Does anyone here use rain barrels for their container gardens? D in TN
Rain barrels
I don't have a "real" rain barrel but I use a 30 gallon plastic trash can with a window screen over it to filter out debris. I also catch water in 5 gallon buckets.
That is great! I did that too until I saw that I didn't get enough with one barrel. Can we ever have too much water? D in TN
Can never have too much and it saves a LOT on your water bill!
Our rain gutters are connected to an underground dry well that diverts the rain water away from the house to various locations on the lawn, however, we can't determine the use of the water. I wish we'd installed a cistern to hold the water for use exactly where we wanted it when it was needed. It just didn't enter our thoughts until after we'd moved in. It is amazing how much water is generated by even a light rain. Does the barrel overflow frequently?
Pamgarden, I built in an overflow hose that carries the excess to other barrels and the last barrel has an overflow that ultimately goes to the gutter system and ends up in the street. Waaaa. I like the cistern idea. Is there no downspout you could use? D in TN
Devota, There isn't a downspout that could easily be diverted to a rain barrel because of their location, but we do want to build a garden shed with a steep pitched roof, and I would divert that water directly to a barrel (or two) for the garden around the shed. Wish we had the money and energy to do all the great ideas I get from DG. I've got a long list
I know how that goes. Sounds like you have a great plan anyway. D