How to create a deep watering irrigation system?

Murlun

Hi, I currently have 7m (left side) and 9m (top side) of Murraya Paniculata hedging plants. As the plants have started to grow bigger, watering them has become more difficult as I have to get under the leaves for each plant, and very time consuming.

I am looking to set up some kind of irrigation system. I do not really know where to start, or what product I should be looking at. 

I would love to hear if anyone has any thoughts on how I should approach this, I would like to give a deep water to the plants 2-3 times a week, which using a hose on each plant isn't really feasible time wise. Should I look at a soaker/drip feed etc. 

I have a garden tap attached to the side of the house, between the garden hose and the lawn is cement, so I guess i'll have to run some kind of piping over the cement. In the garden bed I have rocks covering the dirt, and garden edge pavers as you can see in the pictures.

If I ran some kind of irrigation system, could I temporarily move the rocks, then bury the irrigation under the rocks, then put the rocks back on top of it, so it can't be seen. And could I run the irrigation next to the pavers (or along the fence)? or does it need to be more centered near the center of the plants so it evenly waters it?

Apologies there are many questions, but I am still trying to get my head around the best way to approach this.

Thank you!

MitchellMc

Hi @Murlun,

A simple way to set this up is to run a single weeper hose, such as the Nylex 12mm x 25m Weeper Hose With 2m Garden Hose, around the garden bed. For best results, position the hose as close to the base of the plants as possible so the water goes directly into the root zone. Running it along the fence line won’t be as effective, since the water needs to soak in around the root ball. Pulling back the gravel and tucking the hose underneath is a good idea, as it will hide the line while still allowing the water to get through.

The trickiest part will be getting water across the concrete. The simplest option is to lay the hose across and use a cable protector to stop it from becoming a trip hazard. If you want something more permanent and tidy, you could look at having a trench cut through the concrete and a plumber run a line across to the garden bed, then install a tap or connection point on that side. This way, you can keep everything neat and out of the way while making deep watering much easier. 

Lastly, a tap timer will be essential so you don't have to worry about cycles. There are also WiFi versions you can control from your phone.

Please let me know if you have any questions.

Mitchell