Making a grassy orchard

[Penners]

Insufficient water here for hosepipe

I shall probably be branded a disciple of Satan for suggesting that you use (a) electricity and (b) a hosepipe, but have you considered a very modest expenditure on one of these electric drill powered pumps?

Available from here (and plenty of other places) http://www.amazon.co.uk/Vitres-Electric-Drill-Pump-Accessory/dp/B0001P16NY

 

[JoceAndChris]

:? We don't use a hosepipe here because we aren't on mains, have finite water, and when it doesn't rain it's a major problem for our own washing. We haven't experienced the well running dry but the previous owner did.

 

[Penners]

No, I appreciate that. I was just trying to think of a way for you to keep your new grass watered without the tedium and physical demands of endless watering cans!

 

[JoceAndChris]

Thank you for thinking of my work load Mr P. But we women are destined to toil away, without thanks, whilst you men drink tea in the sun.

It's a very good idea. There's no reason why I shouldn't have 5 large water butts in that area, a hose and a pump.

 

[Feltwell]

But we women are destined to toil away, without thanks, whilst you men drink tea in the sun.

Why has no one told me this before??? I've been conned for all these years!

There's no reason why I shouldn't have 5 large water butts in that area, a hose and a pump.

No ifs but plenty of butts then......

 

[worms]

The Earl of Harrowby is around 8 kilos...

:shock: That's quite some chook!

 

[Penners]

There's no reason why I shouldn't have 5 large water butts in that area, a hose and a pump.

No ifs but plenty of butts then......

Feltwell - detention for you. :evil:

 

[Feltwell]

Ohh Sir! I thought that was rather good for a Sunday afternoon.

 

[Flyfisher]

Thank you for thinking of my work load Mr P. But we women are destined to toil away, without thanks, whilst you men drink tea in the sun.

Have I stumbled into a parallel universe?

It's a very good idea. There's no reason why I shouldn't have 5 large water butts in that area, a hose and a pump.

It's surprising how quickly a water butt will fill up during a half-decent downpour. I have three large water butts connected together using 'tank connectors' and flexible couplings (available at all good plumber's merchants). Not only does this allow more rainwater to be stored but only one of the butts needs to be easily accessible.

 

[Feltwell]

I have three large water butts connected together using 'tank connectors' and flexible couplings (available at all good plumber's merchants).

You don't even need that - you can buy kits to connect them at most places that sell the water butts.

http://www.wilkinsonplus.com/Water-Butts/Water-Butt-Connector/invt/0246648

I know what you mean, they do fill up surprisingly quickly. At our last house the butt was just fed by a small shed roof, and that was enough to fill it pretty quickly.

 

[Flyfisher]

I used tank connectors because I wanted to connect the three butts at the base rather than the top, so that I could hide two of them behind a woodpile and only access the water from one butt. This approach requires properly watertight connections. I think the cheaper connectors are not particularly watertight and are only intended as 'overflow'-type connections - which is fine if you can access all of the connected water butts. Horses for courses. Hopefully that makes some sense.

 

[philpjuk100]

Do not forget to drain water butts before they freeze,one of mine that did not empty(must have had a blocked tap) froze and split last winter,phil.

 

[Moo]

I've connected four water butts on my allotment for considerably less than the 3 x £4.95 that it would have cost at Wilkinsons.
It's the Bob Flowerdew method, and all it needs is some bog-standard hose* and something to make a hose-sized hole in the butts' lids.
So long as the butts are level with one another, they can be any distance apart.





* long enough to go from the bottom to top of butt A, across to butt B, and down to the bottom of butt B.

 

[MdB]

It's the Bob Flowerdew method, and all it needs is some bog-standard hose* and something to make a hose-sized hole in the butts' lids.
So long as the butts are level with one another, they can be any distance apart.

* long enough to go from the bottom to top of butt A, across to butt B, and down to the bottom of butt B.

I was wondering how that could work but it will if water is kept in the pipe at all times with no air bubble. I've seen fish tanks linked using the same principle.

 

[Moo]

Mr Flowerdew shows a plan of his garden with butts dotted around all over the place and hosepipe snaking along the ground between them.
My only concern would be that something might dislodge one or more of the pipes, so one would have to go through all that unpleasant sucking to get the syphon working again.

 

[CatherineB]

Joce, Rachel (DD1) has requested a picture of His Lordship, who weighs in at 1/3 bigger than our fat puss, when he was at his fattest!!

 

[JoceAndChris]

:lol: I can carry Macav, my large puss, but Harrowby is a two-person bird. Here he is today for your dear daughter Catherine, very wet and cross, it's raining and he's constantly having to sort out squabbles over the favourite nesting box. There are six boxes and ten hens in this house, you'd think they could sort it out, but no, they all want to lay in the same spot and this means they lay eggs on top of one another, and the eggs roll around and get broken, and then they all cluck their heads off.

It's interesting that although he is supposed to be blue, some of his feathers are turning a definite red- rage?

It's hard to get the scale of him without you seeing him up close but people say he's turkey-sized. If Dear Daughter would like a Blue Orpington of her own it can be easily arranged, however the cock a doo is quite deafening, and they make VERY demanding pets.

Fascinating about the water pipe irrigation, Moo and others! Must sort that out, it sounds ideal.

 

[jocelyn plummer]

Golly Gosh, that's a big chook--- /queen/king of the roost no doubt!!

 

[CatherineB]

Screams of delight from both girls - thank you Joce!

And thanks, but no thanks, to the offer of chooks of our own.