slower rate to try and eliminate repeat watering due to run off which I know that you don't have worry about be do have to be concerned that the top 3" to 6, inches do not dry out. Thanks and I love all off your videos !
This is a great idea! We only get 9 inches of rain per year (if we are lucky), and I didn't want to go through setting up a drip system everywhere. I think this would work great! Thanks!
I've always questioned the benefits of a miserly watering system that doesn't feed all the soil. We live in Salt Lake City, a very low humidity, dry climate, very hot in the summer. Last year for the heck of it we ran an oscillating head sprinkler in our backyard in addition to doing some drip irrigation and I'm convinced our soil is better for it.
What I heard you say was to fit your irrigation system to your conditions. Always pros and cons that have to be weighed. There is no single solution that fits every situation. This was a solid presentation clearly explained. Thank you.
To equalize pressure at all spray heads or drip heads run a full loop on each zone. Yes more pipe but solves the problem perfectly. I did this for my drop & spray heads.
Great video and lessons learned: 1. For general sunlight protection I highly recommend - painting outdoor items to protect them from UV sunlight - regular house paint works fine. 'Spar' Polyurethane - 1 qt can $18 has powerful UV blockers can be applied directly to wood, plastic, metal - just wipe the surface, sanding is optional, can be applied with a sponge.
I use galvanized metal pipe for my garden hydrants.... it might work in your situation, and eliminate the wood stakes.
- For each hydrant (starting below grade, and working up) : Endcap, 12" nipple (in the dirt), tee (at grade), 36" nipple, then hydrant above grade. Water feeds into the tee from a pipe on the ground with a barb to male pipe thread fitting.
- I use a 6' steel bar to pound a 1" diameter hole into the clay. Push the hydrant down into the hole. Stamp around it. I pull them back out during the winter so they don't freeze.
I've heard you mention before that you water at night. People tell me not to do that, because of the increased spread of disease from transpiration droplets that appear in the very early morning on hot days/cool nights. When it's hot I tend to Irrigate at 10am and 2pm, but I have mostly tomatoes on drip. Do you water at night because you are just more interested in the water soaking into the ground well?
+Jeb Gardener it really depends on where you are. For me it works well.
Thanks Curtis, I've been thinking about a dual/ hybrid system here. We have the same Cascadian soil and I completely understand your soil crust/ germination problem. On our permaculture side we do a bunch of tricks, well water, rainwater, mulch , cover crop, etc... but on our garden side it definitely needs overhead watering.
problems i notice about your plot. no windbreaks. stop the wind less evaporation if you can get more leaf mould into the soil better and newspaper, grass clippings can act as a mulch slowing evaporation too. shade can also aid plants such as vegetables to grow better though i'm not sure what greens you are growing. so maybe a few fruit trees spaced around the plot could provide a few of these ideas?
Yeah man! I am not a fan of drip either especially for seedlings and any starter plant. Maybe effective for established plants but not for new ones. I currently hand water and chalk it up as a work out. Your sprinkler idea I like. I think I willd deploy.
Great video for me also, I live in dry windy high desert of Idaho. Will put this in my notes for our farm start up. One question, how much did your water consumption go up? Thanks a bunch!
I've tried drip so I'm really glad to see you go to overhead. I really enjoy your videos.
I use T posts. You can get sprinkler heads that are designed to fit on top the T post. There are a couple of thumb screws that you tighten to keep them from coming off. I also use quick connects to connect the water hoses. Great video.
I prefer impulse sprinklers like the ones you've installed because they're durable but if you don't like the noise you could employ single stream rotary sprinkler heads. They spray the same way but they are silently gear driven. The heads closest to my house are rotors. Sometimes they'll need internal filters cleaned which is why the rest of my system is comprised of impulse sprinklers like yours.
You should run two heads on one zone. When you see that much water mist you are wasting water.
I recommend using Hunter MPRotators 3000, 90 - 210 degrees distribution.
Check your water pressure, you may be able to run three rotators
The number of comments you've received just since yesterday should give you a good idea of just how popular you are. I'm surprised, though, at the number of people who have no idea who you are or what you're trying to do. I for one couldn't be happier that you've ditched drip irrigation (I had my epiphany about twenty years ago). There seem to be so few people who grapple with climates like ours, which is one of the reasons why I benefit so much from both your successes and failures (I love these vloggers who toss a bunch of seeds into their gardens, let the rain take care of the rest, then emerge a few weeks later to a food jungle of every imaginable fruit and vegetable, all weed- and pest-free). You understand that what's best for the plant matters far more than your water bill, particularly since you're in the business of providing plants. I think you're going to be extremely happy with what you've done here.
Incidentally, about the clay soil. If driving that hammer begins to rattle your teeth, consider renting an auger from Home Depot. Saves time and joints.
HI! I'm wondering why did you choose that height? The reason I ask is because it seems like there would be more air evaporation with the higher distance to the ground. Do you find this to be the case or is there a risk/reward scenario that I'm not thinking of (maybe ease of adjustment?). Just curious. Any time we've done 'overhead' we've done from the ground an adjustable circular pattern head so you minimize the misting/evap. I'm also curious about watering mid-day. I use to live in an area with hard clay and high heat (100+) and we'd get leaf burn if we watered overhead mid-day.
Oh man you should look up opensprinkler. it's awesome. I've been using it for a couple years. can build it yourself if you are handy that way. next year I will be hooking up soil moisture sensors to run it off of for more efficient watering. one experiment I'm trying this year is running a zone of.misters that run for 2 minutes every 2 hours during the day to keep greens and spinach from bolting
First Last can u use shade cloth for bolting?
Why didn't you go for a mulch system with your drip irrigation? Mulch layers would have prevented winds drying your top soil off and retained moisture in surface layers, as well as adding humus which would have enrighed your soil. More sustainable don't you think than spraying water (a scarce resource in high-montane/desert climates) on a timer. Just my two cents.
First off he is in Canada the worlds most fresh water rich country on the planet. Second on the scale he is doing in multiple lawns and areas mulch is a pain. The best option for him there is overhead because the drip dose not provide enough water for the climate.
There is nothing scarce about water. It's one of the most abundant resources on earth, and it's constantly being recycled and replenished in nature.
I use a mulch with drip in my raised beds in southern California, and I can tell you it is a lot of work raking up the mulch and adding fresh mulch. While I am only gardening in 3 small raised beds, I would say that it probably would take an unreasonably long amount of time to do a mulch for larger plots because you can not turn over the mulch into the soil , as it will deprive the plants of nitrogen while the wood chips are composting in the soil. So, you have to rake up the mulch before replanting every time, and then compost the spent raked up wood chip/soil mixture . and add more compost and new wood chips to the plot again after planting new crops.
David Barlow tell us how to mulch a bed of densely planted arugula or baby spinach... most of Curtis's crops are not compatible with mulch. plus he needs overhead to keep the greens cool during heat, mulch doesn't do that.
Are you irrigating though the row cover with the sprinkler?
Hey small fix up but I noticed the straps you're using to strap the hose onto the 2x4 are indoor straps. Eventually it will rust with the humidity and break off. Outdoor straps are normally brown.
If you want to avoid buying outdoor straps because they are expensive, just wrap electrical tape around the strap you have right now
Dry, windy, clay ... sounds like my farm on Maui! I actually just installed a lot of drip this week for some beets, cukes, squash, peas ... haven't had rain in months!
No rain in months.< WUUUT
Looks so simple when you explain it. That takes the mystery out of it. How will those posts impact planting with the paper boxes? Many thanks.
I really like those impact sprinkler head options with the diff size nozzle...i currently have orbit gear drives...and find them way too costly to replace as i have 10 on my property. very cool for my lawn and future veg garden.
I love the way the sprinklers sound.
I did like the idea of the Drip(not directly effected by sun(certainly depends on soil conditions)), but I certainly can see the "time saver"(permanent(essentially)) that the timed spray system would introduce.
and I've tried subirrigation and soaker hoses which i haven't got to work well, and settled on pvc in ground to 2 different locations for sets of orbit valves then 1/2" poly with those little coloured spray heads in it to cover areas I need. I have some of the valves terminating in garden hose thread so I hook up some regular garden hose and regular sprinklers. it's good and I can change easily. ps. hi from vernon :)
Hello. Your system is really amazing but I wonder how you get that powerful water pressure on your sprinklers
I have just used sprinklers. One of those tripod sprinklers covers all 6 of my raised beds. Hook it up once and done. I run it for several minutes each day and done. Never had any issues with diseases or anything like that. I feel like those issues are overblown. What do people do when it rains every day down south? Put umbrellas over their beds?
I guess it depends on your environment but getting the plants wet here causes all kinds of problems. Definitely a simpler system. We use pvc drilled, never clogs. Zone 10b.
fungus and pests ?
Really glad you did this, I could not find the model numbers in the Kindle edition of your book.
I have a 20X80 garden and use two ratcheting sprinklers and water in the am before the sun hits it so it has time for the leaves to dry.
I’m going to try mulch no-dig gardening . I live in the desert also with clay soil.
Awesome advice. I think my DT gets too hot when I don't run it and burns the little seedlings sometimes. Going to get into a little overhead irrigation myself...
THANK you! This was very enlightening.
I, too, have heavy soil - silt, not clay - in an arid climate. I'm smack dab in the Blue Hole on the northern Olympic Peninsula in WA.
YOu might still have the same problem with overhead. the hot air and wind will evaporate much of the moisture. I was trying to grow in clay soil and the water had a hard time soaking into the earth. It would just evaporate away. I mixed the soil 50/50 with potting soil and it soaks in much better now. But you have to do it on a plant by plant basis or the cost of potting soil gets very high.
Love what you do. 2 things with this though
1) Teflon tape sucks bad.... use good pipe dope (T-2)
2) Curious on how you resolve new weed issues
Have you experinced that the plants get sunburned when watering at noon? I avoid misting my tomatoes and chilli in the daytime. The waterdroplets on the leaves turn into mini magnifying lenses
+Morten Skogly not yet. With peppers it happens but not greens.
I felt the same, but starting to swing back again. Failed dripper points, and uneven pressure and distribution was my hate!
Also clay here, big time.
Now that I have a dripper pipe that can clean/unclog itself and evenly spreads water at 0.9 bars only, I am sold again. Overhead is just KILLING me with weed issues. Couch/Bermuda/Kweek loves overhead watering :(
Just a data point: I do the same kind of thing with T posts, often with the posts on double duty holding fence or training wire in addition to sprinkler mounting.
Just 3 days ago bought a 2 zone timer and poly from Home Depot. kinda relieved to see that you use the same product. I have really good soil, and humidity. I am installing drip and it should be fine. Have you ever used 1/4" drip line from HD for smaller plots?
Hi Curtis,
Have you ever thought about plating Rapunzel Tomatoes? These are super great and taste really good. They grow quite big but they yield a lot of tomatoes. You're looking at about 30+ cherry tomatoes per truss. Only issue for me is that I get over 100 cherry tomatoes all at once and I have to give them out to friends haha, but I can see myself making serious cash with these.
Hopefully you will read this comment :) Love your videos.
If you choose not to bury your distribution lines you may want to place something protective over them to minimize damage to them and tripping. I'd like to suggest used carpet as a possibility. I have used carpet between my 30" beds for the last 5 years. Hula hoes take care of the weeds that DO germinate on it. Also I recommend overshooting each head by 2" to eliminate dry spots at each head. That was always a problem in my lawn installs that I did as a landscape contractor in California. Great site, good info. I'm building a catapillar tunnel for my space this summer.
An expert is a person who has already made all of the mistakes! I live south of where you are, where its even hotter and drier. I'm not a commercial gardener but after 3 years of gardening here I've converted my drip systems to "shrubblers" (basically, mini overhead sprayers). Even though I have an ideal soil, I've found that drip systems do not provide enough dispersion watering for germination. Summer and winter squash as well as cucumbers seem to do well with drippers and overhead watering or these plants is a killer. Tomatoes, peppers seem to prefer "disperse" watering but not from overhead.
I liked your idea of watering twice daily in our hot, windy climate.
My apologies for not reading previous comments... I guess I don't have time. But, looking at your video, it seems the sprinkler height is excessive and too in the wind. I realize you're going to get that with any overhead system, it's just that I think your operation could be more efficient with a low-lying system. From what I've seen on your videos, you do lots of lettuce... Seems like your system could be a foot and a half up and still work well. And, the heads are pretty archaic. I would splurge on a different sprinkler head as others have brought up. Either way, great job on making a decision and moving forward. That's been one of the things that irk me about myself. HESITATION sucks! But it's more often a budget restriction to make changes right away.
Which sprinkler head to you recommend?
Drip irritation is more like it...Have you given thought about overhead sprinklers in high tunnels, but so you can water each bed separately? I saw photos of Neversink farm using it. My problem is I want to use both overhead for the baby greens and drip for the crops that grow through landscape fabric. Something that I am trying to figure out now and how it works with the water pressure and getting the timing right.
Try soaker hoses, you'll get better coverage and less evaporation. I would keep the overhead sprinklers and drip so you can adjust your watering accordingly. On a real hot day where you need to cool them off fast you can use the overhead first, then move to the soakers to get a deep water, and when the temp isn't extreme drip them when they are more mature.
Clay soil + soaker hose = mud caked to hose + no flow
In Las Vegas overhead is the only way to go. Shade cloth as well. I got shit for it (evaporation blah blah blah) but I have great germination and still rocking it with lettuce as well.
FYI, teflon tape should be applied thin at the first part of the thread and thick towards the end thus giving a perfect seal.
Perfect vid at a perfect time as always.
Here in northern Colorado, it is dry and high. Water is expensive and in short supply, so overhead watering is just too much of a waste of water. More than half goes to evaporation. I used overhead sprinklers for years, but the cost of water has made this impractical. Drip is more work, the drip tape clogs, need replacement, etc. The bottom line for us is it saves hundreds of dollars per season in water costs and is better for Mother Earth. If I had an inexhaustible well, I'd go back to overhead tomorrow.
My water bill is super expensive. I'm concerned that if I use overhead, it'll be much higher. Does it make sense to start the season with overhead until germination, then switch to drip?
That’s how I do it. I also have clay so surface becomes like a rock in no time. I’m presently contemplating misting inside my floating covers attached to the hoops or the drip line.
Very nice video. You explain a rather detailed system in clear and simple language. Great job on the field >and< producing this video. Thanks.
Could I do a 20' X 20' garden with just a regular impact sprinkler?
How much more water does this use compared to drip? Is water not a consideration in the high desert? Central Valley California has frequent droughts and urban irrigation is severely limited. How do you cope? Water usage just not a problem?
Impact heads in wind and arid conditions? I can't say that seems like a very good choice to me. And I can't see how drip would be a major cause of dried out seedlings in clay and wind if your irrigation schedule is correct.
Agreed, windy here in Tulbagh, and the overheads are mad. When the south-easter comes up, I over irrigate one side, and under irrigate the other side. Also, water wastage.
There's never a one size fits all. :)
hugelkultur for the win. I've been trenching 3' down and tossing in wood chips and logs to a little under grade (mixing in soil) then mounding the remaining soil to form a mound.
THE BEST!!!! advice I have heard so far. You rock.
I think the best drip irrigation is just drilling 3/32 holes into 3/4 PVC pipe. Those black hoses you see with those pin-hole connections are crap. It also depends on the application. I have cedar hedges so a sprinkler would not do anything for them. Plus I find the drip system works well for tomatoes because it brings the water to the roots and not just getting the leaves wet. I also use a rain barrel collection system with a pump so I hardly have to pay for water.
There is no universal way to water a garden though. I think it is all what best works for you and also cost vs. time.
Hey Curtis super cool video man your vids are always top shelf and informative. I have a couple questions about the differences with drip and overheads, hopefully you can answer them.
Firstly I was wondering if you use the overhead system in the zones where you are using landscape fabric? my thinking here is that a lot of the water from the overheads would not penetrate the soil very well because of the landscape fabric and therefor a lot of water would end up pooling in the pathways. Is this something to consider?
Secondly I'm curious as to how much difference there is in water usage compared to drip irrigation? Have you ran any numbers on this in the past? or is it something your not too concerned with since Canada has ample stores of fresh water? I live in a semi-arid environment in Australia and water usage is a hot topic in these parts since its quite scarce.
Thanks for all your input your youtube channel is a game changer for the industry.
Your video is really good and really appreciate this demonstration.
Smart work and I love the sound of sprinklers too
Hey i also forgot to ask, how even is the spray pattern of the sprinkler and does the water tear soft leaf vegetables? I have had some issues with other impact sprinklers which has made me sceptical about their suitability in the vegetable garden.
If noise ever becomes a problem, Hunter PGS rotors will do the same job quietly.
Would not the Drip system be good to leave in your beds to allow you to add fertilizer or food to your crops or the soil?
Yes, I'm ready to toss drip irrigation, I have the hoses which seem to clog in spots with my well water. The plan next year is to pin prick the hoses systematically to turn it into sprinkler hoses
Better have a pressure regulator or your pin pricks will turn into one gusher and no drips.
Really enjoyed your video! Thanks for sharing. Will help me when setting up the watering in my garden. Nice!
I'm not understanding how sprinklers negate the problems cited of the surface drying out. Won't the soil dry out regardless of if the water is dripped on it or sprayed on it? What makes the difference?
Aelanna64 , Drip irrigation moistens the soil in an upside down cone shape underground. The surface area is not all wetted.
We run an ancillary system with sprayers when we plant seeds. This wets the surface. Once the plant emerges, we turn it off and go back to the regular system.
Question: Do you find it better to use a pipe for each circuit, keeping all valves at the source, or to run control wire with less pipe, putting valves at various places in the field?
Thanks for this video! NOT using drip is almost taboo...... glad somebody said something. Seems like it would be a pain in the ass to maintain anyhow. And easy to break.
For about 2 years I installed in ground sprinkles. And there was a fair amount of drip. We'd always come back and repair ad re-repair drip. Overhead is better in many cases, and in the case of the noon watering, if the water is say 68 degrees when it comes out can reduce the local air temperature for a while giving the crops a much needed afternoon break from the heat. I would use a Toro timer rather than a home depot timer, but that's just what I worked with. Granted I haven't installed in 13 years, I'm sure there's app based timers now!
The reason I said the previous is because you did mention you get a lot of wind. Well, overhead system is going to be way too subject to the windiness. How has it worked so far and what have you done to mitigate the blowing effect?
try using a 5/16 bit with your hose clamps, since you have the driver there next to you already. those phillips screws you're using can be replaced with 5/16 head screws (probably 3/4" sheet metal screws are more than sufficient, as opposed to the longer ones you're using. I say this from experience)
i know you probably aren't setting up systems all the time, but a little bit of automation goes a long way!
Hello Curtis. I´m Rui and follow you from Angola - Africa. Can you tell me what the crops you do, using the overhead sprinkler system? Thank you. All the best
So glad to see this now before i set up my whole farm with drip
Cool irregation system. I have just installed a drip irregation system in my greenhouse. In that enviroment it works great. I use the Gardena Smart System.
Is there a more recent follow up video to this? did the sprinklers do the job? Anything about this original setup you'd change? I plan to buy the book, just curious if you've changed things since then
How many labor hours do you think this saves by not having to deal with drip when turning over beds and such? Is it significant? Fortier talks about this as a reason for why he goes pretty much full sprinklers.
+Ideias Radicais probably adds 5 minutes per bed per rotation.
he calls it "drip irritation"..:-P
Why not just run pvc pipe and run zones with electric lines like a lawn sprinkler. Timers are cheap and way less hassle I would think
PE is vastly superior for this application. It can be reconfigured indefinitely. Some of the PE on my pool is over 40 years old, having been pulled from the well at my parents' old house by the previous owner. His timer does have zone valves. You can see them when he's showing the box. That's why it's a $100 timer instead of a $30 timer.
I use lawn irrigation timers and valves for my system. They are relatively inexpensive and they work well for pretty much any small system whether is low volume drip or impulse sprinklers. I like to pick up spare parts in the fall when they mark them down at the home improvement store. I installed water taps and power outlets at the same time down the middle of the garden. It allows me to rotate my crops.
Our climate and soil conditions are similar to yours. Thanks for sharing
Are these sprinkler heads sustainable? We've had issues with the mechanism and since then switched to micro sprinkler heads on 12mm poly tubing. The mist covers 6ft radius.
if you water early in the morning you will have less evaporation, than if you water late in the afternoon. covering your soil with straw or some sort of mulch will also help keep your water demands down, but it may be a little messier than your row covers.
What are the best plants for overhead watering?
What about using the overhead watering during pre germination and a few weeks after germination. Then run the drip irrigation?
oh, I know an a little late, but the timer is the same as the ones I use, the solenoid wire can be sliced and extended, I got on running good and is under ground about ten feet from the timer
You might till too much for this to apply, but soil microbes/worms will be happier if all of the soil stays moist, not just around plant roots. I know that drip saves water, but in closely planted or mulched beds using no-till, I like to keep the entire bed moist. That keeps it ready to add more plants later.
Do you think if you set your sprinklers to come on a lot more frequently (but go off sooner too) it could help suppress/deter pests without becoming waterlogged? I imagine flying things are less likely to invade if they are being bombarded by water.
im not sure i understand, if you have dry air wouldn't air water lose water in the watering process? you have soaker type drip right? what about the kind that u put holes in a solid plastic tubing? i believe that is still called drip system but it waters at the plant lvls, and it works best if its burried so the hoses don't overheat the plants. Im very new to farming and learning!
do u still use this system? really curious
I'm confused, so please say more about drip irrigation. I thought it was the ultimate for irrigation because it delivers the water right where it's needed...especially important for arid environments. Overhead sprinkling, on the other hand, is supposedly bad, bad, bad...because you're mostly water the air (ie, facilitating wasteful evaporation). Apparently these things are not true. Please educate me. Why is overhead better (and drip worse) in your locale??? Thanks!
He explained that the soil surface in his climate dries out quickly, resulting in poor germination with drip irrigation because it does not keep the soil surface evenly moist. Overhead sprinkling covers the soil evenly with water which improves germination of seeds.
TitusLivy777 Drip irrigation is great for plants that are in pots... in field production situations where Curtis is growing Enmass, drip irrigation is simply not practical as you would require a massive network of pipes and drip nozzles to sufficiently soak the soil. Again, drip is amazing for growing deep rooted species that require at least a few square feet per plant, but not when you have a lot of plants per square foot as in the type of production Curtis is doing. From the beginning drip should have never been considered in this production set up.
It really is crop-dependent. I believe he mentioned in an earlier video this year that he would still do it for things like tomato where targeted distribution, especially under row cover with cut-outs, is still better suited for drip. Salanova, which uses the 6" spaced cut-outs, would also be good as that is also on cut-out row cover*. Drip is also preferable on steady crops where powdery mildew and pollination disturbance are concerns. Again, pretty much all solanacae and cucurbitae apply. Mulch and drip are both more competitive for these steady crops as they do not need turning over so often. So essentially, what One Green Thumb said, but I'd disagree on the scale point and say that drip networks are still manageable at this scale.
In my recent experience, basil also doesn't seem to respond well to overhead. I'm using a hybrid lo-flow system where some beds are using driplines and others micro-spray for leafies. My basil is on the driplines but one row of them is receiving overspray from its neighbors. They're not dying or languishing by any stretch but they are definitely growing slower with more apparent stress discoloration on lower leaves than the rows immediately next to them. Considering they are getting more water (drip + overspray) but doing worse, this suggests that they aren't responding well to either the cooling effect or it's impairing their respiration. Same variety. start and transplant time. Curiously, their overall color and leaf shape are slightly different (more inclination to canoe-style reverse camber vs the expected lofty crowned shape).
Overhead, particularly these high-flow impact heads, do brute-force the amount of water you use and there's no two ways around that. But I suspect there's actually a benefit in doing so, even at the hot no-no time of solar noon through late afternoon: the water evaporating from the leaves (and soil) is cooling them. Think about how sweat works in cooling our bodies. I'd love to see some testing on the matter but I suspect this is suppressing heat stress on cool-weather crops like arugula, spinach, and kale during the hottest time of day. Maybe it's an insignificant amount. Maybe it means you can get another cut before they bolt.
One last point, on the soil type, is that I think that the clay soil is probably helping Curtis' point-distribution of water rather than harming. Do an image search for "clay vs sand infiltration pattern". One of the top results looks like two down-pointing gas flames. Given the slower infiltration and higher capilary force, clay actually allows the water to spread further from its point source before infiltrating below your seeds and roots. The deeper water in sand will lose less to evaporation, but these are shallow-rooted crops; it will be out of their reach anyways. I'd guess that Curtis is getting poor germination despite the clay soil, not because of it.
* - According to manufacturer, Agrifim, though the 1/4" OD dripperline cannot span a 50' bed even on a flow-through and I haven't found 1/2" OD (which can run longer lengths from your header) tubing with 6" spacing. If anyone knows of such a thing, please let me know.
Hope that helps.
drip depot