The owners of summer cottages take on an unbearable burden, because they have to look after not only the vegetable garden, but also the greenhouse, garden, lawn and flower beds.
To maintain them in the appropriate condition, you need to spend a lot of time and effort. After all, every object needs constant control, as a result of which many different activities have to be carried out. Watering is especially time consuming. But even this work can be simplified if you automate it.
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Characteristics of autowatering systems
There are many advantages to this solution: the gardener not only gets more free time, but can also save on water consumption, which will only benefit the plants, as it allows you to increase yields and improve the appearance of plants.
However, success in this matter largely depends on how often and how evenly irrigation is carried out. Realizing the usefulness of such an invention, many gardeners turn to specialized companies offering automatic irrigation systems.
However, summer residents who have "golden hands" often decide to make automatic watering with their own hands. The most actual use of automatic irrigation systems for those owners who own large suburban areas.
Those of them who had experience in using automatic irrigation systems note many pluses at autowatering:
- Selects the watering time for which you can set the desired operating interval.
- Correct installation of the system gives confidence that after the next watering, no crust forms on the ground, and this will provide the plant root system with a sufficient amount of oxygen.
- With the correct determination of the locations of the irrigation contours, the summer resident can be sure that even the most inaccessible areas will be provided with moisture.
Among all the advantages that a humidification system provides, the main thing is that when using an automatic irrigation system, water consumption is reduced.
After all, thanks to her, water is delivered directly to the roots of plants, so the summer resident does not have to pour water onto empty plots of land. Competent organization of watering plants allows several times increase the yield, which can be noticed already in the first year of using this system.
Disadvantages of an automatic irrigation system
However, such irrigation systems cannot be called ideal due to the presence of certain disadvantages. Of course, you will save money if you decide to carry out all the work yourself.
However, you still need to spend certain funds to purchase special equipment and materials... The cost of individual components, as a rule, is lower than ready-made automatic irrigation systems.
However, it is possible to correctly assemble these elements only if the person has experience as a mechanic and an electrician.
A serious problem can be for a summer resident malfunctions plumbing system or its complete absence on the site.But here, too, a solution can be found - to repair the water supply system, and if such a possibility is not considered, then alternative water sources can be used.
Autowatering: types and possibilities
A lot of systems for organizing automatic irrigation in the country are offered on sale today, which you can make yourself. All of them differ in the purposes of their application: drip irrigation; sprinkling; subsoil irrigation.
Drip irrigation... The drip irrigation system is beneficial in that it allows you to achieve a minimum water consumption. Polypropylene and plastic pipes, rubber hoses, which are installed between rows of flowers, plants or beds, are used as the main elements for its manufacture.
They are stacked as possible closer to landingsto ensure maximum water flow to the root system when used. To supply water to the ground, special droppers are provided, which are built-in along the entire length of the pipe.
As a result, with this method of watering, the leaves and stems remain dry, and this is undoubtedly a plus for the plants, since they will not get burned in the sun.
The minimum water consumption when using an automatic drip irrigation system is ensured due to the fact that water flows directly to the irrigation site.
As a result, it is not spent on irrigation of other unnecessary territory. All this only goes into the hands of the summer resident, since this prolongs working life system, and also allows you to save on water consumption.
Sprinkling
Automatic irrigation systems that work on the principle of sprinkling are also often used by many summer residents. When used, moisture reaches the plants splash, covering evenly the entire area.
The effectiveness of this system is ensured due to the fact that not only the soil receives a sufficient amount of moisture, but also manages to maintain an optimal level of air humidity. In such conditions, plants are provided optimal conditions for development, therefore, they easily restore leaf turgor in extreme heat.
But when using this method of watering, the summer resident will have constantly monitor so that moisture goes into the ground. Uncontrolled use of the method can lead to the fact that after sufficient moisture in the soil, puddles will begin to appear on its surface, and after they dry out, an earthen crust will appear.
As a result, much less oxygen will be supplied to the plants. You also need to consider that it is best to use this method. in the evening or early in the morningwhen the sun is not so hot. This will help protect the plants from burns.
This method of watering attracts the attention of many gardeners and by the fact that it allows, along with watering carry out liquid feeding... Because of this feature, such automatic irrigation systems are most widely used in lawn care.
Subsoil irrigation
A less common option is the subsoil irrigation method, which also differs great complexity in implementation... Most likely, an ordinary summer resident will not be able to make it on his own.
After all, this system refers to specialized options for automatic irrigation, which is used to irrigate specific plantings or ornamental trees. With this method, moisture is supplied in the same way as with drip irrigation systems.
The difference is the use pipes with fine perforation, ensuring the flow of water into the soil, which are buried in close proximity to the plants.
Therefore, if this irrigation system is properly organized, then all plants will be provided with moisture in sufficient quantity, while the soil surface will remain dry all the time.
This, in turn, excludes the appearance of an earthen crust, which will allow to provide the root system of plants and oxygen in sufficient quantities throughout the summer season.
When thinking about which version of the automatic irrigation system to choose for your site, it is very useful first examine information for which plants it is most effective to use a particular irrigation method.
For the maintenance of flowers, trees and lawns, it is recommended to use sprinklers. In this case, water will be supplied to the irrigation site from special sprinklers.
Irrigation with drip systems is most effective when caring for shrubs, flower beds, alpine slides and hedges. You can also use them when growing seedlings in greenhouses, as well as when caring for plants in the garden.
Installation of a drip system - what is needed for this
Only those owners who have a water supply on the site will be able to use the automatic irrigation system. In its absence, for these purposes, you can adapt any capacity, which will have to be installed at a height of at least 1.5 meters above the ground.
If you cannot fulfill this condition, and you do not have the opportunity to install them with your own hands, however, there is a small reservoir next to you, then you can turn it alternative to plumbing.
A standard automatic irrigation system is equipped with the following main components:
- drip tape;
- pressure regulator;
- controller;
- distribution pipe and various fittings.
The drip tape is usually designed as thin wall PVC pipe, which begins to round up the moment water flows through it.
From the inside to her droppers are connectedequidistant from each other. When determining this interval, the type of plants that need irrigation are taken into account.
In cases where water comes from a city water supply, it may be necessary pressure regulator... If water flows with drops, then this can lead to deformation of the pipe, and when the pressure rises, there is a danger of its rupture.
The controller is made in the form of an electronic unit, and its main task is to provide automatic adjustment of the system operation.
This element greatly simplifies the operation of automatic irrigation systems, since thanks to the available programs, it is possible to determine the optimal time intervals and automate the inclusion process systems at a specified time without requiring human intervention.
In cases where the do-it-yourself automatic irrigation system must be made for irrigating several areas, say, flower beds, located at a certain distance from each other, then to use the system you will need distribution pipe.
The owner can choose one of the following laying methods - above the ground or below it. As a rule, pipes with a cross section of 3.2 cm or more are used for such tasks.
During assembly of automatic irrigation systems as a connecting element fittings are used... They are necessary for the installation of each site, from the water supply point to the irrigation point.
Automatic irrigation system device
It is possible to automate the irrigation system for a summer cottage using a controller that can operate from a network or batteries. It is not very unprofitable to use the last energy supply option due to the limited resource of work.
Therefore, it is advisable to purchase a usedmore expensive modelsDC powered. It is recommended to install them in places where special conditions will be provided for them. This can be, for example, a basement or a barn.
The main thing is that they are as close to the supply tap or container with water as possible. If we talk about the technical equipment of the installation site, then here you need to install special back box, which will contain all valves and electrical appliances.
However, not all summer residents are ready to spend a lot of money on the purchase of an expensive system to water flowers in the country. In this case, you can save money and make it yourself. Then you have to turn off the supply tap at the right time.
As a result, the water will begin to flow by gravity, however, this will require some work:
- A rather large tank is required, which must be installed at a height of at least 1.5-2 meters above the ground.
- The automation system will be replaced by the law of physics, when water from a container begins to flow under the influence of pressure.
- In cases where it is difficult to organize the flow of water by gravity, you can install a pressure regulator.
The automatic irrigation system can be equipped certain control deviceswith which you can set the schedule for automatic watering of plants throughout the summer season.
So, you will save yourself from unnecessary time-consuming work, as a result of which you do not have to travel to the country every day to water the beds and flower beds. Instead, you just need to come to your site 1-2 times a week to make sure that the system is working properly and that there is enough water in the tanks or that there are no problems with the water supply system.
Every summer resident knows from personal experience how difficult it is to maintain a personal plot. After all, you have to solve many issues, including regularly watering garden crops.
However, you can save yourself from this time-consuming work if you organize your own watering system. There are several such systems, and each has its own merits.
Therefore, in order not to be mistaken with the choice, you need to decide on which plants you need an irrigation system for watering. After that, if you have certain skills, you will need to purchase the necessary components and assemble an autowatering system in the country with their own hands for operation.
Valentin Sergeev
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