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Saturday, March 13, 2021 Matt D. Connecticut

Entry 16 of 90  
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Heating Cables Covered

Now that the heat cable is set and covered, it is now time to work on organizing the drip tape that can be seen above. While it looks like a mess, it does take a little time to get each line in the proper order and parallel to each other. However, time spent now is well worth it in the season.

Drip irrigation offers some of the most consistent watering in the soil profile and the ability to automate it and add fertilizer makes it a must for giant pumpkin growing. Also, being in structure limits to natural rain so irrigation is even more important.
Each line has a shut off valve to allow for even more control over the irrigation during the growing season. For those who want to know the details…

Total of 48 lines each 31ft. long to cover my 40ft x 32ft single plant area
Drip Tape Thickness: 15mil.
Emitter Spacing in Tape: 8 inches
Flow Rate per 100ft @ 8psi: 20 GPH (or 0.34 GPM)
Space between Drip Tapes: 9 inches
Run Time: Daily for 30-60min. (*This will depend on the season and plant stage of development as I can also control the flow to each line individually, so I may select to have two 30min. irrigation events per day during peak growth and heat.)
Estimated Water Usage: 150 gallons per 30min. irrigation over 1,280 sq.ft.
 



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