As you know, tomatoes are very sensitive to a lack of moisture in the soil, and we cannot always water them often. There is a way to provide them with water. Plastic bottles help us with this.

Using a hole punch, we make several holes in them along the entire length and on all sides and bury them in the ground near each bush so that the neck protrudes slightly from the soil. Before leaving, if you need to be away for several days, fill the bottles with water and screw on the cap so that it does not evaporate. Water seeping through the holes slowly penetrates the soil, and your tomatoes are always watered.

Four ways to water your garden

The simplest option. U plastic bottle cut off the bottom and make 4-6 holes in the cork. They should be medium so that the water does not flow out quickly. It is better to make small holes first and then enlarge them if necessary. Stepping 15-20 cm away from the stem, dig a hole 10-15 cm deep. Insert the bottle into it with the lid down at an angle of 30-45 degrees. As you walk along the beds, fill your bottles with water. Through the holes in the lids it will slowly flow directly to the roots.

Drip irrigation. To do this, hang the bottles with the bottom cut off, the cork down, slightly to the side of the plants. Pour in water and adjust its flow by unscrewing the cap. The advantage of this method is that the water in bottles warms up well, which is beneficial for plants. To prevent drops from eroding the soil, place small, postcard-sized pieces of film.

Another interesting way watering - a hose with holes along its entire length.

Dig it into the garden bed, having previously made holes near the required ones. garden plants, connect to the tap. Moisture will flow directly to the roots, without being spent on evaporation. Moreover, the soil around the weeds will remain dry. And this will negatively affect their growth.

Over the past 5 - 6 years I have tried various devices for such watering.

Another way to make watering your garden beds easier

I continue to search for ways to save energy on watering my beds, writes one summer resident

I’m definitely already doing drip watering in my garden beds. I have already saved two barrels.

But here I came across another simple method, which is also easy to make yourself.

Watering vegetable crops at the dacha is always a problem both for those who live there permanently in the summer and for those who come on weekends.

Systematic watering requires a lot of effort and time.

After them, after a day or two, the soil must be loosened, especially on loams, otherwise a soil crust will form, which does not allow air to pass to the roots, cracks and tears the roots.

It is advisable to water with warm water.

Uneven watering creates increased humidity in greenhouses and shelters.

These problems are largely solved by drip irrigation.

For example, the simplest and most accessible to everyone.

I’ve been using it in my garden for many years now - using wicks I pump water to the roots of plants from various containers.

Water flows drop by drop from the container under the plant over a long period of time. I don’t know of a simpler, more reliable and cheaper way.

This type of irrigation allows water to be supplied directly to the root zone, using it very economically.

The most economical option - watering using a wick. Every two meters at soil level, dig in unnecessary but intact containers (plastic buckets, basins) and pour water into them.

Prepare a rope of fabric of the required length (wick). Dig it along a row of plants to a depth of 10-15 cm, and lower the end into a container of water.

The fabric will be saturated with moisture and transfer it to the plants.

In a plastic 2-liter bottle with a closed cap, I cut a hole on the side (you can leave it with a cap) for the wick and pouring water.

I place the bottle horizontally next to the plant with the hole facing up and lower a pre-moistened wick (1 cm wide cloth strip) into it.

Such a wick from a 2-liter bottle continuously pumps water under the plant in three days.

There is a circle of moist soil around the plant with a radius of 10–15 cm.

By adding water to the bottle every 2-3 days, I provide the plants with continuous watering. But, of course, it is better to organize subsoil irrigation.

I place the bottles next to the holes prepared for planting seedlings.

I lower the wick with one end into the bottle and the other to the bottom of the holes. At the same time, I put strips of film under the wick and on it so that the water does not evaporate from it.

I plant the plant in the hole and immediately hill it up. The soil around the plant remains dry and loose, which facilitates air penetration, and moisture flows through the wick directly to the roots.

To ensure that the water evaporates less and does not turn green, and the greens do not clog the wick, I close the bottle with a piece of black film.

I also cover the soil around the plant with the same film. Instead of bottles, you can use other containers.

They should be wide, but no more than 15–16 cm high, so that the wick can completely pump out the water.

For example, from a 10-liter canister lying on its side (a hole is cut in the other side to fill in water and wicks), two wicks pump out all the water in a week.

The speed at which water is pumped out by the wick is uneven - faster if the container is filled to the brim, and slower when there is half as much water left in it.

If the area is flat, for example, a garden bed, then you can do without containers. In recent years I have been watering tomatoes, cucumbers and cabbage this way.

In the spring I add well-rotted organic matter to the beds. I dig up the soil and level it. Then, in the middle of the ridge, along its entire length, I dig a ditch 40–50 cm wide and 10–15 cm deep.

I also check its horizontality by level.

The bottom and side walls of the groove are compacted. Then, a strip of film (necessarily intact), which is 30–35 cm wider and longer than the groove, lines the bottom and its walls. Water is poured onto the film.

It turns out to be a mini-pool (Fig. 2). Along its long sides I mark places for planting and dig holes for planting seedlings. The wicks are laid out so that one end lies at the bottom of the groove, and the other at the bottom of the hole.

A strip of film is placed under each of them so that the wick does not touch the ground and only the end, 4–5 cm long, lies on the ground in the hole. The same strip is used to cover the top of the wick. Having planted the seedlings in the hole, water them well and immediately spud them up.

So that the water evaporates less, and most importantly, does not turn green and the greenery does not clog the wicks, I cover the pool groove with a strip or pieces of black film. If the bed is sloping, then you can make several pools on it on horizontal sections (steps).

As the wicks suck water from the groove, add it every 12 to 14 days. In the greenhouse, to save land, I adapted steel pipe with a diameter of 150 mm and a length of 6 m.

The pipe is installed on supports strictly horizontally, its ends are plugged. Holes are drilled at the top for wicks, and an oval hole is cut at one edge for pouring water.

A year ago I installed fittings in the pipe from cistern(float and valve). As soon as the water level in the pipe decreases, the valve opens and water from the barrel by gravity (the barrel is installed above the pipe) fills the pipe, the valve closes.

My neighbor made a long narrow trough instead of a pipe. Thus, the equipment for drip irrigation can be made from scrap materials, and the absence of any adjustments facilitates maintenance and makes the system trouble-free in operation.

The water in the container is filled with cold water and supplied to the plants with warm water. With this type of watering, the air in the greenhouse remains dry, water is used sparingly and is supplied directly to the roots.

The frequency of adding water to the container depends only on its volume. Thanks to the uniform supply of moisture to the plants, cabbage and tomatoes do not crack, and cucumbers do not become bitter.

It is also important that water in closed containers black film, V sunny days It heats up well, and when it cools down at night, it heats the air.

Pouring filtered mineral solutions or infusions into containers organic fertilizers, you can fertilize by reducing only the concentration of solutions.

To begin with, here is a short note about the quality of irrigation water. The text of this article is an example of the harm that an unqualified approach to a problem can cause.
“It is believed that having a water supply or at least a well on a site is very beneficial: after all, even in the driest year, the plants will be provided with water. But what kind of water?
In nature, the water that falls on plants - rain or melt - is very soft (or rather, contains few salts, low mineralized), almost distilled. Therefore, most plants absorb this kind of water best.
But in wells, boreholes and water supply network water can be very hard (most often highly mineralized, that is, containing a lot of salts). After watering with such water, the soil in pots of indoor flowers becomes covered in exactly the same reddish-white color as in a teapot in just a couple of weeks. limescale. But due to excess calcium in the soil, plants cannot absorb many other elements, in particular potassium.
Now in many stores you can buy “water softener”, in other words, oxalic acid. However, to soften the water intended for watering the garden, a lot of it will be required. But any water can be softened weak acid! It is known that humus contains a lot of acids, and even more in manure. But most of all - in fruits and vegetables. Therefore, by adding, say, two kilograms of rotten fruits or manure to a barrel of water, in a couple of days you can get exactly what plants love most - warm and soft water. Thanks to this watering, plants develop much better than their counterparts who have not tasted water with a “fragrant” additive. And they manage to get twice as much harvest!
Of course, they may object to me: what is a barrel, say, for the same six hundred square meters? However, if the soil is mulched, for example with grass clippings, square meter beds will require no more than a bucket of water per week.
And to prevent the soil from becoming too acidic (in Polesie and many other places it has such an unpleasant feature), it can be “deacidified” with the help of ash, fallen leaves (not oak leaves) or by watering with low concentration soda water once every few years.”
Is hard water harmful? The author of this note claims that hard water is harmful, since such water causes teapots to become covered with a reddish-white limescale coating. Of course, hard water is harmful to dishes, water boilers and our liver. But it is useful for the soil and the plants growing on it. One of the land reclamation scientists has this expression: “Soft water makes the soil hard, and hard water softens it.” This can be explained as follows. The calcium salts (lime) contained in it give water hardness. They collapse soil colloids and the soil becomes structural. It’s not for nothing that acidic, structureless soils are limed - not only to neutralize acidity, but also to give it a structural state.
Sodium salts give water softness. Think back to when the main water softeners were lye and soda. Observant people of the older generation, when the main detergents there was soap, lye and soda, they paid attention to the fact that if you pour water from washing on the soil for a long time, it becomes white with white discolorations, and after drying it becomes strong as a stone.
In order for readers to more clearly imagine what we are talking about in our discussions, we note that scale in the kettle (paradoxically!) indicates that this water is suitable for irrigation. And never water with “...low concentration soda water,” as stated in the last line of the quoted article. Soda is the biggest enemy of soil!
The author of the quoted note confused the concepts of “low-mineralized (fresh) water,” which contains few salts and is, of course, very good for irrigation, and “soft water” (containing sodium), which in a matter of years can lead to alkalinization (sinking of the soil).
And, of course, it is completely absurd to improve the quality of irrigation water by introducing rotten fruit into it. Manure and humus can be added to water, but not to soften it, but simply as additional nutrition for plants.

Watering plants is a very important question that any gardener asks. It's no secret that any crops on the site require a sufficient amount of water for their growth. Moreover, the watering rate is different for different plants. The yield largely depends on how well the garden watering system is designed.

In order to properly water your garden, you need to know the following:

1. The need of plants on the site for water.
2. Soil composition.
3. Water quality and technology for its supply to the site.

If there is no centralized water supply on the site, then an electric pump will be required to water the garden. Its choice depends on what source of water supply will be used. Most often, water comes from a well or borehole. To make the work of gardeners easier, it is sometimes used automatic watering vegetable garden

Watering methods

Let us tell you in more detail about the available methods of watering the garden with your own hands.

This method is used to water trees. The holes are made according to the size of the crown, after which they are leveled, and rollers are arranged around them. The finished recesses are filled with water. You cannot pour water directly on the roots. Otherwise they will start to rot. Therefore, this must be done with a distance from the barrel of approximately 400-500 millimeters. When using this method of watering, water gets exactly where the roots are. With the arrival of spring, melt water collects in the holes. For a growing tree, the holes should not remain the same size. It is necessary to periodically make new ones as the crown grows.

The disadvantages of this method include the following:

1. Requires a lot of manual labor.
2. The soil in the holes becomes denser over time, which requires laying a layer of mulch and fertilizing the soil.

This method of watering is convenient when land plot has a slight slope. When constructing furrows, it should be taken into account that the distance between them, their width, length and cutting depth depend on the slope, irrigation rate and soil type. So, for example, on heavy soil this distance is made approximately 1 meter. On light soils, furrows are cut at a shorter distance - approximately 0.5 meters. This should be done carefully so as not to damage the tree roots.

Depending on the slope, the depth of the furrow can vary from 120 to 250 millimeters. Moreover, the lower the slope, the deeper the furrows. A significant disadvantage of this method is the irrational use of land. In addition, a lot of water is consumed to water the garden.

This method of irrigation can be used in almost any terrain of the site. It allows you to precisely regulate water flow. In this case, the soil is evenly moistened. In addition, this type of watering increases air humidity. Sprinkling is arranged using special sprinklers for watering the garden or watering cans. A spray irrigation system is also used for this purpose.

Soil irrigation

IN in this case water is supplied directly to the root of each plant. For this, there are special hoses, from which moisture enters the soil. Holes (pits) are dug near each plant. The flow of water is directed into them. Sometimes gardeners practice watering their gardens from a barrel.

Rules for watering vegetables

How to water cabbage

Cabbage loves moisture very much. For example, the moisture content of the soil in which crops are grown early varieties cabbage should remain at approximately 80%. Therefore, this vegetable crop needs to be watered very intensively. At the same time, each climate zone has its own irrigation rate. So, in the middle zone for early cabbage it is 150 liters per 10 square meters. meters. IN southern regions More water is required for irrigation. Gradually, the watering rate reaches 250 liters per 10 square meters. meters. The severity of the soil also affects watering. So, the heavier it is, the more water is required for irrigation.

Tomato is not as moisture-loving as cabbage. Therefore, at the first stage it is enough to maintain soil moisture at 70%. After growth begins, you need to water more often and more. However, not as often as cabbage. Enough water is required to sufficiently moisten the soil to a depth of 40 to 60 centimeters. Watering in the third stage depends on the local climate. Thus, in the southern regions, tomatoes require slightly more moisture than in the middle zone.

How to water cucumbers

This is another moisture-loving crop. Especially during flowering and fruiting. Before flowers appear, soil moisture should be approximately 65-70%. At this stage, the sprouts should be watered sparingly. If there is too much moisture, the plants may not bloom or set fruit. When the fruits begin to form, you need to water more often. Watering norm for cucumbers middle zone is approximately 240-260 liters per 10 square meters. In hot weather, it is recommended to carry out so-called refreshing watering in the amount of 20-50 liters per 10 square meters. meters.

Watering eggplant and peppers

These vegetable crops also require a lot of water for irrigation. If they experience a lack of moisture, this may slow down their growth, and when buds appear, they may fall off. After these crops are planted in the soil, it is necessary to maintain humidity at 80-85%. Excess moisture also negatively affects these plants. So, if the soil is excessively moist at low temperatures, the sprouts may be affected by fungi. In cool weather, watering should be moderate. In some cases it should be stopped completely. As for the type of watering, sprinkling is recommended for these vegetables.

Watering onions and garlic

The roots of these plants go only 16-20 centimeters into the ground. Therefore, when watering, it is best to moisten the soil only to this depth. Typically, onions and garlic are not watered too much or often. It is enough to do this once every 20 days, 210 liters per 10 square meters. meters. To grow food for sale, watering should be stopped when the feather begins to fall. If these vegetables are needed for long-term storage, then watering stops about a couple of weeks before the leaves begin lodging.

Zucchini belongs to the melon crops, which during active growth and ripening require high humidity soil. This figure should be kept at 80%. At the end of the growing period, shortly before harvesting, watering the zucchini should be stopped.

Watering root crops

Root crops are usually watered about the same. The watering regime should be sufficient to maintain soil moisture at 75%. Most of all, these crops need watering during the growth period. In the middle zone at the first stage the norm for this is 210 liters per 10 square meters. meters. At the second stage of growth, watering should be increased to 260 liters per 10 square meters. meters. In general, it is best to water vegetables before 11 a.m. or in the evening about an hour before sunset. To close the rows after watering, it is recommended to loosen the soil.

The first watering of fruit-bearing pears and apple trees is best done in early summer, when excess ovaries have time to fall off. The second watering is carried out in mid-July about a couple of weeks before the fruit ripens. It is usually carried out for summer varieties trees. Last watering for winter varieties carried out in early autumn. If the summer was quite dry, and the harvest was quite rich, then in August you need to do the third watering, but this time for the entire garden.

Young trees that do not bear fruit need only be watered once in June and once in July. For plums and cherries, the following watering schedule is recommended: the first watering is at the end of spring, the second is a couple of weeks before the fruit ripens, the third is after the final harvest. For berry growers, the following scheme is shown: the first watering is during the formation of the ovaries, the second is when the fruits ripen, and the third is carried out after harvesting.

When watering, you need to ensure that the soil is soaked to the depth of the roots:

• So, for an apple tree it is enough to moisten the soil by 60-75 centimeters.
• For young garden- 30-55 centimeters.
• For a pear - from 40 to 50 centimeters.
• For raspberries, strawberries, plums, wild strawberries, the depth of soil moisture should be 20-30 centimeters.
• For gooseberries, pears, currants and cherries, 30-40 centimeters is enough.

For mature trees per 1 sq. meter, 4-5 buckets are enough, provided there are sandy loam soils. It is better to water in the evening, and if there is a long drought, it is recommended to do this at night. If tap, spring or artesian water is used for irrigation, it is first kept for about a day in some container, after which it is heated. In order for the roots to better absorb moisture, the water temperature should be 2 degrees higher than that of the top layer of soil. In addition, mineral salts, which are so necessary for the normal development of plants, dissolve better in warm water. Practice shows that abundant but infrequent watering is more beneficial than frequent watering using a small amount of water. It is also recommended to carry out a refreshing watering in the morning and evening. For this, 1 bucket per 1 square meter will be enough. meter.

It is useful to combine watering with the application of organic and mineral fertilizers. It is only advisable to use very weak solutions for this. Urea, mullein infusion or tea flowers are usually used as top dressing.

If the year turns out to be quite dry, then at the end of autumn around October it is advisable to carry out moisture recharging. It is necessary for one simple reason - an increase in humidity after a long soil drought causes plants to grow shoots and roots, which is undesirable before the onset of cold weather. After all, they can be damaged by frost. If it was not possible to carry out moisture recharging in the fall, then it should be done in May. The water norm for this is as follows:

• for strawberries, strawberries and raspberries 2-4 buckets,
• for fruit trees 4-6 buckets per 1 sq. meter.

If persistent dry and hot weather is observed in May, then in order to moisten the overdried layer of soil, it is advisable to carry out a second watering around the beginning of May. The norm in this case is 1.3-1.4 buckets per 1 square meter. meter.

Each garden has its own watering times. To verify the need for such measures, a soil sample is taken from the depth of the roots. Watering is necessary in the following cases:

• On the lungs loamy soils- if the formation of the earth in the form of fragile balls is observed.
• On sandy loam soils - if the soil is moist, but lumps do not form.
• On heavy soils - if a lump of earth forms, but when pressed it disintegrates.

To heat water you will need suitable containers. For example, you can use a large iron barrel. Only if there is rust, it will have to be cleaned, which can be done with an iron brush. Then it is applied to the surface Oil paint dark color, preferably in two layers. The barrel must be installed in a place where the sun's rays penetrate best, and for ease of installation, a water supply must be installed to it.

A plastic bag is also sometimes used as a container for water. In this case, do the following:

The bag is placed in a bag or net, and then hung on a stake or tree branch near the watering site.

When the bag is filled with water, the end of the main pipeline is passed into it, and the neck is tied with a rope.

After which the line is disconnected from the nearest crosspiece. Then water is sucked from the bag.

As soon as water flows from the pipe, connect it back. The flow rate is adjusted using screws.

Peculiarities watering plants are not limited only to the time of its implementation or method. One of the crucial components is water itself. Indeed, depending on its composition, temperature and characteristics, its effect on your plants will also change.

For watering, you can use both tap water and rainwater, as well as water from open natural sources - rivers, lakes, ponds, wells. Moreover, while rainwater is suitable for watering all types of plants without exception, tap water is not suitable for everyone and requires additional treatment. Certainly, ideal option It would be possible to collect exclusively rainwater, but this is far from so simple, because the possibilities for accumulating natural water are very limited and it is simply not possible to store it for all the plants in the garden (about two ten-liter watering cans are needed per square meter of the garden). But you shouldn’t completely abandon it - just distribute it among those plants that desperately need it.

Gather rainwater very simple: all you need to do is place a water container under the drain. It is best to use wooden tubs and barrels that are large enough as such reservoirs, because you will not change them for new containers during rain. The top of your tank should definitely be covered with a grill. It will serve as protection against large branches and leaves falling during rain, and will help protect your children and pets from trouble. Rainwater is usually not poured and stored in the same containers in which it is collected. Considering the environmental situation, care should also be taken not to collect water from so-called acid rain. If you find out that it was chemical rain, immediately get rid of all the water collected during this period.

A water tap is the most convenient way to water. You don’t have to wait for the water to accumulate, and you don’t have to pull water from a well or natural springs either, which, as we know, is not an easy task. By purchasing additional long hoses, you can easily water the plants even at a great distance, without using watering cans at all and watering directly from the hose. But it is in this convenience that the main danger lies. Not all plants, especially flowering ones, and even heat-loving vegetables, like to be doused with water. Almost all vegetable and flower bed crops require gentle, measured watering to keep the leaves dry. Watering them with a hose can only harm them, increasing their vulnerability to various diseases and reducing the resistance of the plant itself. In addition, plants that prefer sunny areas should not be watered. cold water: they prefer the beneficial liquid at the same temperature as environment. Tap water is fraught with danger and chemical composition. To avoid unwanted harmful elements entering the plants, it must be defended, as when watering indoor plants, being careful not to use any water that has accumulated at the bottom of the container. You need to be especially careful with the water after chlorination, skipping one or two days and not using it for irrigation. The main rule of watering tap water— try not to water all crops, except lawns and fruit trees, with a hose or immediately collected water. Before watering, leave the water in small containers (buckets, watering cans) for at least half a day to warm and settle (if you want to use large containers, increase the time to several days), and then water the plants with it according to the usual pattern using watering cans.
A kind of compromise between rain and tap water is water from wells or other open natural sources.

Of course, the water from the well will also need to be heated, but in principle it can perfectly replace rainwater. With water from natural sources, you need to be more careful and pay attention to how polluted this source is, whether dangerous bacteria and microorganisms are recorded in it. In the case of rivers and ponds, there is one rule: if swimming is allowed in them, then the water can also be used for irrigation. It is best to collect water that has already warmed up during the day in sunny weather. A pump with a set of long hoses will simplify this task, but, as in the case of a water supply, think about whether such watering is suitable for your plants or whether it is better to collect water in a container and water from a watering can. If you have to choose between a well and a natural spring, always choose the well - groundwater contains more nutrients and your plants will receive not only the amount of moisture they need, but also the desired nutrition.

Choice water for irrigation depends on your capabilities and existing ones at your dacha or personal plot sources of moisture, but even if you do not have the opportunity to choose the desired option, you can always optimize the irrigation process and, with some effort, improve the composition and characteristics of the water. After all, it is the elixir of life for your plants, and it is hardly worth neglecting the simple rules necessary for the successful growth of plants.

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For a gardener, a garden and vegetable garden should be economically profitable. Planting and growing vegetables and fruits is profitable when we get a harvest High Quality in a short period of time. The high quality of vegetables and fruits is their juiciness, freshness, and pleasant taste. All this will be ensured if you properly organize watering of the garden. If there is a lack of water in the soil, it is impossible to obtain high-quality vegetable products. Vegetable crops have root systems of varying thickness. The irrigation rate for each plant, watering methods, the number of waterings per season and when during the growing season of a vegetable plant watering will be most useful depends on this.

Among vegetable crops there are biologically drought-resistant species - watermelon, melon, beans, as well as species that adapt to insufficiently moist soil - tomatoes, carrots, parsley, beets. However, with a lack of water, their harvest is small, and taste qualities products are unsatisfactory.

With a lack of water in the soil and low air humidity, the growth of seedlings and seedlings is delayed, and changes in the growth and development of vegetable crops that are unfavorable for the gardener occur. So, the flowers and ovaries of cucumbers, tomatoes, peppers, and eggplants fall off. Salad, cauliflower, radishes, radishes are thrown out prematurely, the food part of these crops, as well as celery, potatoes, and kohlrabi, becomes coarse. Onions and garlic in the 3-4 leaf phase weaken growth - the bulbs are crushed.

The power of the root system of vegetable crops is the basis for calculating irrigation rates

The moisture needs of vegetable crops, just like other plants, depend on environmental conditions - air temperature, soil, their humidity, light, wind strength. As the intensity of these factors increases, the transpiration (evaporation of water) of plants increases, and the absorption of water from the soil increases accordingly.

In addition to the reaction to the intensity of weather conditions, the need of plants for moisture is determined by their biological features(see Table 1).

Table 1. Development of roots in different types vegetable crops

The following groups of crops are conventionally distinguished:

1st group. Includes heat-resistant, air drought-resistant species: watermelon, melon, pumpkin, vegetable corn, beans.

2nd group. Species with a well-developed root system, which allows them to use a large volume of soil to absorb water: cucumbers, tomatoes, eggplants, peppers, carrots, beets, parsley, potatoes, beans, peas. At the same time active growth, the formation of a crop in these species is facilitated by the rapid, powerful development of the root system, in a relatively shallow layer of soil, abundantly moistened with regular watering. This must be taken into account when options are limited.

3rd group. Species that are unable to extract water from the soil in large quantities due to insufficient development of the root system: cabbage, lettuce, radish, radish, onion, garlic. In this case, the first four types consume a large number of water for transpiration (evaporation of water by plants).

Optimal humidity, irrigation rates, quantity and time of watering vegetable crops

For vegetable crops, soil moisture, with some exceptions, is maintained at a level not lower than 70% of the maximum field moisture capacity (FMC), the optimal level as a percentage of FMC for vegetable crops is as follows:

Tomatoes:

• early – 80%,
• average – 70-80%,
• late – 60-80%,

Pepper

• early – 80%,
• late – 80%,

Potato

• before tubers form – 70%,
• during tuber formation – 80%,

White cabbage – 80-90%,

cucumbers – 85-90%,

Onion – 80%,

Watermelons, melon, pumpkin – 70%.

The specified soil moisture is maintained by periodic watering, the rate of which is determined depending on specific conditions:

• Moisture-recharging irrigation is given at a rate of 100-300 liters per m 2.
• Pre-sowing or pre-planting - give at a rate of 50-80 liters per m 2.
• Pre-planting - when planting seedlings, 0.5-1.0 liters of water per hole. Depending on weather conditions, pre-planting watering is done at small rates - 10-20 liters per m2.

Vegetative watering of the garden lasts the entire period of growing plants until harvest. In different soil and climatic zones, from 1-2 to 15-20 irrigations are carried out with a rate of 10 to 80 l/m2. During the daytime (the hottest) time of day or in the evening in the southern regions, refreshing watering is done in small portions of 2-4 l/m2.

Approximate norms and number of growing season irrigations of vegetable crops for the southern zone of the European part of Russia are given in Table. 2.

Table 2. Irrigation rates, number and time of watering vegetable plants and potatoes


In years with insufficient moisture, the number of waterings increases accordingly by two to three. In addition, in the hottest times, it is recommended to carry out refreshing watering at a rate of 5-7 liters per 1 square meter. m. We draw the attention of readers: the watering period must be determined before the plants show signs of insufficient water supply: wilting of leaves, residual water deficiency, falling of fruits and ovaries. In this case, it is impossible to compensate for crop losses.

In table 2 watering times are aimed at periods of greatest sensitivity of the plant to lack of water. Additional watering or its cancellation should be placed between these dates.

Watering the garden is carried out depending on specific conditions. Water the plants in the evening (in hot weather) or in the morning (if the nights are cold). It is better to finish evening watering by 19:00 in the evening, so that the moisture that gets on the leaves evaporates by night.

Ways to water a garden

Watering along furrows and checks

Watering vegetable plants small area gardening is carried out mainly superficially, running water. Water is distributed over the entire surface or part of the soil surface. Surface irrigation can be done along furrows or checks. In the conditions of an amateur garden, where there is almost no opportunity good alignment area, irrigation in furrows or checks is very suitable from the point of view of proper irrigation, uniform distribution of irrigation water, especially on light soils.

Comb decoration

The ridges are made as follows: using a hoe, manual hoe or plow, furrows are cut, the distance between which depends on the vegetable crop that will be planted in this area. Most often it is 60-70 cm. In this case, small earthen banks are formed between the furrows - they are called ridges. After this, transverse furrows are also cut with a plow or hoe at a distance of 5-6 m from each other. These transverse furrows will be used for irrigation and design of beds. Every second or every second or third ridge is cut from the inside (at both ends) so that water can circulate during irrigation (Fig. 1. A). The ridges are leveled, the furrows are first compacted and then leveled. Thus, the area is designed for better water movement. The ridges are suitable for growing many vegetable crops - tomatoes, peppers, eggplants, cabbage, carrots, parsley, etc. - on heavy soils, especially in rainy spring.

Fig.1. Organizing combs and checks

Issuing checks

Checks are flat rectangular or square areas fenced with ridges ( earthen rolls). The plot is divided into beds 5-6 m wide, limited by irrigation furrows. Rectangular checks are placed from one irrigation furrow to another with a width of 1.2 to 1.5 m. Square checks are made by dividing each bed into 2 parts with a comb, cutting with transverse ridges every 2 m. This produces almost square checks measuring 2.5 x 2 m. Checks are used for growing many vegetable crops - peppers, onions, cabbage, leeks, cucumbers, etc., also on light sandy soils (Fig. 1. B).

Watering the garden with a watering can

It is usually recommended to use a watering can when growing seedlings in greenhouses or on open beds. The rate of watering depends on the weather, the characteristics of the vegetable crops being grown, the properties of the soil, the condition of the seedlings, etc. In practice, to moisten the soil layer in a greenhouse 15 cm thick, on the soil, per 1 sq. m. m you need to pour 40-50 liters (4-5 watering cans) of water. On open ridges, water consumption increases, since the soil layer dries out to a greater depth, the roots of plants are located deeper, which can be determined experimentally. If the soil dries out too much, you first need to water it lightly with a watering can, and after some time give the required remaining amount of water. To ensure the irrigation norm, repeated watering is sometimes required at intervals necessary for the soil to absorb moisture. With a one-time application of the irrigation norm, the moisture will not have time to be absorbed by the soil, which will lead to stagnation of water on its surface or to loss of moisture as a result of surface runoff. You can water not the entire bed, but the root zone of the plants.

Regulation of relative air humidity (sprinkling)

Vegetable plants have different requirements for relative air humidity. Some of them, for example, cucumbers, cauliflower, lettuce, spinach, require high relative air humidity of 80-95%, while others, such as tomatoes, watermelons, melons, require a lower 50-60%. However, some combinations of air humidity and temperature create conditions for the emergence of diseases and pests, which requires regulation of these factors. By increasing or decreasing the number of waterings of the garden with running water, you can regulate the relative humidity of the air. Refreshing watering of the garden by sprinkling also has a beneficial effect on plants due to increased air humidity.

In personal gardens it is impossible to carry out sprinkling in the same way as it is done in fields, but here, using a hose with different tips or using an electric pump, irrigation pipes of the appropriate length, with sprayers at the ends, you can achieve the sprinkling effect. By sprinkling irrigation it is easier to ensure optimal irrigation norm, as it helps to reduce fluctuations in water content of soil or plants. This is of great importance for such vegetable crops as peppers, eggplants, cucumbers, beans, potatoes, root vegetables, etc., which cannot tolerate waterlogging. Sprinkling has a particularly good effect for all varieties of cabbage (white cabbage, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, savoy), spinach, leaf lettuce, head lettuce, etc. Sprinkling of vegetable plants must be carried out in calm weather, since when there is wind, water falls in large drops on the plants. If you have to sprinkle in the wind, then the water stream must be oriented in the direction of the wind. Most the right time for sprinkling - after lunch, in the evening, at night. This is especially important to observe when sprinkling peppers or cucumbers, as it prevents burns or diseases. After fruit formation, tomatoes can be watered only at night or early in the morning to prevent the fruit from cracking.

Water-recharging garden irrigation

Water recharging is the watering of fruit trees and shrubs, which ensures thorough wetting of the soil to the depth of the bulk of the plant root system. For a fruit-bearing apple tree on weak or medium-growing rootstocks, the depth of the root system is 80-100 cm, for cherries and plums - 60-70 cm, for shrubs - 40-60 cm, etc. As a rule, moisture-recharging irrigation is carried out after a dry summer or insufficient precipitation in the fall. The degree of soil moisture can be easily checked during deep autumn digging. Moisture-recharging watering is necessary even if you watered your fruit trees There were good rains throughout the summer or fall. Such watering has a positive effect on the condition of plants and their frost resistance.

The root system of trees, experiencing moisture deficiency in the summer, autumn periods, does not provide the necessary conditions to prepare plants for overwintering. There is a risk of winter drying out of individual branches, especially against the background of frost, strong winds, and in the absence of snow. The likelihood of trees being damaged by winter sunburn of the bark on trunks and skeletal branches also increases. When the soil dries out in winters with little snow, fruit-bearing dwarf trees With the root system located superficially, in young gardens there is also a danger of roots freezing.

The timing of moisture-recharging irrigation for Kuban is the end of October - November, for central Russia - August-September, i.e. here and there - after massive leaf fall. At the same time, the irrigation rate for fruit-bearing apple trees is up to 60-90 liters per 1 m² of crown projection, for young apple trees, cherries and plums - up to 35-50 liters, and berry bushes– up to 40 l.

By the way, I often come across arguments that wet soil freezes more easily, and this is dangerous for the root system of trees. Nothing like this! It's just the opposite! Sufficiently moist soil retains heat better in winter. After a dry summer, even if you diligently watered your garden all season, moisture-recharging watering is required when the trees shed their leaves.

For local wetting of the soil near trees, at a distance of 60-80 cm from the trunks, it is better to water in furrows located around the circumference. The depth of such furrows for fruit-bearing apple trees is 10-20 cm, stone fruits with a superficial root system (cherry) up to 10 cm, and damage to the roots must not be allowed when digging furrows. When watering heavy soils, it will take more time to soak the root layer.

The moisture supply after autumn water-recharging irrigation is sufficient for plants throughout the spring; the flowering dates of such plants are shifted by 3-5 days, thereby reducing the risk of damage to flowers by spring frosts. In addition, plants that are sufficiently moistened in the fall can more easily tolerate strong winter frosts, dry winds.