Bill the truck gets a new handy use...
Watering vehicle!
Last month, we posted HERE about the pear tree we have that's covered in fruit even though we never watered it. Well, apparently, that works great when Mother Nature is helping with periodic heavy rains, but this year we are in an epic drought and have a tree covered in fruit for the first time.
We are not going to lose that without a fight.
The tree isn't anywhere near a watering source, no faucets or even electricity for some sort of pump. So we had to think outside the box. That's when we realized the truck could help with that.
We decided on 5 gallon buckets and bought these three and figured that would work for what we needed.
I put them in the back of the truck and filled them up, each one holding 5 gallons of water. With the truck bed, no worries if water sloshed out while driving, like if it was in the back of my Jeep, ha!
Once they were filled, I drove the truck to the water faucet. You can see the path here. Because of the dry weather, no worries of getting the truck stuck. Of course, if it was wet enough to worry about driving the truck back there, we wouldn't be worrying about watering, so there's that.
I drove to the pear tree, backed up and let the lift gate down. Then I just grabbed each bucket of water and poured it around the base of the tree. I did this for the three buckets and went back and refilled them and came back again. That's 30 gallons of water for the tree. That should be good during this hot, dry weather and help the pears to get bigger and juicier.
It's the best we could come up with without having any water source near the tree and wow, it works perfectly and becomes another great use for the truck.
As a reward for his hard work...
...we bought Bill some bling, LOL! We think he looks cool with these fuzzy dice hanging from the mirror.
Good thinking. Got a happy tree once again.
ReplyDeleteThere are times when we just have to think outside the box.
Enjoy your weekend
Sometimes that's what you have to do, ha. Thanks!!!
DeleteBill is a farm truck ... so, it's logical to use him as such! He's been resting on his radials long enough ... Time for him to earn his keep!
ReplyDeleteLOL I hope you don't have to ration your water usage ... rain is definitely needed!!
"resting on his radials" love it! Yep, put him to work. There is rain in the forecast this week but sporadic so it might be hit and miss out there. We are on our own well water so it's free and no rationing. Of course we have to hope the aquifer holds up. It did in the 2011 drought so hopefully this will be ok.
DeleteOH MY Did those DICE bring back memories of when I knit fuzzy angora dice in the 1950's for my boyfriends truck !!! Thanks for taking mw down memory lane!
ReplyDeleteOh wow, what a sweet comment and memory to share. Thank you. I wish we had some authentic fuzzy dice but these will do in a pinch, ha. I used to drive a PT Cruiser and had some fuzzy black dice with white dots. Such a fun memory. :-)
Deletewhat a good idea! it's hard to keep up with the watering here. i am dragging around a lot of hoses.
ReplyDeleteIt's something to think about when planting, "distance to water" ha. We'll keep the important stuff close to the house and have lots of hoses. But this is a good backup plan for the further areas.
DeleteBut, does Bill like the dice? Maybe you could put one hole in the bottom of one bucket and leave it at the tree. By pouring one bucketful of water it it, the pear tree could get a slow drip. Put the lid on to avoid evaporation. Just one small hole.
ReplyDeleteHe does like it. At least that's what he said. LOL! I like that idea, a slow water is good for it.
DeleteGreat job for Bill the Truck! Now he’s happy, earning his position as Farm Truck.
ReplyDeleteAnd your pear tree is happy too with its good drink.
Happy truck happy tree, ha.
DeleteGotta take care of those fruit trees! Good thinking. Having a way to transport water is a really good idea.
ReplyDeleteIf we had a small UTV type vehicle we'd sue that but hey, this works just fine. We'll have to use it for all sorts of transportation needs. :-)
DeleteI bet the tree really appreciates it.
ReplyDeleteWhen we planted a bunch of trees and rains didn't come, we put buckets with small holes drilled in them next to the trees and filled those up. When the ground is dry and there's not big enough of a depression to hold water, that allows the water to soak in slowly instead of dumping a bit at a time, or it all running off. We used a combination of 5 gallon or kitty litter buckets tied to stakes so they wouldn't blow away when empty of course. A town near us has some sort of bags they fasten around the tree trunks, apparently they do dual purpose - protect the tree trunks from rabbits, and hold water to release slowly. But those look to be more of a pain to fill than buckets.
I wonder - is there some way to put water catchment on the sheds and house, with some way to back Bill under the tank to take the whole thing out to do the watering? It might save a bit of well water. Also, for some reason plants love rain water better than well water, no idea if it's the temperature or minerals.
Interesting about the rainwater. Will have to remember that. Another vote for slow water too. When we have something done to the house, a water reclamation/saving method will be for sure.
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