Irrigation at Open Farms

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By Ben Penner
When the hot weather hits it is critical that plants in thegarden (not to mention the people working in the garden!) get enough timely moisture to grow properly for an abundantharvest.   At Open Farms we irrigate primarily using twodifferent systems; drip irrigation (preferred) and sprinkler irrigation when necessary.
Sprinkler irrigation has the benefit of covering a wide areaquickly, but some water never gets to the plant because the water is loftedhigh in the air with some of it evaporating before it gets to the soil.  Additional water is lost because it covers theentire area rather than precisely down the row. We primarily use our sprinklers on crops where it would be prohibitiveto irrigate each and every row (lettuce mix, for example).

Drip irrigation takes some time and expertise to install,but once it is installed it puts the water exactly where the plants need it.  We use “T-Tape” also known as “Drip Tape”which is flexible oval-shaped plastic tubing with slits cut every 12”.  When connected to a water source it emits ½gallon of water every minute per 100’ of tape. If that sounds just a bit technical, well, it is, but basically it getsthe water out there, and that is what a farmer or gardener wants.