DIY Drip Irrigation System for the Backyard Garden | Quick & Easy to Install!

[@markware4933]

I ran a little water usage exercise on that plot just out of curiosity. You'll have 8 rows @ 30 emitters each for a total of 240 emitters. That Irratec P1 8 mil x 12" tape that you favor puts out .25 gph per emitter so this plot will need 60 gph wide open. If you choose to put a quart of water on each transplant every other day, you'll need to run the system for an hour. A half-gallon every other day for larger plants will need 2 hours run time. I bring this up because so many LDF viewers are on pricey municipal water and the beauty of drip irrigation is the efficiency of water usage. Drip Depot carries a useful Melnor mechanical timer for about $12.

[@LazyDogFarm]

Excellent analysis Mark!

[@marysurbanchickengarden]

You had some fine help with that young gardener. It's good that your son's are interested in the garden. Unfortunately some of them grow out of that and you have to make them help in the garden, I'm sure you won't have that problem. I have cabbage, broccoli, onions, collards, mustard, turnips and kale.

[@charleselertii6187]

Hi Travis. Good Job Sir! Learned a lot. Back when you were requesting comments on the raised bed gardens, I just wanted to note that a lady that has a KZbin channel called "Homestead Heart", I think is the name, is from Georgia and she had big trouble with Voles digging up from underground into her raised beds and eating a substantial amount of her sweet potatoes from underneath. She lamented that she did NOT put hardware cloth in the bottom before she filled the raised beds with soil. She is faced with emptying them of soil and applying the wire mesh hardware cloth in the bottom, then putting the soil back into her raised beds. maybe not an issue for you. Cheers, Chuck.

[@LazyDogFarm]

I don't know that I've ever seen a vole in person. Must be farther north in Georgia where they have those things.

[@susanpayne5592]

It's wonderful to see Titus helping you in the garden. More children need to be taught the life lessons provided by gardening....patience, perseverance, responsibility, and how to handle failure. BTW, I have a great recipe for rabbit stew.

[@LazyDogFarm]

Rabbit stew is some fine stuff!

[@lonnien.clifton1113]

Titus says he's going to work barefooted you have some good help Travis God bless Yall

[@LazyDogFarm]

Yep those shoes usually don't stay on for long!

[@charleselertii6187]

Oh yeah Travis, one more thing Sir about the raised bed garden. I liked your plan to have the fill tested. If there is only one thing you could test, pH would be most important. You could test that right now at home to get an idea where you are at pH wise to address it before you plant.

[@j.o.a.t9718]

I enjoy watching you in the garden and trying new techniques. I have had a garden for several years and have always watered from the hose in the morning before I went to work. I realize this method wasted water and areas which didn't need water, got it anyways. I also realize that the well water is quite cold and could shock the plants, but I had no other method at the time. Well, I am retired now and have been contemplating doing the drip method. Last years hot temperatures up here in Ontario Canada was the last straw. I could not keep the ground moist enough and ended up seeing so many of my plants succumb to the hot temperatures. I have seen the success you have had with this method and I have decided to move forward with it. I'll still give them a nice early morning spray but this should vastly improve our production from the garden. Nice to see your daughter helping out. it will rub off on her and will always have that interest. Our daughter was interested at that age as well, she's 21now and still asks what dad is doing in the garden.

[@maconbacon8215]

I have broccoli, collards, lettuce, and carrots growing in my raised bed gardens.

[@stevefromthegarden1135]

You had more than a little breeze on this day. 😀 Carrots, lettuce and broccoli have been all been planted and the hinged hoop house is ready to go. Expecting a frost tonight. Garlic goes in Oct 15th. You have a good selection of brassicas you planted.

[@jeffmartin693]

Love that drip tape saves so much time in the garden!

[@LazyDogFarm]

Yes it does!

[@wingandaprayer7777]

Thank you so much for doing a detailed video of this. Currently I am only doing containers, but want to switch to inground with drip soon! Titus is becoming quite the gardener!! God bless y'all.

[@LazyDogFarm]

Glad it was helpful!

[@carole4b]

I have been having the opposite problem with the drip tape - the 8mil is so soft & flexible that when I go to add it to the mainline it just folds & crumples. so I prefer the 15 mil which seems the be more rigid & holds its shape better. I do appreciate your going through the whole process - it’s nice to see how other people do it so I could pick up some tips on how to do it better!

[@LazyDogFarm]

I could see that with the 8 mil vs the 15 mil.

[@waynec3121]

It feel good to get the back yard grocery store started, great video Travis really enjoy the content.

[@LazyDogFarm]

Thanks Wayne!

[@Maggie-Gardener-Maker]

Oh my goodness Travis I'm surprised and glad to find this channel which popped up in my YT feed while I was actually watching you do an irrigation video from years ago when you worked with your Dad! I watch that old video probably three times a year just to refresh my memory because I still haven't invested in a system yet. I was just wondering about what you are doing these days and then a video popped into my feed and I thought wow that looks like Travis! I have a question, are you guys still doing your camping channel? I have lost track of it and never see it pop into my feed on YT anymore.

[@LazyDogFarm]

We still go camping quite a bit, but we leave the camera at home now. The channel is still there, but no recent videos. Glad you found us!

[@jaredtaylor6180]

Thanks for showing the set up on the drip tape. Definitely going to be installing drip on my in ground plot next year and rigging up something for my raised beds. Loaded down with zucchini’s and Roma tomatoes at the moment. Also just seeded several types of lettuce and some broccoli. Thanks for the great content.

[@FloraM44]

Thanks for the video! Love your tips that come from experience - why you use some things versus others is super helpful to avoid frustration for us newbies. One way a farmer friend just told me they plug the ends of their drip tape, they cut a small section of the hose, fold the end a couple times, and insert it into the cut piece of hose. Cheap and easy!

[@LazyDogFarm]

I've done it that way and that's the way many of the commercial farmers around here do it. But it does sometimes come undone. The fittings are a little quicker and more reliable.

[@FloraM44]

@@LazyDogFarm Fair enough! I think maybe we'll try it that way first since the expense of setting up irrigation for the first time this year is going to be 1K already! Next year, spending a little more on fixing the irritating parts will feel a little more doable 😂

[@Farm_Life_345]

Thanks for the website bro

[@mutantryeff]

In Sacramento County, we have to get our fall transplants and seeds in by late August or early September as by mid-October it can be cold enough that the growth slows down a bunch. Getting that one good month of growth in the low to mid-90s (short time during the day with those temps) gives a proper head start. Lots of what was planted in the raised bed will be ready just before Thanksgiving. Currently have Daikon, beets, chard, onions, gai lan (Chinese brocolli), bok choy, carrots, spinach, and small radishes. The lettuce seed must have been too old to come up.

[@not1moreinch332]

I can't wait to watch your new videos. I'm constantly checking. Love the information

[@LazyDogFarm]

Awesome! Thank you!

[@JustSewTrish]

this is a fantastic video and you do a great job explaining everything.

[@LazyDogFarm]

Thank you kindly!

[@borracho-joe7255]

Having as many valves as possible is worth the extra $ in my opinion.

[@LazyDogFarm]

I think so too.

[@AT_68]

Thanks for doing a video on drip irrigation. Much appreciated.

[@LazyDogFarm]

You bet!

[@Debsjac]

Hey Travis we garden in Texas. You are so awesome and informational. I have learned so much from you videos. Thank you for all your help. Also we wish you could loose the sunglasses so we could see you! ❤

[@LazyDogFarm]

Thanks! My eyes are so used to me wearing them that I get a pretty intense headache if I don't.

[@suepatterson2702]

Just started cleaning tree debris from hurricane Ian. Put off planting until after it passed.

[@creative227]

I needed this! I’m going to install drip in my raised beds in the spring.

[@LazyDogFarm]

Go for it!

[@sonnyamoran7383]

You look like I do whenever I'm in my garden.

[@ronaldcummings6337]

I would like to see you do a demonstration of a wide row plot market garden style.

[@LazyDogFarm]

It's pretty much the same, except you would put two or three lines of tape per "bed" or wide row.

[@altheamcdougal1327]

Rabbit Stew! 😋

[@MarkLada]

Yeah, I think I would trade being able to grow the good tomatoes, for being able to plant an actual fall garden now.. My season is basically over after tonight.. My brassicas will be ok for a few more weeks but everything else is coming out this weekend.. My fall crops have to be in the ground by the first week of August or they won't have enough time to finish before the cold weather hits.. Looks like you're going to have a nice harvest in a couple months.. I'm looking forward to watching it grow..

[@LazyDogFarm]

Definitely benefits and drawbacks to the warm weather. Long growing season is great, but some plants just can't take the summer heat down here.

[@kathysheesley463]

You are inspiring me!

[@LazyDogFarm]

You can do it!

[@markware4933]

Good basic information show. Once you've installed some lines and you're tooled up, it's not so intimidating. That line of fittings from Drip Depot has never let me down. I also keep plenty of goof plugs and a small tube of silicone caulk on hand. Do you have a backflow preventer at the well head?

[@LazyDogFarm]

I don't have a back flow preventer. I probably should though.

[@mattingly1217]

What are you talking about worms chewing on your tape? Lol

[@LazyDogFarm]

We used to have rats chew on ours pretty bad too. But the barn cats have solved that problem.

[@mattingly1217]

@@LazyDogFarm seriously worms?

[@dand7056]

What flowers are you planting this time of year? Stuff that won't freeze but does well till the spring

[@LazyDogFarm]

Not a lot. You can plant Calendula and it will usually make it through the winter down here.

[@CS-bn4un]

Greetings! Any reason I couldn’t use this same configuration of filter, regulators etc on some locations where we changed overhead irrigation to drip? The Sif brand kits have low profile and all parts needed but don’t last well. Thanks in advance for any answers though watching a year later!

[@121hearc]

have you ever taught about starting an asparagus patch?

[@LazyDogFarm]

I have. Just haven't picked a spot for it.

[@sislertx]

How often do u flush the system?? Im still using my old pvc pipe...waited on your raised bed stuff...but now garden is full of plants so SPRING....

[@LazyDogFarm]

I usually don't flush mine. I do have to clean the filter from time to time.

[@mutantryeff]

Rabbit livers cooked in olive oil with garlic. The problem is you'd have to have a big bunch of rabbits to make a meal.

[@mattingly1217]

I got megaton cabbage and tried them last year.... gurney's right? Hey next time you shop gurney's would you please try the gotta have it sweetcorn? I know it's a bit pricey but it doesn't disappoint

[@LazyDogFarm]

Actually got my Megaton cabbage seeds from High Mowing. I've never purchased any seeds from Gurney's, but I've heard good things about that corn variety.

[@KajunHomestead]

I'm using the 8mil from hoss tools and its constantly giving me problems leaking and i'm using the same pressure reducer your using, thinking about switching to thicker tape.

[@LazyDogFarm]

Make sure your water output isn't over what's rated for that pressure regulator. That could be your problem. If that's not it, a thicker tape may be the way to go.

[@gailpetchenik3048]

How do u figure out the gallon output to know what psi u need?

[@LazyDogFarm]

Time how long it takes you to fill a 5 gallon bucket. Then use that information to calculate the gallons per minute coming from your water source.

[@gailpetchenik3048]

Where did u get the 9” pots u started the figs from? Can’t find them on Amazon

[@LazyDogFarm]

Greenhouse Megastore online

[@sonnyamoran7383]

How long does the drip tape hold up. My beds are fixed and won't change as much. I'm a no dig gardener.

[@LazyDogFarm]

You can get different thicknesses. We usually use 8 mil which lasts for a few seasons. 15 mil will last 5-6 years.

[@sonnyamoran7383]

@@LazyDogFarm thanks so much.

[@rickeydesormeaux1552]

dude buy you a stand and plant

[@LazyDogFarm]

I would if I didn't plant so close to the tape. I'd surely stab the tape with one of those. But they are quite nifty!