Re: [gardeners] Eureka!!!!
penny x stamm (gardeners@globalgarden.com)
Mon, 25 May 1998 00:39:17 -0400
Margaret and George,
Part of the problem may have been solved with the wet spot
on the berm: we were working this morning on the Netafim soakers
on that side. The zone is about 90 feet long, and there are four
sorta parallel lines running thru the shrubery. Jimmie spotted
another leak -- actually, a small guyser. Then he turned around
and saw yet another leak, and he blew his cork. Cannot blame
him -- he's already reaired (big job) 3 or 4 places on that line!
So he demanded that we rip out all the Netafim in the area, and
install new. Then EYE blew my cork. No way, Jose -- the
azaleas and rhodies have grown over the lines, and it would raise
Cain to rip the stuff out. Jim said we could "draw" it thru but I know
what havoc it would raise. So he insisted that we then leave the
lines in place, and install new ones on top. We only have 100 ft
of new stuff on hand -- we'd have to buy a 1,000 foot roll to redo
the job! NO! I said, no, no. Jimmie said this takes priority, and I
said it does not. He is bigger and stronger than I, altho I am
louder -- so we came to a standstill. I agreed to give up all the
planting to get this job out of the way, provided that we did not
rip out the old lines, but he would not accept that. So I told him
he was fired, and thank heavens! he went inside to spend this
entire glorious day reading the newspaper! Then I set about
tracing the four lines (which were partially buried, and partially
out of place), straightening them, lifting some over grown
rhodies and breaking off nine branches in the process, cutting
off one excess line and securing the end, pinning the lines to the
ground with giant hairpins -- and it took me about 3 hours. That
still leaves the two original holes to repair with the blowtorch...
But while we were both still working there, Jimmie suddenly got
soaking wet -- the zone was not turned on, nor was the neighbor
watering. I realized in a flash that I had woven an auxilliary line
up there in the jungle to feed extra water to the 5 P.J.M. rhodies
which are there, for they always used to look wilted. I had
attached a by-pass from a flower bed zone about 40 feet away.
The shrubbery gets watered once a week, if there is no rain. The
[annual] flower beds get watered twice a day for 10 minutes, every
day. And of course, there was a hole in the Netafim within this
by-pass..! Close examination points a finger at the boy who dug
the holes for the new shrubs I had added. It looks as if he was
not careful (or lucky) enough to avoid knicking the lines as he
worked. They are laid out about 24 inches apart, and for the most
part, lie on top of the ground, so I had thought one could miss
them, but I guess not.
So there you have it: the puddle and natural bird bath which we
suddenly got was caused by the jet from the auxilliary dripper
hose which went on twice a day! I have now pulled that entire line
off to the side, so we can see if we will still get puddles...
............
By the way, do pussy willows like wet feet...?
Penny, NY zone 6
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