So, after a few weeks of dry weather, the usual hosepipe bans commence. Although the first hosepipe ban in the Dwr Cymru area doesn't impact us, it did remind me to get my emergency extra folding water butts out and fill them, and to use a transfer barrel to move my main water butts 30 metres from where they were to where I now need them, and top them all off.
I am in the fortunate position of being able to fill water butts from the stream, and doing it now before flow decreases any further was worthwhile. I did fill a couple with the hose too, as my stream pump outlet hose needs lengthening. (We are on a water meter so prefer to use the stream- still would never use anything like as much as is permitted to abstract without a permit). The stream flow hasn't decreased much as yet, but the ground is finally drying up somewhat here so it probably will do over the next week or so.
My newly-planted trees would in any case still be permitted to be watered under the usual Dwr Cymru hosepipe ban regulations. Which makes holding enough water that bit easier.
So how much is enough?
I had a conversation with a friend in Sussex a few months ago, who was proudly telling me he'd got a water butt so he could water his lovely big garden if they had a hosepipe ban. It was one 250L butt. I took him through how many watering-cans full needed, how often, and so how long a 250L butt would last- max 10 days in his case. Whereas hosepipe bans typically last for weeks or months. By the time we finished going through this, he was talking in terms of a couple of IBCs, not one water butt.
With all my storage full, I can hold best part of 3000 litres (a good half of that is the temporary collapsible type of barrels, thankfully I bought half a dozen during the winter when they were cheap). The butts are located in various places, near to where I would use the water. That will give me at least 25 full waterings for my polytunnels (all food plants), my outdoor fruit & veg beds plus a couple of rasied beds where I have recently planted some ornamentals. In the peak of hot weather I am watering every other day, but that comes down to twice a week if it's not so hot. So, I can manage minimum 7 weeks from the day any hosepipe ban comes into effect, and probably more like 3 months- as we get further into autumn, the amount of watering needed will decrease.
So, how much water do you need to keep your fruit/veg beds alive, and how much do you store?
Over the winter I shall be getting some IBCs for the polytunnels and veg beds, and fixing them up with internal pumps. Fill them from the stream when it's in full flow. Then my decent barrels can be moved and connected to the downpipes for the ornamentals. The plans I have to change the polytunnel beds over the winter will also support automatic irrigation- which the IBCs will provide water for.
GC
I am in the fortunate position of being able to fill water butts from the stream, and doing it now before flow decreases any further was worthwhile. I did fill a couple with the hose too, as my stream pump outlet hose needs lengthening. (We are on a water meter so prefer to use the stream- still would never use anything like as much as is permitted to abstract without a permit). The stream flow hasn't decreased much as yet, but the ground is finally drying up somewhat here so it probably will do over the next week or so.
My newly-planted trees would in any case still be permitted to be watered under the usual Dwr Cymru hosepipe ban regulations. Which makes holding enough water that bit easier.
So how much is enough?
I had a conversation with a friend in Sussex a few months ago, who was proudly telling me he'd got a water butt so he could water his lovely big garden if they had a hosepipe ban. It was one 250L butt. I took him through how many watering-cans full needed, how often, and so how long a 250L butt would last- max 10 days in his case. Whereas hosepipe bans typically last for weeks or months. By the time we finished going through this, he was talking in terms of a couple of IBCs, not one water butt.
With all my storage full, I can hold best part of 3000 litres (a good half of that is the temporary collapsible type of barrels, thankfully I bought half a dozen during the winter when they were cheap). The butts are located in various places, near to where I would use the water. That will give me at least 25 full waterings for my polytunnels (all food plants), my outdoor fruit & veg beds plus a couple of rasied beds where I have recently planted some ornamentals. In the peak of hot weather I am watering every other day, but that comes down to twice a week if it's not so hot. So, I can manage minimum 7 weeks from the day any hosepipe ban comes into effect, and probably more like 3 months- as we get further into autumn, the amount of watering needed will decrease.
So, how much water do you need to keep your fruit/veg beds alive, and how much do you store?
Over the winter I shall be getting some IBCs for the polytunnels and veg beds, and fixing them up with internal pumps. Fill them from the stream when it's in full flow. Then my decent barrels can be moved and connected to the downpipes for the ornamentals. The plans I have to change the polytunnel beds over the winter will also support automatic irrigation- which the IBCs will provide water for.
GC
