Best Garden Watering Systems to Control Weeds

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Photo courtesy GrowOya.com
Clay pot waterers can save gardeners hours of work by nourishing crops without encouraging weeds.

I’m looking for time-saving irrigation methods will get water right to plants’ roots but won’t water weeds. What are the best garden watering systems for these goals?

In her 2015 article Choose the Best Garden Watering Systems, Barbara Pleasant described some of the most efficient watering systems for your garden, including soaker hoses, drip irrigation, and buried reservoirs. These not only grow healthier plants and save water but also minimize weed growth and reduce watering and weeding time. The secret? Feeding water and nutrients to the plants you want and starving out the weeds.

Ceramic-based irrigation systems, such as olla irrigation, buried clay pots, porous clay pipes, and porous capsules, are some of the best watering setups for small plots. Using these methods, you can put fertilizer and compost right where the crops will get them. Water moves through clay walls at a rate that is based on plants’ water demands, so weeds have little to grow on, and the dry, open soil between plants will support few weeds. In areas with little summer rain, the difference can be striking. In a recent study, weeds around plants grown with clay pot irrigation weighed 200 pounds per acre compared with 8.5 tons per acre with conventional surface irrigation. Think of the hours — even days! — saved hoeing and pulling weeds. A heavy mulch between plants will control weeds even further.

Just a couple of years ago, few of these porous clay pot systems were available. Now, there are many olla suppliers. You can also use standard porous terra cotta pots and plug the drainage holes with a rubber stopper, epoxy, or hot glue. Cover the top of the buried pot with a plate from a thrift store or a pot base. Drill a small hole in the lid to let rain in.

Wick irrigation, which relies on a fiber wick to transfer water to soil, is even more efficient than clay pot irrigation. As the plant uses water, it draws more from the reservoir through the nylon or polyester wick. Wicks have long been used for growing African violets because these flowers are so sensitive to water on their leaves, but wicks also work well for many other plants. When growing smaller plants, you may only need to refill the wick reservoir every week or two. Wick irrigation works well in hanging baskets and window boxes, and these setups are available commercially as Wickinators.

  • Published on Jul 19, 2016
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