Turn the Garden On

One of my first major projects here was to install a drip irrigation system in the garden. It is just the latest additions to the elegant drip system that J created, which inconspicuously runs throughout the property to water sapling aspens, cottonwoods, and grapevines.


Putting together the system reminded me of playing with Knex or BRIO as a kid, a whole system of tubes, connectors, sprinklers, and drip heads that fit together with an internal logic. It was all very elaborate compared to the drip I was used to from Paradise Valley, just black tape with little holes punched in it. REALLY elaborate compared to the acequia, which we still haven't gotten to work. And it was expensive, all the little plastic pieces five dollars for a bag of eight.

But it works. Over the course of two weeks I rigged the garden, bed by bed. Now, turning one valve and pushing one button lets me water the whole thing.


Or, almost the whole thing. The strawberry plants, planted in one bed at random, defied the logic of the drip and got nothing. I figured I would water them by hand, but once watering everything else became so easy I found myself less inclined to drag the hose back there and give them the moisture they needed. They have definitely dried out. The cabbage's layout, too, was too finicky to irrigate, so it suffered the same fate.



Besides showcasing my laziness, their slow demise demonstrates the importance of planting around the irrigation system, not irrigating around a planting system. To that end, we always punched holes in the tubing at regular intervals (based on a now-important piece of pipe), not individually tailored to the layout whichever plants. This is just one case of preparing for future seasons, perhaps at the expense of the current crop, since the holes don't quite line up with existing squash plants, beets, etc.

Drip irrigation is super convenient, and uses water efficiently. It has also caused me to actually go into the garden less. Before the drip I would go out in the cool of the morning and water, mostly just standing in stillness while a bed filled up. I did incidental weeding, stretched, and noticed the small changes in the vegetables and weeds. Things grow slowly! And it took time to see these things. Noticing is hard.


PS - I turned on the sprinklers for this photo op, but only a fool would actually water when the sun's out. I hear you lose 80% of your water that way.