Irrigation

“The impact of these supply restrictions already has been felt by thousands of growers and agricultural water users in San Diego County. About 5,000 customers who subscribe to a discount water program run by the MWD had those supplies cut by 30 percent as of January 1, 2008. Growers are stumping trees or finding other ways to cut production to comply with these restrictions.”[3]

San Diego has been in a water crisis for years, The world is reaching one as only 2 percent of the World’s water is safe to drink from and irrigate with.[1] 67 percent of this 2 percent is used for irrigation. The San Diego Water Authority has a "20 gallon challenge"[2] A challenge to save 20 gallons of water every day. A plan to save a little water that can add up to a lot over time. One of the ways to save water is to irrigate at night and early mornings. Another way to conserve is adjusting the water controller. Also watering your plants in multiple cycles allowing the water soaks up, loosing less water to evaporation. This water crisis has not really affected the average person; more farmers are really loosing money to this. The point of the “20 gallon challenge” is to save a little here and there which will help out in the long run. Even though this is implemented in San Diego, This method could be used globally.

Farmers, need more water then the average person needs a day to grow the crops you eat and are struggling to find new ways to conserve due to lack of resources. Yet every human needs water every day to survive. Just drinking water alone the average person is recommended to drink 4 pints of water a day.[4] This is why it is very important to conserve water because when we run out, that’s it! An example of where it is running out is the Ogallala Aquifer a major source of water that spans approximately 225,000 square miles located in the Great Plains. [5]

By watering at night and in the early morning less water is lost to evaporation.[6] This is because when the sun is shining it turns the liquid form of water and vaporizes it, leaving the area that needs to be watered and heads for the sun. When the sun isn’t out, this is not a problem. A easy solution to this world wide problem.

“Evaporation from the oceans accounts for 80% of the water delivered as precipitation, with the balance occurring on land, inland waters and plant surfaces.”[7]

It is hard sometimes to water a garden at a certain time. With the busy lifestyles that are very apparent in today's modern living, for some people making the time to water in the morning or at night when the sun isn’t out can be a challenge. This is why the second way that the “20 gallon challenge” suggests having a controlled water system is a very good idea. This makes it easier on the farmer and home gardener. The controller is preset to go off at a certain time. If once a month the controller is reset to go off to make sure it goes off when it is dark, this also helps keep water in the garden instead of evaporating. Lowes, Home Depot, and other hardware stores and gardens is a website along with many that sell this type of equipment. They sell for fairly cheap and the time that is saved, along with the water that is being saved is worth it!

One more idea is watering in cycles. By watering in cycles, the water can be absorbed in the soil. The reason that this is a good thing to do is because soil is a mixture of many different particles. This includes sand and clay. Sand does not absorb water allowing it to seep down to the deeper roots. Clay however absorbs water very well and if the soil has a lot of clay in the upper part of the soil, then the roots down further in the ground will not get the amount of water that they need. So by watering in cycles, this allows water to be absorbed then seep down and then that’s when it can be watered again. Another reason that watering in cycles is a good idea is because of runoff. This is also due to having a soil mixture with a lot of clay in it. If the soil is watered with a large amount of water at one time, then the water will absorb the first layer and then the rest will have no where else to go so it will slide off and run down the garden to places not intended to be watered.

In conclusion, I have been doing a lot of work in a garden and setting up the irrigation system for this garden. I know that it seems like a lot of work or even a burden to change a lifestyle but I know from personal experience that setting up irrigation with PVC mainlines and a drip system along with a water timer, that even though the work was a lot in the beginning, now all that I have to do is flip a switch and water is supplied to the entire garden!

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[1] "HowStuffWorks "How much water is there on Earth?"" HowStuffWorks - Learn How Everything Works! Web. 16 Oct. 2009. http://www.howstuffworks.com/question157.htm.

[2] 20 Gallon Challenge. Web. 16 Oct. 2009. http://www.20gallonchallenge.com/.

[3] "Why should I conserve water?" 20 Gallon Challenge. Web. 16 Oct. 2009. http://www.20gallonchallenge.com/whatisit.html#whyconserve.

[4] "Benefits of Drinking Water - How much water should I drink a day - Water." Natural Nutrition - Natural Health Products. Web. 16 Oct. 2009. http://www.nutritionfriend.com/Benefits-of-Drinking-Water/I11.htm.
[5] "The Ogallala Aquifer Depletion." IITAP Home Page. Donald Wilhite. Web. 01 Nov. 2009. http://www.iitap.iastate.edu/gccourse/issues/society/ogallala/ogallala.html.

[6] 20 Gallon Challenge. Web. 16 Oct. 2009. http://www.20gallonchallenge.com/residenttips.html.

[7] "Evaporation." Tech Alive Home Page. Web. 16 Oct. 2009. .