Drip Irrigation is the New Normal
I design and install drip irrigation systems.
(I convert existing popup sprinkler systems to drip, too!)
Popup sprinklers are fantastic for irrigating lawns,
but they're often rubbish for ornamental beds.
Popup Sprinklers
- About 50% of the water doesn’t reach the roots.
- All of the soil surface is moistened.
- Leaves & stems are regularly, unnecessarily wet.
- As plants grow or are added sprinklers now spray
into a wall of leaves, leaving soil behind dry.
- Trenching
Waste
Weeds
Fungus
Drought
Roots
Drip Irrigation
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Over 90% of the water reaches the roots. More if under mulch or 1-2" of soil.
-
Relatively little soil surface is moistened.
-
Only the rain wets leaves and stems.
-
Drip is easily changed, reduced or expanded. No new trenching necessary.
Drought-stressed plants lose their ability to fend off pests & disease.
Water will only get more expensive. SPU has nearly enacted mandatory water restrictions for a few summers now. Summers are drier, hotter & longer. Winter rains come all at once with weeks of drought between. Those rains don't saturate our soils like they used to. Snow packs melt too fast, resulting in our resevoirs being drained for safety with insufficient remaining snowpack. Demand only increases. Think California.
Pacific NW natives? Natives are awesome, but they're not a quick water or maintenance fix. Natives did not evolve for our new weather patterns. Frankly, natives did not evolve for back yards or cities. Their mortality rate in the wild has skyrocketed. I'm not saying 'no' to natives. I'm just saying they are not, and never were, an answer to reducing supplemental water.
Drought tolerant plants? That's a good plan, but you need to manage your expectations. There are water-caveats. Until they're established (months to years), or until they're the size you want (more years) or if you require their color to 'pop', or you want bloom reliably then it takes more water than you think.