Thursday, April 23, 2015

The Simple Okie Drip System

I've planted 4 tomatoes plants (Pink Brandy Wine, Sunrise Bumble Bee, Amish Paste, and Yellow Pear), in one of my raised garden beds with approximately 15 to 20 seedlings to plant somewhere else in the garden or in pots. 

This planting season, I've decided to install a simple Okie drip system (I decided on the name of the drip system) to help the tomato plants in the raised bed as a test; to see how well they do with this system. 

You heard right, a simple Okie drip system……here’s how it’s done. You’ll need plastic bottles like water bottles or soda bottles (recycled ones).  A sharp knife, drill, drill bit (small size), and something sharp to cut and drill on…..I used a kitchen cutting board. 

The first thing you want to do is cut the bottom off of each bottle like this.





Next you want to take each lid and drill holes in them.  These holes will allow the water to flow through to the roots of each plant.  If you drill a couple of holes (2 to 4), the water will drip slowly and if you drill 6 to 8 holes in each lid, the water will drip faster to the roots of each plant. 



Secure the lids on each bottle.



Dig a hole next to your tomato plant and place the bottle lid first in the hole.  Make sure your soil is around the bottle like this.



Fill the bottle with water daily, the roots of the plant will take the water when needed. 

This process will be used as a test only in the one raised bed with the tomatoes to see how it works.  The rest of my garden will be watered with the rain barrel and sprinkler system.


Speaking of rain, are you getting some in your location?  Or are you getting snow still?  I know one person who’s getting snow, Mama Pea. She resides up North, where it gets pretty cold, and snows in May.  Check out her blog.  She loves to garden, enjoys quilting, and has a great sense of humor.  When you drop by her blog, tell her I sent you, and let her know I said it’s snowing here in OklahomaJ.
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26 comments

  1. Should be a good idea and work like those ceramic root water things you can buy. Oh ya and I will be happy to send ya some honey if/when I harvest some this year. I am sure I will but ya never know we could have a replay of 2012 once again.

    Pink Brandywines are a damned good tomato, the yellow pears will spread like wildfire next year in volunteers or at least they always do for me.

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  2. PP,

    And to think I recycled those bottles!!!! I was sorry to read about your hives back then. When it comes time for harvest if you have any extra honey let me know I want to buy some off of you :-)

    Pink Brandywines are delicious, the yellow pears we just pop in our mouths like candy when working out in the garden. I also love Dad's Sunset tomatoes, have you had any of them?

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  3. Looks like a cool idea. I may have to test it out with you. I have 12 tomato plants coming the end of May. It has been very unseasonably cold here in southern NH. It rains almost daily as well. I am just glad it isn't snow. We got feet and feet and feet of that white stuff this winter.

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    1. Heather,

      I hope you do test it too, and let me know what you think. The rain will help get rid of any snow on the ground. Hopefully, you won't get any more snow.

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  4. Now that is what I call an ingenious watering system! Believe it or not, we do actually get hot and dry enough summers (although at this point it's really hard to remember what that's like) so that your Simple Okie Drip System could be really handy. I've read in the past that tomatoes don't like to have their foliage get wet so other than an expensive drip irrigation system, your idea sounds like a winner. When I first read that about tomatoes not liking water on their leaves, etc. I thought to myself, "Hmmmm, I guess that's why you see each tomato plant in the big commercial fields holding a little umbrella over their heads when it rains." Hahahaha!

    Yesterday was the first day since last Saturday that we didn't have a "wintry mix" falling on us. The one good thing to this nasty April weather is that now our forest fire danger is way, way down from the high level it was. (And that's worth a lot!)

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    1. Mama Pea,

      I believe you do get hot and dry summers, we used to up in the U.P.
      Had no idea tomato plants don't like their leaves wet.....I can picture it now all those tomato plants holding massive size umbrella's....how funny....they probably also sing the song, "Singing in the rain" while dancing with their umbrella's Bahahahahaha!!!

      The moisture sure does help with fires. We have the same issue with fires, usually it's when were dealing with the drought problems here each year.

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  5. My wife uses something like that on her potted plants. She makes them out of the tiny little bottles that this Canadian soda comes in we like. Necessity is the mother of invention, I guess!

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    1. Harry,

      We try to recycle everything we save. You could say necessity is the mother of invention :-)

      Delete
  6. And I always thought it was an Upstate NY drip waterer! I have found that it works really well - and saves water like crazy. The biggest problem I have is getting plastic soda bottles, as I don't buy them. I talked the transfer station guys into holding back a few for me. Hate to say it, but we woke up to snow on the ground this morning. Sigh. Love living in the north except for the endless winters.

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    1. Susan,
      It could very well be, I haven't lived in Upstate NY since I was 7 years old. I keep all of our water bottles, and said I need to do something with them. That's when the simple okie drip system came to mind. I was thinking about those glass bottles in the garden shop for watering potted plants over a period of time. Told myself I wasn't going to spend $10 for a glass globe when I could make my own globe (aka: bottle) from recycled water bottles. And that's how the simple okie drip system got started :-)

      Oh no, more snow!!!! Stay warm and safe! I bet the dogs don't want to go out and truck through the snow again :-)

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  7. Surely this is a site well worth seeing.

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  8. Sweet Sandy - we loooooove the simple okie drip system - yer brilliant gurl! i may just have to steal this idea from you! and jam has been "stealing" plastic bottles from other people's garbage for years so we have them on hand - woohoo!

    sending much love your way, little Brat Angel! your friends,
    kymber and jam

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    Replies
    1. Sweet Kymber,

      Thanks, I needed to do something with all those recycle water bottles I've been saving. If people are throwing their bottles out, you're not stealing, your recycling baby!!!! Wooohooo and saving the earth :-)

      Sending hugs and love to you both.
      Your Friend the Brat Angel,
      Sandy

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  9. Great idea and inverted they can double as a late frost protection.

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    1. Gail,

      Thanks, and inverting the bottles makes for a great protection cover.
      Great idea Gail!!!

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  10. I like that, a simple way to get water to the roots without flooding the garden.

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    1. Mike,

      It sure is and it's free because it's made from recycled materials.

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  11. It will work and the tomatoes will love it! I did something similar with milk jugs once. They always say to never too-water tomatoes. This way you should have less rot and disease. Can't wait to hear how you like it.

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    1. Michaele,

      I'm hoping it really works well. So far, it's good.......let's see what will happen as time passes on.

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  12. I love this idea. I've this done with other containers, but you've inspired me to maybe give this a try this year. I'm assuming we'll hit a hot, dry spell eventually and this would be a wonderful way to water without losing it to evaporation.

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    1. Leigh,
      It gets very hot here, in fact we have a drought problem. I'm giving this a shot because the roots will take as much water as they need.

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  13. Great idea! Look forward to test results!

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