Automatic timer settings. Help please

[MrFancyPlants]

I have an old school spinning sprinkler (3 spinning bands and a central spray) and a timer that does every 6 or 12 hours for an optional number of minutes. Should I do 3 am and 3 pm for 3 or 4 minutes? Some are just sopping wet from when I tested today for 6 min.
I prefer watering by hand, but when you got to go, you got to go.

 

[GrimLore]

Try 2 minutes twice a day, I think you will find that to be ok

Grimmy

 

[JudyB]

When you say "some" are sopping wet, are all? Because you want to set it so all get super wet. Can you do longer for the morning one, and just a short time for the second one? When they get watered the primary time, it doesn't matter how wet they get- wet is wet. But the secondary watering, you just want to cool the pots, and get the top inch or so of soil damp, unless you live in hot and dry land, which I don't think you do.
But you don't want to skimp on the morning one, what if it's windy, and some of the water doesn't get where it should? Be safe, rather than the other thing....

 

[MrFancyPlants]

Unfortunately I can't set different durations for the am and pm waterings. I did however rearrange last night, so hopefully the coverage will be more uniform this time around. I put everything towards the middle of the yard in a circle and cranked the flow up higher. Fingers crossed for a day and a half of testing.

Thanks for the suggestions,
David

 

[Poink88]

Really depends on how evenly the water spray is distributed.

I just got back from a 10 day vacation and set mine for 3 minutes once a day to go on at 3:00 am. Plants are all okay...one quince actually "drowned/died" even at that interval. After setting the duration down to 2 minutes...I turned it off. I still prefer doing it manually. It will be turned on again when I go on extended vacation/trip.

 

[agraham]

It's not how much water you put on at a time. As Judy said.."wet is wet". More important is the frequency, and allowing adequate time between waterings for the soil to partially dry out.

 

[MrFancyPlants]

Thanks for the input. I ended up setting to 3am and 3pm for four minutes each and not a single one was ill of health when I returned. In fact most seemed to appreciate the time away from me messing with them. Lots of new buds... Foliage and flowers.

Thanks!

 

[lordy]

glad it worked out well for you.
When I leave for 2 weeks in July or August, I set my trees under a big maple in my back yard that gets AM sun. I set a fan-type sprinkler to go at 6 AM and 6 PM for 5 mins each. That way I can actually watch what happens. I watch it before I go to work and then when I get home in the evening. I do this for a week prior to leaving just to be sure the system works. In the last 9 years I havent lost one yet.

 

[JudyB]

Glad you didn't have any problems. When you come back and they seem happier, you have to ask yourself, am I watering enough while I'm here? Could be coincidence, but when I use the auto water, and things look happier, then I think about that....

 

[MrFancyPlants]

I agree, and I have been making some changes. Recently I re-did the top dressing on a number of trees that were not making it through the day without some wiltage, even with twice a day watering (). I scraped off the top layer of soil and replaced it with soil amended with extra compost from my worm bin. I had been making my mix more and more inorganic with only 5-10% orchid spaghnum, but the majority of my plants really appreciate the compost, mixed in or sprinkled on top.
Some of the tropicals looked happier, presumably not because of more water, but because I didn't have the chance to do the clip part of clip and grow. I'll try and post a few of those together to see if I should let them gather some more energy for now, or if I should make progress towards ramification and design.

 

[Poink88]

I am learning that using lava as top dressing (no matter what size, fine to 3" big rock) helps reduce drying a lot.

Regular soil mix (esp. high organic) tend to wick the moisture evenly throughout the pot (which is good)...BUT as the top dries, it draws water from within (cycle) hastening the drying time. Lava in my experience, seem to stop or slow it.

Of course substrate drying as roots suck the moisture is another story.