Garden irrigation methods, ranked by efficiency
Drip tape comes out on top; sprinklers rank as least efficient.
Photo: Christopher Craig/Flickr 
Drip lines have a higher initial cost for equipment and take time to set up, but once they are laid out, they are the most efficient in terms of water use and time spent on landscape maintenance. They usually only need to be turned on once or twice a week for about an hour or two at a time and can be set on a timer. They can also be concealed under mulch or soil, if aesthetics are an issue.
The benefit of hand watering is that it allows you to water directly at the base of your plants instead of wastefully broadcasting water where you don't need it. Often this wasteful broadcasting just encourages weeds to grow. However, hand watering requires your labor and time each time you need to water.
All around, the water wand is the most efficient and convenient low-tech tool for hand watering. It is a hose attachment extending as a solid pipe a few feet from the end of the hose with a breaker, which is a sieve-style nozzle, at its end. They provide a soft, rain-like stream of water which is more gentle on the soil. In addition, its extended neck allows you to water directly at the base of plants without bending over. Many water wands come with a pressure valve which allows you to change the water pressure at the flip of the thumb. Dramm makes one of the best water wands, which go for about $30 with a brass pressure valve.
The can has some of the same benefits as the wand, in that it allows direct-point watering and a rain-like stream of water. However, a full watering can could be heavy to carry and will require more bending on your part to direct the water to the base of plants. Plastic watering cans are less expensive and a bit lighter, but will not last as long as their galvanized metal counterparts.
The problem with using an unmodified hose is that the single stream of water tends to remove topsoil, exposing plant roots, and since it has no pressure valve, tends to waste water. Trust me, if you're already using a hose to water, it is totally worth investing in a water wand.
Comments
This article complete leaves out the olla irrigation system or clay pipe irrigation system. I have found converting my clay pots into olla irrigation has worked quite well, although one day i hope to have a system more like clay pipes instead of clay pots. This link tells you how to use clay pots though: .... More
My father used greywater from the washing machine outlet hose to water part of the back yard back in the 70s--but it was just a hack he did. It worked great but I haven't been able to replicate it. That was in the days before soaker hoses, but that makes sense.
I have often wanted to give it a try but my plumbing skills aren't up to par and for the past decade we have been renters--so no hacking--officially hired or home is permitted.
Has anyone tried a rainwater or greywater collection barrel plumbed to their garden soaker hose? Would like to know as I would like to try that next year.
Using greywater is the most sustainable, most logical, and most economical. I don't have a system yet so I'm collecting water in 5 gallon buckets and watering my fruit trees with it.
