Building the Ideal Drip Irrigation System for Your Raised Garden Beds

Raised garden beds are an effective method of gardening as they minimise the need to till, amend and weed. These structures are quick to assemble and easy to maintain. They can even be designed to water themselves via drip irrigation.

If you plan to garden in raised beds at your Perth home, there is no other watering system that will save you time and improve your results as effectively as drip irrigation. The time and money you spend building an elaborate drip irrigation system will be returned many times over. Here’s how to maximise the benefits of building such a system for your raised garden:

Use quality tubing

Among the many tubing products on the market, in-line emitter tubing is arguably the most durable and reliable to use. These come with pre-installed emitters at every 6 inches, and are fairly easy to use. Simply roll off the tubing from the coil, cut it into the desired lengths, and install in your beds. The 6-inch spacing between emitters allows for a more uniform distribution of water on either side of the tubing.

Plan your system

When planning your drip irrigation system, have the exact number of lines running on every bed. Too few and you’ll have undesirable water coverage gaps; too much and you’ll waste water. On 4-feet wide beds, an allotment of three lines per bed usually suffices, with one running across the middle of the bed and one on either side. For 3-feet wide beds, two lines 18 inches apart are usually adequate.

Connect the tubes

Installing in-line emitter tubing is pretty basic. For the ideal tube length, make sure to cut your tubes 12 inches short of the total length of your beds then allow 6 inches of space at either end. Connect the drip lines running the length of your beds at one end using solid feeder line and plastic connectors that insert into the tubing and lock themselves into place. The solid feeder line should lead back to your faucet.

Now for your garden bed material…

With the drip irrigation system out of the way, it’s time to consider where you’ll put your plants, i.e. the beds themselves. Practically any type of material can be used as a raised garden bed, but if you want quality, reliability and affordability, you can’t go wrong with the corrugated iron products sold by Perth manufacturers like Rainfill Tanks and Curved Roofing Supplies.

Sources:

Drip Irrigation for Raised Bed Gardens, Mother Earth News

YOUR GUIDE TO GOOD GARDEN WATERING, Irrigation Australia