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Ponds & Aquatic Plants

Ways to use pond water for landscape plants?

13 years ago

I currently have a hose hooked up on one outlet from my pump to water my plants with.

Problem is, I have 2 acres of plants and me standing with a hose in my hand for each one is not feasible.

I have a drip tube system for all of my gardens, but I'm skeered to hook the pond water up to the drip tubes in fear of plugging things up with dirty water!

Is there anything - like soaker hoses? - that can efficiently deliver dirty water to multiple plants at once?

One time I talked to a septic tank guy who instals watering systems from the septic water - so something like this has to be possible.... right?

Unrelated water lily picture cause I'm so happy with so many blooms at once!

{{gwi:206081}}

Carrie

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Comments (6)

ccoombs1
13 years ago
Yep...it's really easy. Use a tub or barrel to catch your water. Stick a sump pump down in the barrel so that whenever water goes in the barrel, it's automatically pumped out. Instead of a soaker hose, get a 3/4" PVC pipe and run it along the beds. It will be buried later. Where each plant is, put a Tee in the pipe with a pipe sticking up a few inches. Put a cap on the pipe (but don't glue it on, you will want to be able to turn it later), with a slot cut in it. Now bury the pipe so that just the caps stick up above the ground. Now hook this up to your sump pump. Whenever you turn the pump on, water will flow out of the slots in those caps. If you need to redirect the water, just turn the cap. This is a CHEAP way to run irrigation. The slots in the caps won't ever clog up either.
cweathersby
Original Author
13 years ago
Thanks. That's an awesome idea.

Makes me think.. Might could take 1 gallon per hour drippers off of each rose and pump pond water right to it. I'm thinking only the drippers would be cloggable.
And even with all the plants I've got, taking the drippers off would be a 1 or 2 hour project.

Question- why pump the water to a barrel and then pump it out of there? Why not skip the barrel and go straight to the PVC from the pond?
Thanks!!!
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ccoombs1
13 years ago
Because if you go to a barrel first, you can pump the water out of the barrel under pressure so it will go much further. If you are relying on the water just flowing out of the filters, it will not reach as many plants. Plus if you are pumping it, you can water plants that are at a higher elevation than the filter drain. If you don't mind looking at the pipe or you if you can hide it under mulch, you can really just lay the pipe on the ground and drill a hole where where each plant is. The water will just run out of each hole. That's how I have my veggie garden being watered.
cweathersby
Original Author
13 years ago
Thanks. When I designed my plumbing for the pond I took watering plants into consideration, so I can do this without relying on gravity. I can pump from the biofilter drain or from the bottom drains.

That is truly an awesome idea. My plants LOVE the pond water and I'm hoping to clear up my water by doing lots of water changes (I have well water so chlorine isn't an issue). So far it's not working.
annedickinson
13 years ago
Carrie,

Your lily is lovely. I have just 2 little pads on mine so far. But.. it is coming along.

Anne
cweathersby
Original Author
13 years ago
I can't even begin to tell you guys how excited I am to be watering my plants with the pond water.
I went ahead and hooked my pond water up to BOTH rose gardens at once. Had the drip tube system running with the drippers still on - all day for 2 days!! The roses are gonna love it. I figured the drippers would clog up, but they haven't yet. Either way, if I was going to have to climb under 150 monster rose bushes to pull the drippers off - I wanted to at least try watering with the drippers on.
Thank you for your help - in 4? 5? years of ponding I have never thought to run the drip systems off the pond. This is wonderful.

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