Gardening in McRorie is a wonderful gift! The veggies and the people are fantastic: Maura; Dave and Jeanny (spl?); Shamal, Bob, Bruce, Blake, Mary and Ku, John and his wife, Jessica, Jeffery, Joel, Nicole, and you - I am sure I have forgotten someone - but truly an amazing group of thoughtful people!
Ok, so a bit about water:
Working with/and on behalf of water for ~30 years has taught me a couple things, 1) folks rarely miss the water until the well runs dry, and 2) it's running dry.
If you can smell water in an agricultural environment, it is being wasted.
Fan, whirl, pop-up, pivot, and pulse ("slap") sprinklers waste a lot of water. If water is dispersed throught the air, and especially if it falls atop the leaves and stems, over 95% evaporates before reaching the roots.
If you water by hand, deliver water slowly and at the base and-or drip line of the plant. The most water-conserving methods for our gardens are dew collectors; soaker hoses; drip lines and micro-drip systems. For examples of soaker and micro-drips see John's garden (or mine); which brings me to the 'invitation'.
One late afternoon, Saturday or Sunday of June or [poss] early-July, I would be pleased to demonstrate the fit, form and function, installation and maintenance of inexpensive, automated soaker and micro-drip systems. If we have 10 certain attendees, we will have the "class". Those that attend, will receive a 50 ft of soaker hose with fittings. Please let me know.
Thanks to everyone for gardening and being who you are!
Peace,
Ron