When you've got lots of closely planted thriving plants with thick
foliage and flowers, it can be pretty slow, hard and careful work
bending and gently pushing through the "jungle canopy" to see the
small patch of soil around the base of the plant where you actually
need to direct the stream of water from your watering can - rather
than wasting it on the leaves, which can't absorb it anyway. Even
when the water reaches the soil, you wonder how much is going to
evaporate, and whether it's reaching the root system of your particular
plant.

What's needed is a portable reservoir (preferably carried on the back)
connected to a long rigid tube attachment tipped with a pointed metal
nozzle. You would simply penetrate the soil around the plant with
the tip and squeeze a spray trigger to inject a standard amount of
water directly into the soil. The tube would push through the foliage
and you could do a lot of plants quickly without having to bend down
all the time to see what you were doing.

It sounds so obvious but I haven't seen anything like this. Does
anyone know if a gadget like this is available?


Ken Cohen

<kencohen [at] blueyonder.co.uk> wrote in message
news:1152214236.861324.298670 [at] s53g2000cws.googlegroups.com...
> When you've got lots of closely planted thriving plants with thick
> foliage and flowers, it can be pretty slow, hard and careful work
> bending and gently pushing through the "jungle canopy" to see the
> small patch of soil around the base of the plant where you actually
> need to direct the stream of water from your watering can - rather
> than wasting it on the leaves, which can't absorb it anyway. Even
> when the water reaches the soil, you wonder how much is going to
> evaporate, and whether it's reaching the root system of your particular
> plant.
>
> What's needed is a portable reservoir (preferably carried on the back)
> connected to a long rigid tube attachment tipped with a pointed metal
> nozzle. You would simply penetrate the soil around the plant with
> the tip and squeeze a spray trigger to inject a standard amount of
> water directly into the soil. The tube would push through the foliage
> and you could do a lot of plants quickly without having to bend down
> all the time to see what you were doing.
>
> It sounds so obvious but I haven't seen anything like this. Does
> anyone know if a gadget like this is available?
> Ken Cohen

You can get backpack type sprays for weedkiller etc. Maybe you could use one
of those?
Try farm suppliers ..........
Jenny

<kencohen [at] blueyonder.co.uk> wrote in message
news:1152214236.861324.298670 [at] s53g2000cws.googlegroups.com...
> When you've got lots of closely planted thriving plants with thick
> foliage and flowers, it can be pretty slow, hard and careful work
> bending and gently pushing through the "jungle canopy" to see the
> small patch of soil around the base of the plant where you actually
> need to direct the stream of water from your watering can - rather
> than wasting it on the leaves, which can't absorb it anyway. Even
> when the water reaches the soil, you wonder how much is going to
> evaporate, and whether it's reaching the root system of your particular
> plant.
>
> What's needed is a portable reservoir (preferably carried on the back)
> connected to a long rigid tube attachment tipped with a pointed metal
> nozzle. You would simply penetrate the soil around the plant with
> the tip and squeeze a spray trigger to inject a standard amount of
> water directly into the soil. The tube would push through the foliage
> and you could do a lot of plants quickly without having to bend down
> all the time to see what you were doing.
>
> It sounds so obvious but I haven't seen anything like this. Does
> anyone know if a gadget like this is available?
>
>
> Ken Cohen
~~~~~~~~~~
The foliage of all plants directs water flow to where it is most needed.
This is a natural secondary function of leaves and is most obvious during
rain. Accordingly watering on the leaves seems quite the best solution.
Best Wishes Brian.
>

"Brian" <bflay [at] tiscali.co.uk--- 'flayb' to respond> wrote in message
news:44ad69d5_1 [at] mk-nntp-2.news.uk.tiscali.com...
>
> <kencohen [at] blueyonder.co.uk> wrote in message
> news:1152214236.861324.298670 [at] s53g2000cws.googlegroups.com...
>> When you've got lots of closely planted thriving plants with thick
>> foliage and flowers, it can be pretty slow, hard and careful work
>> bending and gently pushing through the "jungle canopy" to see the
>> small patch of soil around the base of the plant where you actually
>> need to direct the stream of water from your watering can - rather
>> than wasting it on the leaves, which can't absorb it anyway. Even
>> when the water reaches the soil, you wonder how much is going to
>> evaporate, and whether it's reaching the root system of your particular
>> plant.
>>
>> What's needed is a portable reservoir (preferably carried on the back)
>> connected to a long rigid tube attachment tipped with a pointed metal
>> nozzle. You would simply penetrate the soil around the plant with
>> the tip and squeeze a spray trigger to inject a standard amount of
>> water directly into the soil. The tube would push through the foliage
>> and you could do a lot of plants quickly without having to bend down
>> all the time to see what you were doing.
>>
>> It sounds so obvious but I haven't seen anything like this. Does
>> anyone know if a gadget like this is available?
>>
>>
>> Ken Cohen
> ~~~~~~~~~~
> The foliage of all plants directs water flow to where it is most needed.
> This is a natural secondary function of leaves and is most obvious during
> rain. Accordingly watering on the leaves seems quite the best solution.

What he said. Plus, when the soil is covered by the foliage it keeps cooler
and moister for far longer.

Steve

JennyC wrote:
> <kencohen [at] blueyonder.co.uk> wrote in message
[...]
> > What's needed is a portable reservoir (preferably carried on the back)
> > connected to a long rigid tube attachment tipped with a pointed metal
> > nozzle. You would simply penetrate the soil around the plant with
> > the tip and squeeze a spray trigger to inject a standard amount of
> > water directly into the soil. The tube would push through the foliage
> > and you could do a lot of plants quickly without having to bend down
> > all the time to see what you were doing.
> >
> > It sounds so obvious but I haven't seen anything like this. Does
> > anyone know if a gadget like this is available?
> > Ken Cohen
>
> You can get backpack type sprays for weedkiller etc. Maybe you could use one
> of those?
> Try farm suppliers ..........
> Jenny

It would take a long time to water a plant thoroughly at the delivery
rate of a pesticide sprayer, and all that putting down and refilling
and pumping up and slinging onto the shoulders again would give my back
a lot more grief than repeated use of a watering can. And presumably
the few plants which actually _need_ watering in most areas are
shallow-rooted, so at sufficient pressure to do it reasonably quickly,
I imagine it'd do a lot of damage. If you want to shoot water into one
spot (maybe not a good idea, but it's not my garden), what's wrong with
just taking the rose off the can and taking more or less careful aim?
Or am I, as regrettably often, missing the point?

--
Mike.

you can get various devices fro carrying water in a back Pac to drink - try
any outdoor or cycling site - but they only seem to go up to 3 litres.

--
Hayley
(gardening on well drained, alkaline clay in Somerset)

Ken,

Just a thought & a few questions,

Why use a heavy watering can;) surely your using a light one?

Ohh you mean when you fill it with water:)
Make sure its a good brand, (I recomend Hawes) or at least well
balanced. Minimum weight then, if you can't deal with it, infvest in a
drip feed watering system or some porus hosing that will distribute the
water to the roots.

However we look forward to seeing your invention at an affordable price,
in garden centres soon!:)

Oh & if you've got a bad back & are anywhere near North London, I can
recommend an excellent physio.
J

<kencohen [at] blueyonder.co.uk> wrote:

> When you've got lots of closely planted thriving plants with thick
> foliage and flowers, it can be pretty slow, hard and careful work
> bending and gently pushing through the "jungle canopy" to see the
> small patch of soil around the base of the plant where you actually
> need to direct the stream of water from your watering can - rather
> than wasting it on the leaves, which can't absorb it anyway. Even
> when the water reaches the soil, you wonder how much is going to
> evaporate, and whether it's reaching the root system of your particular
> plant.
>
> What's needed is a portable reservoir (preferably carried on the back)
> connected to a long rigid tube attachment tipped with a pointed metal
> nozzle. You would simply penetrate the soil around the plant with
> the tip and squeeze a spray trigger to inject a standard amount of
> water directly into the soil. The tube would push through the foliage
> and you could do a lot of plants quickly without having to bend down
> all the time to see what you were doing.
>
> It sounds so obvious but I haven't seen anything like this. Does
> anyone know if a gadget like this is available?
>
>
> Ken Cohen


--
My Blog at: http://www.livejournal.com/users/sw33tf00l/

Brian wrote:

> The foliage of all plants directs water flow to where it is most needed.

That's an interesting proposition but I'm not convinced. Can you give
some examples to support your argument, Brian?



Ken

<kencohen [at] blueyonder.co.uk> wrote in message
news:1152300077.800782.231250 [at] p79g2000cwp.googlegroups.com...
>
> Brian wrote:
>
>> The foliage of all plants directs water flow to where it is most
>> needed.
>
> That's an interesting proposition but I'm not convinced. Can you give
> some examples to support your argument, Brian?
>
>
>
> Ken
>
It's a fact not a proposition and I am certain Brian will explain

Brian wrote:
> The foliage of all plants directs water flow to where it is most needed.
> This is a natural secondary function of leaves and is most obvious during
> rain. Accordingly watering on the leaves seems quite the best solution.

My Father used to say that, but my Father in law was a professional
horticulturist and he thought nothing of the year.

I have to say that after looking at rubber [1] bean, sweet pea, and
tomato plants in considerable detail this evening I see no evidence for
it. there.

Trees tend to provide very good shelter from rain, although you might
argue I suppose that the canopy directs water to the perimiter of the
root run and hence encourage the roots to spread and provide mechanical
stability. But in gentle rain most of my garden plants are dry
underneath.

Leaves arrange themselves for optimal light pick-up. I've not come
across any other suggestion in learned works. I am not convinced by
the idea, but I am delighted to find someone who agreed with my old
Dad.



[1] I know. But after I typed it it looked so good that I left it.

Mike Lyle wrote:

> If you want to shoot water into one
> spot (maybe not a good idea, but it's not my garden), what's wrong with
> just taking the rose off the can and taking more or less careful aim?

Yes, that's what I'm doing at the moment, but it's unsatisfactory.
It's very difficult to control the flow - you end up sloshing it
around, especially if you're having to extend your arm, and so you
waste a lot of water.

Ken

Brian wrote:


> The foliage of all plants directs water flow to where it is most needed.

Even if this were true, the total quantity of water which reaches the
place where it is most needed is surely reduced by foliage. So in
dry weather, or when the amount of water available is otherwise
limited, there may still be good reason to deliver water directly to
where it is most needed in the soil, rather than delivering it as
run-off from the foliage.

Ken

kencohen [at] blueyonder.co.uk wrote:
> Brian wrote:
>
>
> > The foliage of all plants directs water flow to where it is most needed.
>
> Even if this were true, the total quantity of water which reaches the
> place where it is most needed is surely reduced by foliage. So in
> dry weather, or when the amount of water available is otherwise
> limited, there may still be good reason to deliver water directly to
> where it is most needed in the soil, rather than delivering it as
> run-off from the foliage.

I don't think we can compare artificial watering, delivering a tiny
quantity, with rain, which can deliver amounts measurable in tons over
a wide area. I suspect that when it rains leaves act not so much to put
the water where it's wanted as to keep it away from where it's not
wanted: to prevent soil erosion by heavy rain in the immediate root
zone. In nature, rain relatively evenly moistens the soil in the
"field" as a whole.

Many or most garden plants aren't growing in the conditions for which
natural selection has suited them, and, of course, most garden forms
aren't the product of natural selection at all. So we have to maintain
the artificial environment, which may sometimes include watering. As a
crude general rule I'm not a fan of watering, but when it's necessary I
do agree it's more economical to water the soil rather than the plant.
But if it hurts your back, just stop doing it, and if need be grow
something else.

--
Mike.

<kencohen [at] blueyonder.co.uk> wrote in message
news:1152308900.822951.191930 [at] 75g2000cwc.googlegroups.com...
> Brian wrote:
>
>
> > The foliage of all plants directs water flow to where it is most
needed.
>
> Even if this were true, the total quantity of water which reaches the
> place where it is most needed is surely reduced by foliage. So in
> dry weather, or when the amount of water available is otherwise
> limited, there may still be good reason to deliver water directly to
> where it is most needed in the soil, rather than delivering it as
> run-off from the foliage.
>
> Ken]
~~~~~~~~
The foliage cannot reduce the water reaching the soil. The leaves direct
the water to the root hairs. It migt be easier to think that the new roots
,with their hairs, grow towards the readily available water~~ which is where
the leaves have deposited it. Directly under a tree can be totally dry but
the rain actually falls/drains to where the roots have their absorption
zone. Because it is dry under the tree does not mean that less is reaching
the tree. Just that all the rain is being directed to where needed.
Best Wishes Brian.
>

Brian wrote:

>The foliage cannot reduce the water reaching the soil.

I question that. If you water the plant from above, some of the
water is going to stay on the leaves and then evaporate, rather than
dripping onto the ground.

Ken

<kencohen [at] blueyonder.co.uk> wrote in message
news:1152367110.968502.180010 [at] 35g2000cwc.googlegroups.com...
>
> Brian wrote:
>
> >The foliage cannot reduce the water reaching the soil.
>
> I question that. If you water the plant from above, some of the
> water is going to stay on the leaves and then evaporate, rather than
> dripping onto the ground.
>
> Ken
>

Not wishing to get too academic about this but if the leaves are wet then
the rate of transpiration will slow and the amount of water needed at the
roots is reduced, hence the technique of misting plant leaves.
Given a finite amount of water then putting it at root level may be best but
how do you know where is the best spot? Do you water the root crown or the
root perimeter?
The best example I can think of where a plant directs water exactly where
needed is Gunnera. Every drop of water is funnelled off the waterproof
leaves
directly down the stalk and bang on the root crown.