Miles of Hoses

I headed out to the garden after the husband left for work yesterday. Before I could lay hoses, I had to cut the grass and do some trimming, so I got that out of the way. I also did some weeding along the way. The strawberries are starting to ripen. I’m going to put row cover on them today to (hopefully) deter the turkeys.

I knew that laying out the hoses would be a big job. We have a lot of hose, mostly because the husband bought a bunch of 3/4" contractor-grade hose that turned out to be more trouble than it is worth. It is made of some polymer material that is plenty flexible when it is warm outside, but the manufacturer neglected to field test it in locations where the temperature drops below 60F. (Hello? We live in Montana.) Below 60F, this hose is as flexible as a steel rod. The husband got tired of dealing with it, so he bequeathed a bunch of it to me to use in the garden. I hate it, too. It is the hose of last resort.

The soaker hose is another problem entirely. I need 5/8" soaker hose because our water pressure is sufficiently high—even with a pressure reducer fitting—that it blows out the 3/8" soaker hose. I can’t use quick-connect fittings, either, because they won’t stay connected under pressure. I like the flat fabric soaker hoses, but I look at the sewing on them and the plastic fittings and I know that they probably won’t last more than a couple of seasons.

[The husband says no one wants to pay for quality hose; I said I don’t think anyone makes quality hose anymore. I am aware this is a first-world problem. I’m not hauling water in buckets from a mile away to water my plants, and for that I am grateful, but I am tired of paying for lousy quality merchandise.]

As a result, I have limped along the soaker hoses we’ve had for 20+ years. I really should have replaced them last year and didn’t. They’ve been spliced and repaired, but the longest length of 5/8" soaker hose is in such bad shape that it would have to be spliced about every six feet to make it usable.

I sorted out the larger soaker hoses that were still in reasonably good shape and ran one length around the squash and cucumbers. Another length went down the row of peas and over to the rhubarb and a couple of apple trees.

The tomatoes and potatoes still needed soaker hose. After lunch, I made a quick trip back into town to Walmart. I noticed, when I was there the other day, that they had some 5/8" soaker hose that looked to be of reasonable quality, so I bought five 50-foot lengths. It has metal fittings and it’s very flexible.

I may still need more after I get everything else planted, but at least I can water what is already there.

The husband and one of our employees put the shade cloth back on the greenhouse for me. Now that I don’t have hundreds of plants growing in there, it’s better to have less intense light coming in.

**********

Karina, at Lifting Pins and Needles on YouTube, posted an interesting video yesterday. In it, she talked about how she has come to dislike rayon spandex fabric and likely won’t use it anymore. Even with gentle treatment—my tops are washed on the delicate setting and hung to dry—the fabric eventually develops a white fuzz; it’s not pilling, per se, but just an allover white fuzz. It’s especially noticeable on darker or saturated colors.

Until Karina mentioned this, I thought it was because most of my rayon spandex has come from Joanns and Walmart (see previous comment about quality merchandise), but she lives in South America.

It’s a shame, because rayon spandex is one of my favorite fabrics. It’s cool to wear in summer and I like it much better than double-brushed polyester, which doesn’t breathe. I might buy some rayon spandex from Minerva or another reputable fabric supplier to see if it has the same issue.