...but I have been for years. (I won't say how many years because my oldest daughter may not appreciate it) Anyway, my Mother's Day was great, I hope yours was, too.
I have three great kids. What I like about them (besides the fact that they're my kids) is their sense of independence. All three think for themselves and refuse to go along with popular opinion just because it's popular. I know that doesn't make a smooth path through life, but it does make for a good conscience toward oneself.
Ok, before I get too philosophical on a Monday morning, I got my beans planted over the weekend and had time to putter around (my favorite hobby!) in between visits from the kids and a little work on the computer.
I've decided to go drip irrigation one more this year and use some 2 liter plastic bottles to water with. I'll bury them near the plants after poking some small holes in the sides of them. I can fill them with water and they should slowly release it to the plant's roots. That's what I should have been doing all along because we tend to have hot, dry spells during growing season here. It should save quite a bit on the water bill.
I've looked into rain barrels, too, but haven't sprung for one yet. It seems like a big initial expense and I'm not sure it would pay - especially if we have very little rain, like the last few years.
We live in SW Florida, where it is incredibly dry. My husband made a rain barrel out of a plastic food grade barrel with removable top band. He used weed control cloth to cover the top secured with the band, made a plastic sleeve, using a food grade plastic bag, for the downspout (cut to about 4 inches above the barrel). The total cost was probably $10. Yes, we have to dip for water as it does not have a spout. In the past 2 months we have only had 2 rainfalls, however, we do collect whatever condensation drips off the roof. The basic charge for water/sewer is so expensive, $62., per month so we would NEVER use tap water for our plants. We are under such severe water restrictions the irrigation system is not being used by our community. Anyway, gist of this is you do not have to purchase one of the expensive rainbarrels - ours looks good, works well and was very inexpensive.
ReplyDeleteThat's a really good idea. I have a couple of 5 gallon buckets I thought of just putting under the rain spout. I'd have to cut the spout, though, to make them fit, then I'd have to leave them there all the time. Our water isn't that expensive - yet, but if this drought doesn't break soon, it will be.
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