Ideas for automatic watering system

[Tak]

I am gonna have to leave the house for 3 weeks with no reliable watering solution (aid) in sight.

So I am going to try to setup an automatic watering system with some stuff I had.

Fortunately all of my trees are all in pre-bonsai stage (grow bags, pots, mesh pots - mix of coco choir and perlite) and I have already buried half of them in my raised bed garden that I won't be using this season.

I do however have anything from seedlings to cuttings to trees, with some needing water every day and others every few days.

I plan on burying them all in their pots in the garden to help dampen the watering a bit.

Any ideas on how to swing that?

I have a programmable timer and a watering kit that has Drippers, Sprinklers and Misters.

Would like to keep them all on the same circuit so I was thinking short waterings every day for the seedlings followed by a long watering every 3 days or so to drench everything. Try to monitor for rain and colder weather and put a rain delay on.

Currently summer in southern Canada (Toronto)

Thoughts?

Thanks!

 

[Shibui]

I plan on burying them all in their pots in the garden to help dampen the watering a bit.

Any ideas on how to swing that?

Dig holes. Place pots in then backfill. Not really sure what you are asking here? Burying pots should certainly reduce watering stress.

Would like to keep them all on the same circuit so I was thinking short waterings every day for the seedlings followed by a long watering every 3 days or so to drench everything. Try to monitor for rain and colder weather and put a rain delay on.

Sounds like a reasonable plan. Your trees should cope with extra water for a couple of weeks unless you've already been overwatering. It takes a few weeks for root rot to take hold.
If you can monitor and make changes for weather and rainfall that's great but, if not just set for worst case and forget. My system does not have remote capability so I set for hot and dry whenever I go away. Seems to work here.

 

[ponderingsage]

Maybe have someone spot check pot every few days.

 

[Paradox]

I have a programmable timer and a watering kit that has Drippers, Sprinklers and Misters.

Would like to keep them all on the same circuit so I was thinking short waterings every day for the seedlings followed by a long watering every 3 days or so to drench everything. Try to monitor for rain and colder weather and put a rain delay on.


Thoughts?

How many trees do you have?
These drip/spray emitter systems have a limit to how many can be on one line and still have all emitters work properly depending on water pressure.

Also when are you leaving? These systems take a bit of time to set up. Lots of measurements between pots. You'll have to have the spacing o the pots already done before you set up the drip system.

A simple lawn sprinkler on a timer would also work for such a short time, take much less time to set up and would be a but more fool proof/less tweeking involved with set up.

Plan the drip system out for when you gave your trees on your benches

 

[BaKiBonsai]

Interested in how this pans out. The main reason I've not moved to modern substrate is my yearly 4 weeks travels. My mother in law is nice enough to water, but not daily and she would not understand the details anyhow.

Am currently designing a timed watering system based on gravity. Am just about ready tot test my adjustable sprinkler heads (it is the first piece I designed).

 

[Tak]

Dig holes. Place pots in then backfill. Not really sure what you are asking here? Burying pots should certainly reduce watering stress.

I was asking for the plan in general, not the part about burying trees

Sounds like a reasonable plan. Your trees should cope with extra water for a couple of weeks unless you've already been overwatering. It takes a few weeks for root rot to take hold.
If you can monitor and make changes for weather and rainfall that's great but, if not just set for worst case and forget. My system does not have remote capability so I set for hot and dry whenever I go away. Seems to work here.

Awesome, thanks for confirming!

Maybe have someone spot check pot every few days.

Wish I could. Unfortunately not an option...

How many trees do you have?
These drip/spray emitter systems have a limit to how many can be on one line and still have all emitters work properly depending on water pressure.

Also when are you leaving? These systems take a bit of time to set up. Lots of measurements between pots. You'll have to have the spacing o the pots already done before you set up the drip system.

A simple lawn sprinkler on a timer would also work for such a short time, take much less time to set up and would be a but more fool proof/less tweeking involved with set up.

Plan the drip system out for when you gave your trees on your benches

I have about 15 plus about 20 seedlings. Leaving in a week or so. I am mostly concerned about my Blue Atlas Cedar Seedlings (black tray, first pic) as they are very sensitive to over watering yet can dry fairly quickly in 30 degrees heat. Everything else I feel would just survive well under watering every 3 days with a sprinkler.

This is what I have so far... there are 4 azaleas underneath the burlap tent. It's not much but it's my start and I would like to keep it going

 

[coltranem]

A simple lawn sprinkler on a timer would also work for such a short time, take much less time to set up and would be a but more fool proof/less tweeking involved with set up.

This is what I do. Easy to setup and take down. I run a web enabled water timer and cameras for piece of mind.

 

[Tak]

This is what I do. Easy to setup and take down. I run a web enabled water timer and cameras for piece of mind.

Might have to come to that hahahaha

 

[Tak]

This is what I do. Easy to setup and take down. I run a web enabled water timer and cameras for piece of mind.

When you do do you run it to soil saturation (the garden)? I plan on running it for 2 hrs every 3 days to ensure the raised bed garden stays moist but it may be too much. Tough to say with our ever changing weather. It can rain for every day for a week or we can go a few weeks without any significant rain...

 

[Ravaginggoatman]

I am gonna have to leave the house for 3 weeks with no reliable watering solution (aid) in sight.

So I am going to try to setup an automatic watering system with some stuff I had.

Fortunately all of my trees are all in pre-bonsai stage (grow bags, pots, mesh pots - mix of coco choir and perlite) and I have already buried half of them in my raised bed garden that I won't be using this season.

I do however have anything from seedlings to cuttings to trees, with some needing water every day and others every few days.

I plan on burying them all in their pots in the garden to help dampen the watering a bit.

Any ideas on how to swing that?

I have a programmable timer and a watering kit that has Drippers, Sprinklers and Misters.

Would like to keep them all on the same circuit so I was thinking short waterings every day for the seedlings followed by a long watering every 3 days or so to drench everything. Try to monitor for rain and colder weather and put a rain delay on.

Currently summer in southern Canada (Toronto)

Thoughts?

Thanks!

My system is setup with adjustable micro sprays for smaller plants and seedlings and in-line emitters (drippers) for individual larger plants. I water plants thoroughly before leaving and have the system set to water 2 or 3 times a day for 3 or 4 min- each cycle. I live in Vacaville Ca. zone 9a/9b summers can be quite hot, fortunately I have not lost any trees using this system for away times. Also for me in my area a 50% shade cloth awning is a must for many of my trees. Good luck.

 

[Brian Van Fleet]

When you do do you run it to soil saturation (the garden)? I plan on running it for 2 hrs every 3 days to ensure the raised bed garden stays moist but it may be too much. Tough to say with our ever changing weather. It can rain for every day for a week or we can go a few weeks without any significant rain...

I guess I would run it daily for a much shorter duration. Your pots are still going to dry out in 3 days, even buried.

 

[Notsureaboutplantnames]

My system is setup with adjustable micro sprays for smaller plants and seedlings and in-line emitters (drippers) for individual larger plants. I water plants thoroughly before leaving and have the system set to water 2 or 3 times a day for 3 or 4 min- each cycle. I live in Vacaville Ca. zone 9a/9b summers can be quite hot, fortunately I have not lost any trees using this system for away times. Also for me in my area a 50% shade cloth awning is a must for many of my trees. Good luck.

Do you know the correct name for the dwarf olives you have in the last picture? I have several from a friend and saw them in a nursery listed as O. europaea 'Yatsubusa'. After googling this cultivar name it seems to from a Japanese maple and incorrectly used elsewhere.

 

[Ravaginggoatman]

Do you know the correct name for the dwarf olives you have in the last picture? I have several from a friend and saw them in a nursery listed as O. europaea 'Yatsubusa'. After googling this cultivar name it seems to from a Japanese maple and incorrectly used elsewhere.

I collected these olives as clumps/stumps from a very old orchard that is now city property. The city has been cutting them down to the ground for many years but olives are very resilient and keep growing. There are a couple that have grown to a normal height behind a chain link fence of a church, these trees have produced small black fruit, I have Googled olive trees with small leaves and small black fruit and came up with Arbequina Olive Trees. not certain of this but seems to fit.

 

[Notsureaboutplantnames]

I collected these olives as clumps/stumps from a very old orchard that is now city property. The city has been cutting them down to the ground for many years but olives are very resilient and keep growing. There are a couple that have grown to a normal height behind a chain link fence of a church, these trees have produced small black fruit, I have Googled olive trees with small leaves and small black fruit and came up with Arbequina Olive Trees. not certain of this but seems to fit.

thanks