Going Green by Using Rain Barrels to Survive Droughts

There are several things you can do to conserve water. One thing is to realize where your water is coming from, the tap or the heavens. Why not take advantage of free water. It gets more important to figure this out each year. And it is very important if you are having a drought season. Which we all have this in our memories from years past. Some how we have to conserve water so that it is available when we need it.

When you do water, it is important not to waste what water you have. A good thing to do is to use a soaker hose that only puts the water at the base of the plant. Or if you can place your plants in a row and dig a shallow ditch along the row and then fill the row with water which will get the water right where it needs to be, at the root of your plants.

Don't forget to use compost and keep the weeds down as well as compost helps to hold the water in. The evaporation if any, is slower. Remember, weeds drink water too. They will take it away from your produce or flowers.

And most importantly is to collect rain water. Set your rain barrels up by your rain spouts off the house and put some just out by the garden. Whenever it rains it collects the water and you will have it for later use. I keep a small barrel on my deck to water my flowers from. I keep one on all levels of my deck so I don't have to haul water very far as well. So much more simple.

There are several different things you can do, some easier than others, to have your own water conservation.

You can use any garbage cans, the bigger the better, you can even get the 55 gallon trash cans from the hardware store. When new they are clean and useable.

You could also use whiskey barrels, although you would probably want to line them with a plastic liner to prevent leaking.

You can also use big 55 gallon drums that you can get at the home improvement store. This can be expensive so keep your budget in mind. If you go with a large open mouth container be sure to get some screening while you are at the home improvement store to put over the top so you keep the leafs and debris out. The wide mouth barrels are going to be easy to dip into for watering as well.

Of course there is also the pretty drums that you can get from Amazon, or eBay or other online stores. Some are very fancy with spigots on them and different drain systems which will make water easy with a hose attached.

Just have a look, you'll recognize what works for you and your budget.

I also have watering cans set around on my deck where my flowers are that I do all my watering. So you see just have some imagination. You need to collect water, figure it out!

When you've had a nice rain and you have a little water in each barrel or container, it is a good idea to pour the water into one or two barrels. Then seal them up. Cover with a piece of stretch rubber with a band around the top. This accomplishes two important things:

1. The water will evaporate much more slowly
2. The water will stay clean and not attract mosquitos

And you know how important it is to keep those mosquitos at bay.

Also you want to have your full barrels out by the area you are going to be watering. So by pouring the smaller amounts of water into the larger stationary barrels you will not have far to lug the water for your plants. So keep your water collecting containers where they will catch the most water under the spouts around your house but also position the big ones where they will help you with your work of watering.

It may seem silly to collect water when it is so plentiful in many areas. But if you have ever experienced a drought you know how precious it is. Water conservation is simply intelligent and can allow you to continue to garden even though the skies have dried up for a time.

And in this difficult economy can't you use a few more pennies? I know I can.

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