Looking for ideal slow watering system

[Banjopick]

Hello,

I am going to try my hand at some fruit trees in 5b about 90 minutes from our primary residence. The issue is that we don't have a well yet on the property where the trees are to go and I am looking for a good watering system that will enable me to be away for a week or so at a time. Might be a hard situation to start fruit trees but I'm going to give it a go. Most drip systems seem to have 4-8 hour rates, I'm wondering about something on the order of days to a week or two. SteadySpring seems like the right idea, but I'm not sure if this is too good to be true (soak it, put it under the mulch, and it will water over ~30 days, AND replenish with rain??... ). Any ideas appreciated.

Thank you!

 

[TNTreeHugger]

Hello,

I am going to try my hand at some fruit trees in 5b about 90 minutes from our primary residence. The issue is that we don't have a well yet on the property where the trees are to go and I am looking for a good watering system that will enable me to be away for a week or so at a time. Might be a hard situation to start fruit trees but I'm going to give it a go. Most drip systems seem to have 4-8 hour rates, I'm wondering about something on the order of days to a week or two. SteadySpring seems like the right idea, but I'm not sure if this is too good to be true (soak it, put it under the mulch, and it will water over ~30 days, AND replenish with rain??... ). Any ideas appreciated.

Thank you!

TreeDiaper​

https://www.treediaper.com/
I just read the FAQ page on this product and it does sounds interesting... although they say the product is "agricultural grade" but not bio-degradable.

How many trees do you plan on planting?

 

[Seachaser]

Poor man’s drip irrigation.
5 gallon bucket with a 3/16 inch hole drilled in bottom. Fill before you leave.

 

[TNTreeHugger]

Poor man’s drip irrigation.
5 gallon bucket with a 3/16 inch hole drilled in bottom. Fill before you leave.

I thought about that, too, but how long does it take for 5 gal to run dry?
Then what do you use to fill them up if there is no water on the property?

 

[lone wolf]

I thought about that, too, but how long does it take for 5 gal to run dry?
Then what do you use to fill them up if there is no water on the property?

A truck!

 

[TNTreeHugger]

A truck!

A pick-up with one or two of these in the back

That's why I asked how many trees.

 

[Banjopick]

TreeDiaper​

https://www.treediaper.com/
I just read the FAQ page on this product and it does sounds interesting... although they say the product is "agricultural grade" but not bio-degradable.

How many trees do you plan on planting?

Treediaper. Neat! Hadn’t seen it, thanks for sharing. Actually looks decent, I suspect similar technology to the steadyspring.

Two pear and one peach, just starting out so there’s much to learn.

Thanks for the input!

 

[TNTreeHugger]

Treediaper. Neat! Hadn’t seen it, thanks for sharing. Actually looks decent, I suspect similar technology to the steadyspring.

Two pear and one peach, just starting out so there’s much to learn.

Thanks for the input!

Same company makes both. They said they added the "Steady Spring" name for those who were put off by the "diaper" name.
If it's just two trees, the Steady Spring might be your best option.

 

[Banjopick]

Poor man’s drip irrigation.
5 gallon bucket with a 3/16 inch hole drilled in bottom. Fill before you leave.

This won’t last longer than a few hours and I may be away for a week or so, but thanks for the input

 

[Banjopick]

A pick-up with one or two of these in the back
View attachment 1173583
That's why I asked how many trees.

Yeah that would be an option, it’s a bit much of an investment for where I am but that would certainly do the trick.

Fortunately there is a lake nearby so the water source isn’t the issue, it’s the slow release to enable a week or so between visits. These chemical based water donut things (treediaper, steadyspring)seem to be the way to go for now. I’ll report back how it goes!

Thanks all.

 

[Banjopick]

Same company makes both. They said they added the "Steady Spring" name for those who were put off by the "diaper" name.
If it's just two trees, the Steady Spring might be your best option.

Oh no way! Didn’t realize that but it makes sense. Nice/helpful observation!

 

[TNTreeHugger]

Oh no way! Didn’t realize that but it makes sense. Nice/helpful observation!

I read pretty much everything on their web site - really looking for evidence that these things are earth-friendly and don't contain toxic particles. They say they are safe.

 

[Chucksta]

"peristaltic pump".

For example...

https://www.huiyupumps.com/products...75Gaa-mtdsp7dZ6_fZpzDQ1BpL0nud7RoCpssQAvD_BwE

Smaller ones are pretty much infinitely adjustable from a drop every few seconds, to ounces a second. As they are an electrically controlled pump, you might need a solar panel, a battery, and inverter. The are also available in 12 volt models..

https://www.amazon.ca/s?k=peristalt...fix=peristaltic+pump,aps,236&ref=nb_sb_noss_1

Main advantage of one of these, is that you could stick one end of it in a 1,000 liter tote, and it'd work for as long as there was water in the tote. Connect the output to whatever you designed. It can use fish tank airline, and associated splitters and valves. The only specialised tubing is in the head of the unit, in the rollers.

 

[Banjopick]

"peristaltic pump".

For example...

https://www.huiyupumps.com/products...75Gaa-mtdsp7dZ6_fZpzDQ1BpL0nud7RoCpssQAvD_BwE

Smaller ones are pretty much infinitely adjustable from a drop every few seconds, to ounces a second. As they are an electrically controlled pump, you might need a solar panel, a battery, and inverter. The are also available in 12 volt models..

https://www.amazon.ca/s?k=peristaltic+pump&crid=2RBG5LTCUKTMX&sprefix=peristaltic+pump,aps,236&ref=nb_sb_noss_1

Main advantage of one of these, is that you could stick one end of it in a 1,000 liter tote, and it'd work for as long as there was water in the tote. Connect the output to whatever you designed. It can use fish tank airline, and associated splitters and valves. The only specialised tubing is in the head of the unit, in the rollers.

now THAT is cool!!!

Probably a bit too high tech for this application, and the whole kit needs to live outdoors, but the peristaltic pump is an AWESOME idea!

Thanks for the thought, much obliged

 

[Chucksta]

now THAT is cool!!!

Probably a bit too high tech for this application, and the whole kit needs to live outdoors, but the peristaltic pump is an AWESOME idea!

Thanks for the thought, much obliged

Not that high tech really.. 12 volt deep cycle battery would run a small one for days and days.

The pump itself is small.. maybe 6 inches by 6 inches.. if that.. It'd probably be a good idea to keep it dry, but a used Tupperware container and some sealant would do the job.

Peristaltic pump, associated "fish hose " plumbing, cheesy plastic valves.. Maybe $75.00 .. tops..

Of course .. that doesn't include a deep cycle battery, or solar charger. But .. if you have to go up every now and then to re-fill the water reservoir, you could just swap out the battery, or charge it from your vehicle with jumper cables. Peristaltic pumps are not energy hogs.. not by a long shot.

It's not a high tech solution.. It's a right tech solution ,

I used these when I had a 200 gallon salt water fish tank, to pump water at a controlled rate into a calcium reactor.. Amazingly easy to dial in..

It'd be a couple of hours to set the flow rate and valves.. Then it'd just be re load the water, and charge the battery, if you didn't go solar.

 

[Banjopick]

OK now this idea is plum stuck in my head. I'm not that handy but I am going to figure this out! Thank you!! I think... : )

 

[Chucksta]

OK now this idea is plum stuck in my head. I'm not that handy but I am going to figure this out! Thank you!! I think... : )

You don't need to be particularly handy. It's pretty much a "plug and play" system. As a peristaltic pumps precisely controls the output, and make sure to get a variable one, it's straight math to figure out how long the water source will last.. IE, 1,000 liter poly tank ( 250 (ish) U.S. gallons). 20 gallons a day.. 12 days .. Only thing to remember is that they don't do much in the way of pressure. You'd have to spend a bit of time to tweak the out puts and their drip valves to dial it in.. Maybe a couple of hours..

 

[SCMtnHaul]

If there is an elevated portion of your property you could just use gravity to pressurize your system. Yes there are many great 12v and solar options but an elevated water source is very nice because gravity doesn't fail. I've actually had great luck with the battery powered timer/valve combos such as the ones made by Orbit. Just replace the batteries once a month to be safe. I know people who just bought rechargeable batts so they can swap 'em without having to buy more. Remember that if your water has a lot of particulate in it that valves can get stuck open--maybe not fully open but still letting a trickle out.

 

[Banjopick]

My cup runneth over, truly. I'm a newb to this forum and am feeling the love!

I started to dig into the peristaltic pump strategy, even purchased one to play with flow rates, but I must say that the gravity approach just proposed by SCMthHaul is the front runner - a very elegant solution that requires the same tank (looking at a 65G horizontal leg tank from TSC) but just some valves and hose, no pumps/power (though as mentioned I purchased a pump, had a 12V deep cycle battery picked out and was about to move onto an inverter and tube splitters). I can put the tank on blocks and put a mesh over the tank mouth to filter out particulate from the lake water (thank you lake). I'll get decent quality valves to provide precise flow.

If my trees take, I'll send y'all some preserves in about 5 years!

 

[SCMtnHaul]

My cup runneth over, truly. I'm a newb to this forum and am feeling the love!

I started to dig into the peristaltic pump strategy, even purchased one to play with flow rates, but I must say that the gravity approach just proposed by SCMthHaul is the front runner - a very elegant solution that requires the same tank (looking at a 65G horizontal leg tank from TSC) but just some valves and hose, no pumps/power (though as mentioned I purchased a pump, had a 12V deep cycle battery picked out and was about to move onto an inverter and tube splitters). I can put the tank on blocks and put a mesh over the tank mouth to filter out particulate from the lake water (thank you lake). I'll get decent quality valves to provide precise flow.

If my trees take, I'll send y'all some preserves in about 5 years!

Just a quick tip on gravity feed. Pressure= .433 x (elevation gain). So for every 2.5 feet in height you gain 1psi. People get pretty creative with ways to elevate their tanks. Carefully stacked cinder blocks are one option--just remember a 275gal tank is dang heavy when full. If your plants are roughly at the same level you could opt to use non-pressure compensating drippers as I am pretty sure they offer better flow rates at low psi, but if your trees are at dramatically different elevations then the lowest ones would get the lion's share of water. The pressure compensating drippers, well, they compensate for different pressure and only release their rated GPH flow but have a higher minimum pressure for proper functioning.