Hey gents, I have a question that I can't seem to find the answer to. I'm looking to replace my soaker hose irrigation with a drip irrigation for both of my gardens this coming year. My smaller garden I know I can get away with 1/2" supply line and 1/4' drip tubing (.8gph x 6" emitter spacing), as the rows are around 50' long there. And the smaller garden is only 77' to the far side from the hydrant.

Here is a sketch of what I'm planning. Blue line would be the 1/2" supply line. The far side of the blue line is 77' from the hydrant. The orange line would be the 1/4' drip line.


The larger garden is 100' from the hydrant to the far side. There are (7) 100' long rows and I'm planning on adding 3 more this spring. I'm thinking since a 5/8" supply line is rated for 250' I can use it for my supply, and use 1/2" drip tube (.9gph x 18" emitter spacing) for each row. But my question is will this supply enough water to the farthest point in the farthest row? The ground is relatively level so I assume that would help. The other garden looks similar to the pic above, except the rows are wider and longer. I'm just looking to get away from the soakers because closer to the hydrant gets saturated while the farthest point barely gets any water.

Blue would be 5/8' supply line approx 100' long. The orange would be 1/2" drip line approx 100' long each

the rough math says you will be good -- less than 1 gpm per line so less than 7 gpm total -- as long as it is off of a pressurized system. If it does get to be too much just bring your main to the center and valve it so you only feed 1/2 at a time.

So the easiest way to fix the problem with the soakers putting out more water at the front than the back is to run a loop all the way around the garden and connecting the lines on both sides. this will equalize the pressure.

I have a similar setup, but I use impact sprinklers and I Run 1" 100psi poly line to each head. I then convert to 3/4 garden hose and run around to garden to complete the loop. Its just about equalizing the pressure across all lines.

Amish use drip irrigation on a large scale.
It may not look good , but those large 300 gallon square tanks( or larger) are what they use.
They have the tank on a platform arounf 5 foot and higher .
They fill the tank , then open the valve to a 2 inch ( some are larger) or so opening that feeds a line of the same size.
There're 1 or 3/4 inch drip tape to the rows of crops.
All are fed from the same tank.
They also use plactic row cover that helps hold the moisture , and keep weeds down.
They also feed the crops with this system.Everything is planted in mounds , so they drain well , yet the drip lines keep them moist with the plastic helping.
There may be Amish farmers near you , so go visit them and find out how to set it up.

All the rows in the big garden will be covered in fabric. The small garden is 100% covered with fabric. My wife just got me a new 330gal food grade IBC tote for a watering system. My plan is to use it until I run out of rainwater, then switch to city water.

I was thinking of also adding a shut-off valve to each row from the main line. this way I could water my melons/pumpkins more than my beans and peppers.

if you add the shutoff valves to each line then you could add a few more lines as long as you don't try to run them all at the same time. That would accomplish the same thing as running the main to the center.

How long do you guys let water go thru the drip tape. I’m think about buying a plastic layer and moving my tomatoes and strawberries to plastic.

Call Irrigation Mart in Ruston LA. they can tell you everything you need to know.

good application for that -- lots of variables - soil, temps, crop stage. If you like math and want to be bored out of your skull got to the usda website (can't remember the address now) you can get lots of info there.If you talk to your local (AG) irrigation company they can also give you some guidelines that fit in your area and crops. While I have designed, sold, and serviced irrigation systems for 30+ years most of my experience has been with sprinkler, pivots, and big guns. My drip experience has been with Hazlenuts (yea we water them here) - which is not a very moisture sensitive crop in my area - especially with our heavy soils.

The typical tape sizes are 5/8 and 7/8 -- but the spacing and flow rates can vary widely -- there is also pressure compensating for systems that have long lines or large elevation differences