DIY drip irrigation for your dacha

When spring arrives, gardening is in full swing, requiring the help of summer residents. Many face pressing time and labor constraints, often with insufficient water for irrigation, electricity, and so on. That's why summer residents have come up with DIY drip irrigation systems for their dachas. Watch the video, which clearly demonstrates how to set up this simple system on your own plot and enjoy a bountiful harvest.
See also: Planting tomato seedlings in 2016.

You could certainly buy an automatic irrigation system, but it's expensive for any gardener, and you never know what will grow in the garden. Therefore, you can build your own drip irrigation system using drippers and hoses. Watch the video for a detailed explanation of how to do it.

Advantages of drip irrigation

The principle is simple and straightforward: water from the tank gradually flows by gravity through hoses and drip tapes, reaching the roots directly, which is exactly what the plants need. This is ideal for both greenhouse and open-ground plantings. It saves water, prevents the soil from drying out, and prevents diseases from developing because water doesn't get on the leaves and stems or run off into the beds. Liquid fertilizer can be added to the system, and it will immediately flow with the water under the plants. It's very convenient. And considering you can fill a barrel in advance and drive to the city, leaving this self-watering system at your dacha, it becomes even more convenient and practical. Even in extreme heat, you won't have to worry about your poor plants—whether they're dying from the heat.

Flaws

The system does have some minor drawbacks, however. A homemade irrigation system still needs to be monitored—the drippers can become clogged, causing puddles, soil erosion, and root rot. The drippers need to be periodically purged and flushed; insects can get into the ducts and clog them, and the holes shouldn't be enlarged to prevent pressure drops. But nothing is perfect, nothing without its drawbacks, and yet this system has far more advantages.
This is interesting: planting cucumbers in 5-liter bottles.

Drip irrigation is simpler - from bottles

If you don't want to spend money on hoses, faucets, and drippers, and your garden is small, you can easily set up a drip irrigation system using readily available materials—plastic bottles. This is especially true if last summer was hot, you bought a lot of water or beer, and you've got a lot of empty containers. They'll be put to great use—we'll set them up as a drip irrigation system. While it's not as effective as a system, it has its advantages: the materials are free, the device is simple, and it's completely hassle-free—you just set it up once and only need to top it up periodically. It also uses water sparingly, so the benefits of such a system are obvious. Especially if you have water and electricity shortages at your dacha, this is a fantastic solution for your plants, saving both water and electricity while delivering adequate, timely moisture right to the roots.

How to organize "bottle irrigation"

If your plot isn't large and you only visit it occasionally, plastic bottles can be a real lifesaver. How can you use them for watering? It's very simple.

Take a bottle (usually a 1.5-2 liter container), cut off the bottom, poke a few holes in the lid or sides, bury the bottle more than halfway in the soil between your cucumber or tomato plants, add water, and that's it—the water will slowly seep through the holes and reach the plant's roots. It won't spread across the surface, feeding weeds or spreading viruses, and it won't create a crust with cracks like you'd get from regular watering (which you need to loosen every time). So, you save labor, water, and time. It's good for both you and your plants.

But the water in the bottles will last for 2-3 days, so plan your visit to the dacha to ensure your harvest doesn't dry out. This is especially true for cucumbers and peppers, which crave moisture and without it, suffocate, wilt, and can die.

Another option is to bury the bottle upside down with the lid facing up. Then, poke holes in the bottom of the bottle with a nail—this is easy to do with a hot nail—and then add water through the lid. This method covers a larger area than the upside-down method. Orient the placement according to your site, the proximity of your plantings, and whichever works best for you.
Look at the picture to see how irrigation occurs between two bushes and it will become clear that this is very convenient and beneficial for the plants.

If the plants' roots are very close to the surface and there's no point in burying the bottle deep, you can also arrange for watering from hanging bottles.
Just don't hang them too high, so that water drops falling from above don't wash away the roots. It's best to mulch them lightly with straw or plant leaves, so that any moisture falling from the bottles will fall directly under the mulch and be protected from the sun's rays. The moisture doesn't evaporate; the water just drips gently, the roots receive a steady, gradual supply of moisture, and there's no overwatering—an excellent watering option for a busy homeowner or gardener who isn't often in the garden.
See also: Cucumbers in a polycarbonate greenhouse: planting and care.