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Keep Your Plants Hydrated With This Simple DIY Raised Garden Bed
By RON BAKER
If you put off watering your raised garden beds because it takes so long, make the job quicker by assembling YouTuber @micahmobley555’s low-cost DIY PVC-based watering system.
Drip is one of the best irrigation systems for both flower beds and vegetable beds. This DIY watering system functions like high-end drip irrigation and can be assembled in hours.
The system uses household water pressure and a shutoff valve. Water comes from a nearby hose bibb via a ¾-inch PVC pipe that acts as a manifold with an outlet at each raised bed.
The shutoff valve is fitted to the ¾-inch pipe, which is reduced for a ½-inch PVC pipe split into two lines. One ½-inch pipe runs along each side of @micahmobley555’s raised beds.
He drilled 1/16-inch holes every 6 inches along the pipe, which is the right flow rate for a home drip garden irrigation system, per the Utah State University extension service.
The 6-inch drip spacing is perfect for irrigating plants like carrots and peas, and the system can easily be reconfigured for plants with larger or smaller water needs.
While certain commercial drip irrigation systems are cheaper, far more configurable, and a bit more robust, @micahmobley555’s DIY system hasn’t got far to go to catch up.