1. Simple.
Nothing elaborate or exotic. We use materials and methods that are time tested in garden stores. Let someone else test out the new stuff. We want a tried and true system that is economical and does the job
2. Efficient
The plan will get the plants watered using the least amount of resources; energy, water consumption, and labor. We want to place the water where it belongs, directly on the plants, not on curbs and sidewalks. We do not want a bunch of labor dollars to get this accomplished
3. Easily repaired and maintained
We can keep the system operating with minimum maintenance and repair with little assistance from outside sources. Calling an irrigation contractor can run up the expenses very fast. We need a system that we can repair and maintain ourselves.
4. Versatile
Often plant varieties change and the location of plants change. We want a system that can be moved and adapted on a moments notice with little effort.
Our plan begins with a hookup to the water sources available. (See detail A). At green garden gates, we have both city water (3) and our own well system (2) that was available on the property when we purchased the land. We have piped the well to a main connection point near the street (10). Next, we contracted to have the community install a water supply to also feed to this connection point. This city hookup is generally installed in an underground manhole (1). If there is a malfunction in our private well, there is a sensor along our piping (7) that shifts the water flow from the well to the public water. In our case and in most cases this city water is metered and much more costly to us than our well, so public water is only used when the well becomes disabled for some reason.
Here are a few tips in connecting to city water. Most municipalities charge what is called a “capitalization fee” or a “cap fee” for new public water use. It is based on the size of pipe that is delivered to the property and can cost thousands of dollars to the owner just for the hookup. There is also the construction of the hookup which may or may not be included in the “cap fee”. The fee can skyrocket when the choice is between a three inch pipe and a five inch pipe, so be careful to choose the pipe size needed, but also understand that if you undersize, it will cost more money to tear it all up again and put in a larger pipe. We have chosen a three inch pipe to be delivered since city water will only be used for emergencies. Here is another little trick to watch out for. Some cities attach a sewer fee to the water bill, assuming that all water goes to a sewer. That can run up a big bill with nearly all the water use just going for plants and not down a toilet into the sewer. To avoid this, be sure a separate meter is installed for irrigation water and domestic water and be certain that a sewer charge is not tacked onto the irrigation water. In some cases, if you have only one water meter, you will have to negociate the percentage of water that is used for toilets and what is used for irrigation. Watch out for this!
Near the connection hub, we have installed two ball valves (4-5) that will cut off the entire irrigation water system in the property. The city will have their own cut off valve for their water system in their connection, but we want the ability to close off our water and the city water without relying on others to do this.
We use two valves to insure a cut off if one ball valve should fail. It is money well spent if a huge water break occurs in the system. These ball valves are heavy duty brass and steel. When a three inch pipe breaks, there is a hell of a lot of water shooting high into the air and flooding everything. We need to get it cut off fast.
Next, we installed a connection (6) so the entire irrigation system can be “blown out” and drained of water for the winter. Also we have threaded opening (9) that will released any remaining water to still remains in the system
This is a standard connection used by irrigation companies. We contract this blowout rather than buying the expensive equipment to get this done. Our staff turns the water on in the spring, but we rely on a professional to blow the system out for the winter. Be sure that the piping from (1) is sloped to (9) to drain any excess water.
From the connection point of the two water sources we attach to a three inch white PVC irrigation pipe (8).
We use schedule 20 PVC white pipe for the large “mother line” and lighter gauge more economical PVC white pipe for the smaller lines. White PVC pipe is economical to purchase at many locations (it is often on sale), it is easy to use, fits properly, and is very versatile.
We loop a large capacity pipe around the entire outer edge of our property #B. This and the other pipes are ABOVE GROUND.
Ok, Lets talk about placing the irrigation pipe in the ground or keeping it above the ground. Yes, it is certainly neat and pretty to bury the lines out of sight. But it never fails; every spring and I mean every spring in most garden centers right in the heat of season with hundreds of customers shopping, there is a backhoe or a bunch of employees with shovels wallowing around in the mud and dirt, digging holes right in the display areas trying to find and repair broken pipes, bad valves or cut electrical wires damaged from the previous winter. You can count on this disruption every season. Owners who bury lines and connections will tell you fairytales about the need to bury; the pipes and connections will get destroyed by the sun and elements if they sit above ground or customers will trip and fall over the pipes. That is all nonsense. Sure, the sun will do some damage over the years, but that is easily fixed if the pipes and connections are easy to get at. Sure, customers will trip over lines if the owner is not careful to avoid these problems in the design of the system. We have taken into account the problems of above ground lines and equipment in our plan.
Next we built a second and third loop #C and #D of pipes inside the first major loop. So, the main line #B is the “mother line” delivering the full amount and pressure from the connection point. Lines #C and #D are smaller pipes. Next, there are interconnecting smaller pipes that weave through the courtyard area to feed water to each display bin.
Here are two things to remember in irrigation. First, more water pressure will be available if the pipes continue to get smaller as the water travels to the plants. Second, if the pipes are looped, the water pressure will remain even and constant rather than running a pipe out to a dead end. We will size down from the three inch mother line to two inches to one inch pipe or even one-half inch line at the point of delivery to the plants.
We have pre-installed hand operated ball valve cut-offs #F along the looped lines and a number of threaded “T” connections along the looped lines.
These cut offs are really handy if there is a break or malfunction in one of the lines. You can isolate the problem and cut the water to that area and still continue watering in other areas of the store. They are cheap to install. We use the plastic ball valves for this purpose because they are used rarely. The “T’s” have been installed in numerous locations along the looped lines so we can connect a feeder line from these points to avoid cutting frequently into the main loops.
We will be using a rather sophisiticated timer and simple durable valves system to allow water to the lines in the store. The electrical wires to the valves will be installed and taped to the looped pipes above ground.
There will be some sun damage by keeping the electrical wire above ground, but it can be easily located and repaired. Also, we can add more electrical wire easily as we expand the system.
There are many places in the system (#E) where short parts of pipes will have to be placed underground for the safety and convenience of our customers; under driving paths, gates and walkways. (See the yellow pipes in the lines on the diagram)
These pipes need to be given maximum protection from breakage. We sheath the irrigation pipe in a larger pipe that is heavy duty PVC or steel. We also run the pipe clean, avoiding any connections that would be sheathed in the outer protection pipe. We want no breaks in this underground piping or glue coming loose in a connection underground. Some of the sheathes for the live irrigation pipe are oversized to accommodate several pipes to run water spikets directly from the looped lines. We can then cover the pipe and sheathes so they can be walked or driven over.
Next, we establish “irrigation zones” for watering the plants and assigned an electrical valve and wire it along the looped lines to control the particular zones. We then install the main timer for the zones.
The valves can be operated by hand or remotely operated. We can use a remote instrument so we do not have to run all over the site turning valves off and or to spot water or to fix a problem with a line. Likewise, the entire timer, which is installed in a weather protected convenient place, can be operated remotely from anywhere in the site. This technology saves much time and effort. One feature of the timer is that it will sense water flow running through the pipes. If the timer notes that the system is not watering anywhere on the site or an excessive amount of water is running through the lines, it signals a audible alarm and calls the manager by telephone that a break in the line is possible. We believe that will help in detecting breaks for example, in the middle of the night.
Now that the lines and valves and timer are in place, it is time to install the watering heads for the plants. We use only oscillating heads for large areas of irrigation.
Throw away the impulse irrigation heads. Half the water ends up evaporating in the air and never gets to the plants. It is a foolish way to waste money. The plants do not get watered well and everything you want dry gets wet. Oscillating heads give an even penetrating delivery of water that can be adjusted for flow, volume and direction.
We use common “shrub heads on plastic riser pipe to water smaller areas.
Shrub heads and plastic pipe risers are cheap and easy to find in any hardware store. They are adaptable and adjustable. When you start purchasing the parts for the shrub heads and all the irrigation heads and hardware, decided on a brand and stick with the brand..We will choose between Rainbird or Nelson irrigation supplies
We attach the risers and irrigation heads to the looped and feeder pipes.
Let’s talk about glue and threading…..In the large pipe connections as in the “T’s” from the main mother line, we will thread the pipe, using Teflon tape for a leak proof fit. We also will thread and Teflon the connections from the spray heads to the riser pipes and the riser pipes to the main lines. However, in most other places, including the fitting together of the main PVC looped lines, we will glue the pipe using “purple primer” and a water resistant “blue glue”. It is more labor saving to cut the pipe and glue in a slip joint when changing or repairing connections, rather than fooling around with threading connections. Using glue is fast and durable and you can be up and running in less than thirty minutes! (Forget about the manufacturer wanting set up time for an hour or more on these smaller connections)
What about drip irrigation at your stores?
Yes, we use drip irrigation quite extensively. Primarily, we use it for all of our hanging baskets. Overhead along the rafters the walkway houses, the connector houses and some in the gazebos, we run the feeder lines from nearest irrigation loops. We have installed a sand filter for the drip lines to keep them clean of debris. We have installed connection points in all our plant display areas where a permanent or temporary Dosmatic fertilizer feeders can pump food into the lines of all of our plant material at green garden gates or through the drip lines and onto the hanging baskets.
dosmatic.com
It is amazing to see the results of the performance of hanging baskets with regular feedings by a Dosmatic in the retail garden stores. The money spent for these Dosmatics brings huge rewards in customer satisfaction of our plants.
Keeping the tubes operating is an ongoing maintenance issues. We assign our section leaders in each area to monitor the operation of these drip lines and direct one employee to repair the lines as needed.
What about spot watering with spikets and hoses?
Yes, we have attached and installed live spikets on the live irrigation piping before the valves that operate the particular zones. In some cases, we have used a separate line run directly off the looped lines to keep them live, if it is easier to do.
Now we have a complete, versatile, economical irrigation system ready to go which can be easily repaired, replaced and maintained by our staff and give years of service. Be smart about irrigation. You will be living with these plant watering decisions for a long time
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