h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

What are the benefits/drawbacks? Which should be used?

Do you know, I hadn't actually said anything about hosepipes in the entry.

It's better to use a watering can if you are conserving water, however, if you have a very large garden, this could be impractical. If you do use a hosepipe, fit one of those handle things to it, so that you can turn it off at the business end. That way you're not leaking water over things that aren't going to appreciate water (like paths) as you get to the bit that you want to water. It also means that you can direct the flow much easier.

Hope this helps!

Not sure why 'water butts' needed to be defined in a footnote though.

Thanks, I'm a watering-can person myself, but just wondered if there was any advice on the subject.

I assumed water *butts* might need defining for our American friends.

You're always welcome to my advice. I might not be on the telly like Alan Titchmarsh, but my borders never die of lack of watering. The containers are different - which is why I avoided them in this entry.

I would have thought that if there's a water shortage in your area, you'll already be under a hosepipe ban unless you garden on an allotment. Hosepipe bans are perennial in S England, and you don't get a refund if you've already paid for a hosepipe licence that year.

I seem to remember in 1976 that some houses ran their washing machine hoses (connected to thin polythene bag type hoses) out of the kitchen windows directly onto the garden. Not great for delicate plants, but it could help some of your more robust stuff.

Washing up water and bath water didn't hurt the garden either. Mind you, carrying several bucketfuls of grey water through the house and down the garden is best done in something you don't mind getting wet!

Another thing done all year round was putting tea leaves around plants to help keep the soil moist and to offset the very heavy clay.

Hosepipe licence? Not heard of one of those!

As far as I know these are the first hosepipe bans for years, not even during the heatwave of 2003 did we have a hosepipe ban in our area, although I believe Sussex regularly has them. It's only come in because of two years of below average rainfall, and I live in an area supplied by two different water companies - so I don't have a ban, but others in the area do.

I did mention grey water in the entry.

do you think there will be a water shortage?

There already is one in a few places, although I'm not sure what this month's rain will have done to help. Probably not a lot because when we have heavy rain showers rather than persistant 'medium' showers the rain often doesn't get to where its needed and is swept into sewers and out to sea (and into properties! http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/north_yorkshire/5005384.stm) rather than into the aquifers and reservoirs.

It has been the wettest May for over 20 years, so hopefully it will have helped a bit.