7 Best Types of Garden Irrigation: Compare and Contrast

Soaker hoses are flexible porous hoses with tiny (sometimes barely visible) holes around the entire surface. This allows the hose to gradually release water into the surrounding soil, slowly soaking a plant’s root zone. These hoses work excellently for perennial and ornamental beds. They are also a cheaper and simpler alternative for vegetable gardens.

If you don’t want to mess around with complex connectors and fittings, soaker hoses are one of the most beginner-friendly options. You can find them at most garden stores and easily install in less than 10 minutes. The soaker hose simply hooks to a regular garden hose and then lays on the soil surface. However, multiple hose lines will require a splitter at your hose faucet.

Soaker hoses work best when they are buried under a layer of compost or mulch. This allows them to gradually drench the soil root zone. This is highly beneficial for preventing disease and drought issues. Since the water is delivered right at the base of your crops, shrubs, or trees, it is less likely to lead to fungal pathogens developing on the leaves.

Pressure is often an issue with soaker hoses. Too much pressure can cause the hoses to burst or overwater, while too little pressure can lead to uneven or failed watering. This is particularly problematic on slopes and hillsides, so soaker shoes are not recommended for uneven ground. The water tends to puddle at the lower end of the hose, resulting in even distribution of moisture.

Soaker hoses are less efficient and less precise than drip irrigation. Since they don’t have individual emitters, the water soaks out in every direction around the hose. In contrast, drip lines have different emitter spacings that only let water out at certain intervals. This means that soaker hoses can lead to more weed growth than drip lines, but less weed issues than overhead sprinklers.

Filtration is necessary for these hoses because the tiny pores can easily get clogged by debris or sediments in your water. Monitoring is also crucial because it is easy to overwater with a soaker hose. If you turn your irrigation system on and walk away, these hoses could oversaturate your beds in an hour or so, depending on the pressure.

If you are prone to overwatering your plants, clay pot irrigation with an olla is the most reliable solution. An olla (pronounced “oya”) is an open-topped unglazed clay pot used since ancient times for low-tech irrigation. The terra-cotta style containers are buried in the soil where they can slowly wick water out of the small pores whenever plant roots need moisture. Our favorite brand, GrowOya, offers three sizes for versatile use in different containers and raised beds.

This process works via natural phenomenons called moisture tension and capillary force, which explain how water molecules are attracted to soil molecules. When the surrounding soil is dry, more water comes out of the olla. If the soil is moist, water stays inside the olla until the moisture tension changes and soil particles wick more water out of the clay pot.

Research proves that buried clay pot irrigation is up to ten times more efficient than sprinkler irrigation. They can even be more efficient than drip lines if they’re used correctly. In addition to saving water, ollas ensure more consistent irrigation. The soil won’t fluctuate from super dry to super wet, which means your plants are less likely to succumb to problems like root rot or blossom end rot. This ancient irrigation method is especially useful in arid drought-prone areas like the Southwest.

The biggest drawback of an olla is the amount of space it takes up in the root zone of your planter or raised bed. These pots aren’t usually suitable for small containers, but they work great in large beds. There must be enough depth in the soil to fully bury the bottom of the olla, leaving only the cap exposed above the surface.

Ollas are also problematic for forgetful gardeners. This irrigation can be “out of sight, out of mind,” which means many people forget to refill the olla when it’s empty. While ollas solve the problem of daily irrigation, they still require a little bit of maintenance. The amount of time that it takes for an olla to empty varies dramatically based on soil conditions, crop needs, and the weather.

Most gardeners are familiar with sprinkler systems since they are ubiquitous in residential lawn care. However, sprinklers are not recommended for vegetable gardens or orchards. These pivoting emitters spray water up in the air as overhead irrigation. This is awesome for watering large open areas like lawns or lawn alternatives, but it can create a lot of unnecessary issues for edible and ornamental crops.

Although sprinklers have a lot of haters, they are still very useful in some settings. Large pastures and lawns need an even delivery of moisture. If you run sprinklers in the morning or evening, you can reduce the rates of evaporation. Sprinklers are also essential for germinating seeds over large barren areas. If your yard already has sprinklers, you don’t necessarily need to rip them out, but it is helpful to use them wisely.

Sprinklers are the least efficient form of irrigation. They waste a lot of water due to evaporation. Up to 50% of the water from a sprinkler is lost before the plant can even absorb it. This is because the moisture sits on the plant surface for long periods before it trickles down to the roots.

For short plants like grass, this isn’t as big of a deal. But for crops like tomatoes and squash, the water may fail to reach the soil surface where roots can uptake it. This creates even more issues because the soil may be dry, but the leaves remain wet. Wet foliage is an invitation for fungal diseases like powdery mildew and blight to take hold. On cool, cloudy, humid days, disease risk from overhead irrigation is even more amplified.

Another annoying thing about sprinklers is their non-target water delivery. In other words, they often spray a lot of areas that don’t need to be sprayed. While you can angle and pivot different sprinkler heads, they are still highly imprecise. This leads to saturating large areas of soil where weeds and unwanted plants can grow. It is very difficult to get sprinklers to deliver water only in the place where you want them.

A standard watering hose is essential in any garden. Even if you have other types of irrigation, the classic hose can’t really be replicated. This cheap, easy, and widely available irrigation is essential for watering in transplants, tending containers, and germinating seed beds. Whenever you want a lot of water in a targeted area, a hose and nozzle are your best friends.

Hoses beat watering cans in almost every competition, but especially when tending greenhouses, newly seeded beds, or newly transplanted seedlings. These are three situations where a hose is actually better than drip irrigation. Sometimes drip lines don’t deliver enough water at once to properly germinate seeds or water-in new transplants. This is where a properly aimed hose (and some patience) can dramatically improve your results!

Hauling a long garden hose around the garden isn’t always fun. A proper hose storage housing is extremely useful, especially if it rolls up the hose and pivots around as you move. This setup also requires the proper nozzles and wands. Nobody wants to bend over to water for long periods of time, so it is essential to invest in an elongated nozzle that allows you to easily water at the ground level.

Watering level is another crucial consideration for using a hose. This form of garden irrigation can be very ineffective if you spray your hose willy-nilly over the top of your plants. This essentially creates the same imprecise, disease-promoting, and water-wasteful effect of a sprinkler. Instead, a hose must be strategically aimed at the soil to saturate the root zone or seedbed of the targeted plants.

The good old-fashioned watering can is not completely obsolete. This option is great for small scale container gardens and indoor plants. It is the cheapest and most low-tech option on this list. If you have a very tiny garden and no access to a hose, then a watering can will suffice. Be sure to aim the tip of the can at the base of your plants and water until moisture flows out of the bottom drainage hole.

Watering cans are obviously the most inefficient form of irrigation in regards to human labor. You could spend hours walking back and forth from a sink or faucet to refill your watering can. These cute little cans also are linked to underwatering because many gardeners assume that a simple dump of the can is enough moisture for the plants.

Watering cans usually deliver all the water at once, which can create a puddle on the soil surface. This makes it look like you’ve properly moistened the soil, but the lower layers could still be dry. A hose makes more sense in most settings.

Dry farming is not technically a type of irrigation, but it is a real method for growing plants without additional water. If you love native species or ultra-flavorful fruits, you can try growing without any irrigation. Dry farming is a method of crop production that relies on moisture stored in the soil during the rainy seasons. If you amend the soil with lots of compost and organic matter, then plant your crops very deeply, they can thrive with no additional irrigation.

This method is the most reliable in areas with some summer rains, like the Northeast and East coast of the United States. It can be used strategically in areas with dry summers and wet winters, such as the Pacific Northwest, as long as steps are taken to prepare the soil in advance. Deep soil amendment, furrows, and other ground-storage of excess water ensures that crops can access moisture deep in their root zones whenever no irrigation is available.

Dry farming is especially useful for gardeners without access to irrigation or with limitations on water use. In these cases, you should prioritize native species that are naturally accustomed to the dry season in your region. Mulching is very important for retaining soil moisture through droughts.

When dry farming goes wrong, it’s pretty sad. It is mostly recommended for native landscaping (called xeriscaping), rather than vegetable production. While vegetable growers can pull this off, it requires much more planning, research, and preparation.

Improperly prepared soil will not be able to hold enough moisture throughout the season to fuel plant growth. It could require significant investments in compost or amendments to increase the organic matter and water holding capacity of your garden soil.