High Water

Alright! We're one step closer to a drip irrigation system. The high tunnel has its own water!

The Extension folks installed a "backflow protected automatic draining freezeless sanitary yard hydrant." How's that for a mouthful?

The water line to the hydrant is buried four feet deep. Come winter the hydrant must be operated at full flow, through the diverter, for a minimum of 30 seconds before and after each use to drain the hydrant and prevent freezing.

Here's the spec sheet with lots of details on our yard hydrant.

Cold, Wet, & Cranky

I'm looking for the one manufacturer on the planet that can make decent hose connects. This set up looked pretty solid until one of the plastic screw-bands cracked and the hose popped out, spraying me with water.

Of course, then there is the loose connector at the main faucet. I get a face wash every time I turn that one on. So all in all, I'm soaked, and I'm back to using plastic watering cans to water the garden.

Did I mention it rained ALL DAY yesterday. But of course, none of that precious moisture actually falls inside the high tunnel. Oh, yes, and let me also tell you it was SNOWING this morning. That was a nice bonus.

Grrrr.

Green Day

It's St. Patty's Day and to celebrate, all my little greens decided to make an appearance. We're seeing mizuna, chard, pak choy, arugula, and radishes--everything from the first planting except the peas.

Row covers are pulled back for now with temperatures in the 60s and maybe even 70 today. Watered Friday, Saturday (thanks Bill), and again today. Obviously we're not getting any natural rainfall inside. All the same, high tunnels generally require less water because evaporation is reduced.