Adjustable nozzles simplify irrigation of large container plants

ADJUSTABLE NOZZLES are now being used to irrigate large containers. The system is simple, economical, and can be operated manually or automatically. One- and five-gallon container plants have generally been watered by overhead sprinklers. However, because the canopy of larger plants is widespread and the larger fifteen-gallon containers are spaced farther apart, these containers cannot be watered by sprinklers. Hand watering these plants by a drag hose has been the most commonly used method. This method is slow, labor consuming, expensive and often results in poor growth and nonuniformity. Assuming a labor cost of $1.35 an hour, each container costs the nurseryman $1.00 per year in labor alone. The nursery industry has been forced to find ways to reduce production costs, increase profit, or both. This article reports experiments to provide a better, and less expensive, irrigation system for large plant containers.