Product Review: Good Ideas Rain Wizard

I’m always thankful for the rain when it comes to my garden. It means my plants are happy and watered without me needing to head out and take care of it. Wouldn't it be nice if I could just always use rain instead of adding to my water bill? As a sustainable gardener, in my apartment, I usually try to collect rain in 5-gallon buckets during the summer, but it's not always enough. Now that we're moving into our new house, a rain barrel is a must for my garden planning next summer!

One good option is the Good Ideas Rain Wizard. This, like other rain barrels, is a big plastic barrel that you put outside and it collects water as it rains. There is a spigot on the bottom where you can hook a hose up and water your lawn or your garden without worrying about what it’s doing to the water bill. I always feel bad about wasting water on grass, and it’s also much better for the environment.

As an added bonus, this is a great idea for people who live in places where there are water shortages during certain times of the year. Collect as much of the rain as you can when it comes, and then use it to water your garden during dry periods!

Features of the Good Ideas Rain Wizard

Good Ideas Rain Wizard - Oak.

• It’s made of BPA free plastic so it’s not going to contaminate your water even if it’s sitting in there for a long time. 
• The 50 gallon size means you’ll be able to capture a ton of rain water and you don’t need to worry about it running out too fast. 
• The hole on the top has a grate over it to keep pets and children safe. It also keeps out bugs and debris. It’s easily removable in case you want to set it up so your gutters drain the rain into it. 
• No flimsy plastic spigot, it’s made of brass so you won’t need to worry about it breaking off when you attach the hose. 
• Plastic sides are thick and sturdy so there won’t be any breaks or leaks. Direct sunlight won’t dull or ruin the barrel in any way. 
• It also comes in a bunch of colors and in my opinion it looks quite decent.

 Are There Any Downsides?

There are a few cons to this and other rain catching barrels.

One is that you don’t want to leave them out during the freezing months. Like a hose, you want to empty it and move it into a shed or garage once temperatures get low enough to freeze.

Also, it's only 19 pounds empty but as it fills up don’t expect to be able to easily move it. Fifty gallons of water is HEAVY! 

Conclusion

The Good Ideas Rain Wizard is a great way to save money on your water bill and is great for the environment. Rain water is perfect for watering your plants and lawn sustainably. It’s sturdy and pretty much set and forget as long as you empty it before the first freeze of winter. All-in-all, a rain barrel like this can be a great investment considering how much money you can save on your water bill when you no longer need to pay to water the lawn or your garden.

Installing an Irrigation System

For your garden to survive it is essential to have an effective watering plan and this can be made somewhat easier by installing an irrigation system.

There are many products on the market that allow just about anyone to install their own irrigation system.

The first thing you will need to do is set out a plan of where the irrigation needs to go, taking into account your water supply, the types of plants that you will be watering, and the flexibility in water management that you will need.

Flexibility in water management is particularly important, as this will allow you to supply varying contents of water to specific plants to ensure all the plants in your garden are getting their optimum requirements.

"The principle behind drip irrigation is to deliver water directly to the base of the plant, as opposed to indiscriminately watering the ground around the plants. This means that all the water being expended is being used to nourish the plant, while wasting less in the surrounding soil, and losing less to evaporation." (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Another factor that you should consider is having a timed irrigation system where you can supply water to your plants on a regular basis even if you are away on holiday for an extended period of time. These timed watering systems are very cost effective and can save you a lot of money that could otherwise be lost in plants that die due to a lack of water, and they also reduce waste by delivering the water directly to where it is needed, instead of indiscriminately watering the whole area.

There are a wide variety of soaker and sprinkler type water systems and they all have their specific benefits for your garden.

If you are unsure what your garden requirements are, many of the home irrigation systems have information to help you make educated decisions but if that still leaves you in doubt then a consultation with a garden professional could save you a lot of time and money.

Before buying anything check out the prices from the online garden supply stores as you will generally get a better price than buying elsewhere and if you do find you need help from a professional, you can simply get their recommendations and buy the products elsewhere to save money.

You can find some helpful resources and watering supplies at good prices at http://www.newholisticliving.com/sustainablegardening.html.

Video - Harvesting Rainwater for the Garden

Here is a short video demonstrating how one New Mexico gardener irrigates his garden using harvested rainwater. In a low-water area such as New Mexico, it is quite a blessing to be able to harvest and store the rare but plentiful monsoon rains. See this video for some nifty tips for storing water, and also watering the garden with it - including what to do with your rainwater tank in the winter to ensure it doesn't freeze.

How To Harvest Rain Water For The Garden
Learn how a Gallup, New Mexico gardener harvests rain water to irrigate his gardens. From the Southwest Yard & Garden series.


A Couple of Rainwater Harvesting Tanks to Check Out: 
 

Low Water Summer Gardens

If you live in a desert community or in an area that often experiences seasons of drought or extremely dry times during the year then it is quite likely that you would be best served by considering a summer garden that requires a little less water than the average summer garden by avoiding the lush greens and big 'drinking' plants that many people prefer to keep in their gardens in favor of plants that consumer water more economically and employing water saving methods to maximize the benefit of water that is used in your garden.

Image via WikipediaThere are several things you can do in order to insure that your garden is water friendly and doesn't over tax water systems that are often overburdened in attempts to keep them lush and green. One of the first, and most responsible things you can do is scale back your idea of what a summer garden should be. You do not need a huge garden filled with lush greenery in order to make a good impression. In fact, a responsible garden that conserves the natural resources and highlights the natural plant life is often a garden that is much more deserving of accolades than one that uses too many of the limited natural resources that are available.

The second thing you should do is think local rather than global when finding suitable plants for your low water summer garden. Dessert plants and flowers are accustomed to the dessert climate and can survive with low amounts of water and flourish. If you must have some of the more lush greenery or a few more exotic plants in your garden consider using them sparingly and supplementing your garden with local plants and flowers.

Image via WikipediaThird, you should use things that aren't plants in order to fill in gaping holes in the landscaping. For this you could use rocks, stones, nice lawn ornaments and a wide array of other things to fill in the holes that you feel are left behind by the absence of greenery and create borders and boundaries for your low water summer garden.

Finally, if you must have a lawn, keep it green by using low water grass mixes. This is a great way in almost any climate to combat drier than normal summer seasons and keep lawns lush and green without investing a great deal of time and effort watering it. The savings in water costs alone are often quickly cover the cost of the investment in the new grass for your lawn and will help the focus remain on your bright and beautiful lawn to the point that many homeowners do not lament the absence of a huge summer garden.

Living in an area that doesn't have the natural resources necessary to create a beautiful and lush summer garden should not eliminate the possibility of having any sort of garden at all. By making wise decisions in regards to the type and volume of plants to include in your summer garden you can take matters into your own hands and insure the ability to maintain a low water sustainable garden that will be the envy of the neighborhood. Combine these efforts with water conservation methods inside your home for amazing results and a beautiful summer garden no matter how dry the area in which you live may be.

A Few Good Low-Water Gardening Resources:
    

Using Rain Barrels to Survive Droughts

If you’re a gardener that has an unlimited supply of water, consider yourself lucky. There are many who live in drought zones where the garden and lawn watering rules are very constrictive to the healthy growth of gardens and plants. Many people just give up when they find out how few gallons of water they are permitted to use, but some have just found ways to cope with less water. There are many ways to optimize ones garden to conserve water while still keeping it lush.

Some of the ways include drip irrigation (the use of a pipe or hose with small holes to gradually seep into the roots of the plant), the placement of plants in groups of equal watering needs (to prevent wasting water on plants that don’t need it), and using compost or mulch to insulate the soil and prevent drainage.

Image via WikipediaBut one of the best ways to keep your garden alive during a drought is to take preventative measures. Occasionally a drought will be predicted in advance, or those already experiencing a drought will be given a few days of heavy rain. When this occurs, you should take the opportunity to set up several rain barrels. Some people think this would be a time consuming, silly thing to do. But it can save you many gallons of water, and hardly requires any work.

Finding the barrels will probably be the hardest part. You can use your own garbage cans, or head to your home improvement store to get a few 55 gallon plastic drums. These can sometimes be expensive and difficult to transport - especially if you have a small car, so keep that in mind before you go to the store. You will probably want to cover the top of the barrel with a screen of some sort to filter out any unwanted leaves or debris that might fall off the roof of your house (or you can just use a skimmer later to skim out any leaves, if that's easier).  For a  more permanent solution, you can also find much larger specially designed rain collecting barrels or tanks, which can be hooked up to a corner of your gutter system, and can actually hold hundreds of gallons in some cases.

Once you have your barrels ready, you’re faced with the decision of where to place them. Usually during rainfall, there is one corner or segment of the house that rain tends to pour off of. If you are taking the simple approach to barrel placement, just place the barrel under all the places where you see large amounts of drips. However, while this might be the easiest way to place them, you might not see very high volumes of rain in the barrels.

Image via WikipediaIf you want to take a more complicated approach to placing the barrels, you should consider tweaking your gutter system a bit. If you remove each individual segment and place it at a very slight slant so that all the water is diverted to the nearest corner of the house, you can place a rain barrel at each corner. So essentially your entire house acts as a catcher for the rain, instead of just a few feet worth of shingles. This is how to maximize the amount of water your rain barrel will catch.

After a heavy rainfall, each individual barrel might only be partially full. If it looks like it won’t be raining more any time soon, it’s a good idea to empty each barrel into one main central barrel. Seal it and save it out of the way, for whenever you may need it. Then the next time it starts to rain, you’ll be able to quickly put all your empty catching barrels into place without having to lug around all the water you’ve accumulated so far.

The use of water barrels might sound like an antiquated idea. However, when you’re in the midst of a drought and you’re able to spare that extra couple of gallons for your garden in addition to the city allotment, you’ll be grateful for every bit of time and money you spent on collecting all that rain. All it takes is a few trips out in the backyard every time it starts to sprinkle, and you’ll be a much happier gardener when water isn’t so abundant.

Rain Barrels for Sale:
 

Video – Benefits of Xeriscaping

For those new to xeriscaping, this video provides a nice introduction, a description of some of the benefits to be gained, as well as some good ideas for incorporating xeriscaping into your own garden.

Xeriscaping can be a great addition to our sustainable gardening practices, conserving water as well as other resources, while still providing an attractive and productive garden. (If video does not appear below, please click link to view.)

Xeriscaping Basics-HGTV Pro
Xeriscaping uses drought-tolerant native plants for a water-efficient yard. This video is part of Best Practices show . SHOW DESCRIPTION :The best techniques for building and remodeling homes.




(For more sustainable gardening ideas and resources, please visit http://www.newholisticliving.com/sustainablegardening.html.)