I've had an unirrigated garden for about eight years now. For a while I used a couple of bathtubs to collect rain, even rigging up plywood to catch and funnel more rainfall into them and so forth. What I have learned over those years is that such minor bits of water are of little consequence and not really worth the bother, and that plants that get well-established don't need it in any case. When there is a very dry summer certain crops simply fail (especially winter squash), and others have greatly reduced yields (especially potatoes). The little bits of watering are the proverbial drop in the bucket (sorry, couldn't resist!) in drought conditions, and in normal summers is unnecessary.

However, your garden is much closer to home than mine so you might be able to carry enough water to make a difference. Otherwise, I'd say don't bother and see what crops do well and which don't. You'll learn a lot, especially that many of the supposed water-hungry plants aren't necessarily.

Mulch, mulch,mulch!

what do you reccomend mulching with? i've heard bad things about wood chips, but i can get them for free at the park near me. thanks for the replies!

Newspaper is quite good - I'll bet in the city you can easily get tons of it. Worms love it.

how big is the garden? if you can water it with a couple of soaker hoses or drip hoses, you can use 55 gallon drums for a water source. simply install a spigot as low as you can on the drum, fill with water and hook up the hoses.

as far as getting the water there, you would need to be able to haul 55-110 gallons everyday that you wish to water! not an easy task for some, no big deal for others. if you have a truck and an extra barrel, it is not to hard. fill the barrle inthe bed of the truck, drive up to the garden and using a bucket fill the others. if not, then yes you will have many trips with 4-5 gallons of water at a time.

I suppose the questions that should be asked are how permanent the garden is, how large it is, and whether you want a long-term or short-term water source.

If the house next to the garden is truly & completely vacant (no squatters), you might try contacting the owner, to see if the water can be turned on. If you don't know who the owner is, you should be able to find out through City Hall. Provided that you are willing to pay for the water, your chances are probably good. I once made a similar deal, to keep a property clean & mowed in exchange for water. The owner may be happy to have some one keeping an eye on the property.

If the house is truly abandoned or condemned, you may be able to make a deal directly with the water utility, or with the city... perhaps in exchange for property upkeep. It's possible that if your garden is in an area designated for urban improvement, and your garden beautifies the neighborhood, the city might even give you the water for free. Tell them it's good PR. ;-)

Barring that, you might want to make a water wagon, which you can fill at your house & pull to the garden. This could be a converted 55 gallon barrel as mentioned above (or several linked together with pipes), or a large plastic tank. You can find large tanks suitable for this purpose at farm supply stores, or contact a stable to ask for a local source. If you build a water wagon, be sure that the wheels & axles are strong enough to support the weight of the water. Each gallon weighs 8 1/3 pounds... so a full 55-gallon drum would weigh over 450 pounds.

Regardless of the water source, I agree that mulch will reduce the need to water. Compost or shredded leaves would be best; also grass clippings, provided that they have not been treated with chemicals. Contact a local lawn/landscape company, they might give you all the grass clippings you need for free, rather than pay to dump them. Marsh hay (best) or straw (not as good) can also be used, if you can find an economical source. All of these materials provide food for worms, and can be turned in the following year to enrich the soil.

Wood chips would work also, but they they break down too slowly to turn under, so they would need to be raked off the garden each year before digging or tilling. And while any mulch can harbor unwanted bugs, wood chips can be especially troublesome, IMO.

Newspaper would work, but it can be unsightly, and can blow around in a strong wind. If you want to stay in the good graces of the City & your neighbors, it might not be the best choice.

To both retain water & discourage weeds, you could use landscape mulch. The rolls of black fabric are best for this purpose, since they allow the least light to pass through. This would be the last option I would recommend, since it does nothing to improve your soil.

Soaker hoses attached to something like a rain barrel doesnt work, I've tried. Soaker hoses only work when there is some pressure in the line to force the water through the pores.

I'll second the mulch, mulch, mulch. Ask if your city dump has free stuff.

Many areas are blessed with Summer rains - a near unknown in this neck of the woods.

I think this information from Texas A & M (linked below) may be helpful for folks considering their garden water needs thru the season. Those needs depend on how long our gardens (or different parts of our gardens) are growing crops. Crops are in the ground for different periods of time and even some long-season crops have fairly low water needs.

Summer rains can be factored in - for those of you who have such events. Use weather service info.

Texas A & M offers these 2 pearls of advice: "If irrigation water is limited, plant no greater acreage than can be irrigated optimally. Also, chances of success will increase with the production of crops with the least water demands."

I not only have to be concerned about nearly the entire water needs of my gardens but sometimes have problems getting irrigation water turned on early in the season. Also, I once had a garden down 2 lots and across the alley. I've seen construction crews run good quality hoses directly across streets. If the fittings are out of the way and traffic is infrequent, I'm sure that the hoses can be used repeatedly.

I wish you success.

Steve

Table IV-1. Relative Vegetable Water Needs - Seasonal water demand in inches

High

Broccoli 20 - 25
Cabbage 20 - 25
Cauliflower 20 - 25
Slicer Cucumber 20-25
Eggplant 20 - 35
Onion 25 - 30
Pepper 25 - 35
Potato 20 - 40
Pumpkin 25 - 30
Sweet corn 20 - 35
Tomato 20 - 25

Moderate

Asparagus 10-18
Pinto Bean 15 - 20
Cantaloupe 15 - 20
Cowpea 10 - 20
Pickling cucumber 15 - 20

Low

Lettuce 8 - 12
Mustard greens 10 - 15
Radish 5 - 6
Spinach 10 - 15
Turnip 10 - 15
Watermelon 10 Â 15

Here is a link that might be useful: Table IV-1. Relative Vegetable Water Needs

Large plastic tarps are cheap. Lay one out flat on the ground, pound metal fence posts for the corners, then tie tarp to fenceposts so that all water runs to a low sloping tarp-valley into a collection system/device. High ends of tarp might be 5 feet in the air, low end might be 2 or 3 feet in the air.

You are simulating a roof! Might be better than trying to collect rainfall in a hundred garbage cans.

Large collection pools can be made of -- tarps, what else? Form wire field fencing into large circular hoops of maybe 10 feet in diameter (by four feet tall), line the inside with tar paper, line the inside of the tar paper with another new tarp, and you are good to go. Thousands of gallons worth.

You might consider using old carpeting as a mulch. Cut the carpet to fit between your rows of veggies and lay it out with the pile side down. Water easily passes through the carpeting while light does not. At the end of the season you can hose down the carpeting, let it sun dry and roll it up for next year. Recycling carpeting this way you get an effective mulch and tidy paths between your rows.