Drip Irrigation
Drip irrigation doesn't just save water (and the money you pay for that water), it also saves time.
No more getting up early to sprinkle your tomatoes: With an automatic drip irrigation system, your vegetable garden is fully watered by the time you have had your first cup of coffee. No worries on vacation: The petunias around your patio will stay lush and lovely, attended by your automatic drip irrigation system, even when you're away.
What is drip irrigation?
A drip irrigation system is a series of tubes that have holes opened along them at intervals. The location of the open holes is tailored so that you can irrigate efficiently. If you have a bed in which perennials are spaced at two-foot intervals, then there will be corresponding holes in the tubing at two-foot intervals, through which water will be discharged. You don't waste any water with drip irrigation systems, because you're not watering the intervening area between plants. The dripping occurs only where the plants are stationed.
Sprinklers, in contrast to drip irrigation systems, spray water into the air first. Wind can carry airborne water away, distributing it elsewhere than where it was intended to go - an inefficiency not conducive to water conservation. Drip irrigation systems preclude this unnecessary water loss by taking the water right to the roots.
Drip irrigation systems are often installed in areas in which flowers or shrubs are growing (i.e., individual elements with spaces between them), as opposed to a lawn. Drip irrigation systems allow you to target plant roots even more precisely than do sprinklers, resulting in better plant health and better water conservation.