What does this summer hold for us with regard to rain?  There will be drought somewhere, I’ll guarantee it.  I’ve mentioned my interest in rain gardens.  My significant other and I took our first step over Memorial weekend by getting the gutters up, and linked to water barrels for watering our two large gardens out at the farm (it is way out near Ortonville, MN where there is BIG wind all the time, and that wind sucks the moisture out of the ground super fast).  We also invested in a fabric landscape material that has soaker hoses built right into them.  If you cover them with mulch, as we did to protect them from the deteriorating effects of UV rays, they will not only hold more moisture in for your plant roots, they’ll also last up to 20 years.

Here are a couple links to where you can find this type of product (we used the first one, you need a header hose to go with it):

http://02a5830.netsolstores.com/rainweave22x-1-1.aspx

http://www.rittenhouse.ca/asp/Product.asp?PG=177

We should all be conscious of water usage all the time, we only have so much clean water on this planet and that amount is shrinking as we contaminate it, and as glacial ice melts running into our oceans (it’s all fresh water, those glaciers). 

If we suffer a drought this year, there will be even more reason to conserve. 

There are a number of simple things that we can all do to conserve and use our water more efficiently, here are a few ideas:

·          Turn hot water down.  When you are running water for something – dishes, bath, washing machine, anything, if the water is too hot, don’t turn up the cold water – turn down the hot water!  You pay money to heat the hot water, so use less of that.

·          Use shorter cycles. A shorter cleaning cycle in your dishwasher is often enough. Try using the “quick wash” or “china and crystal” setting, especially if you rinse the dishes first. Using the air dry feature also saves energy. The same goes for laundry. “Quick wash” or the “light” setting is often all that is needed.

·         Use only what you need. Your bathroom faucet is often used only for washing your hands and face.  Try turning those water faucets full open, then go under the sink and turn the hot and cold water valves one half, to three forth OFF.  You should have enough water to wash hands or fill drinking glass and not waste water.

·         Reuse water.  Whenever we shower or wash vegetables we waste gallons of water.  Place a bucket in the shower to collect water during your shower and in your sink when you are washing fruits and vegetables.  Then use that water for potted plants inside and out, or anywhere there is a plant in need of water.

Feel free to add your ideas to these and share with others!!!