Drip line placement question

[TRAILRIDER]

When using a drip line to water my raised bed gardens, do I place the hose under or over the mulch? What about if I am using rolled weed cover? Thanks. I can't wait for spring!

[oregon woodsmok]

I can only tell you what I do in my raised beds.

My "drip" line is under black plastic and the plants are planted through holes in the plastic. That's because I want the water to soak down into the root zone, not sit on top.

I started with weeper hose and it did not get the water to spread out. So a plant would have to be right next to it in order to get water. I pulled that out and replaced it with the type of soaker hose that has spray holes in it.

Real drip line would work for larger plants where you have one or two dribblers for each and every plant.

I've got drip line on my fruit trees and it is over the mulch because I planted the trees in an area that was already covered in plastic and alot of landscape rock and I didn't want to dig it all up. I have holes poked in the plastic so that the water will go through and get to the roots.

If your drip line is on top, you must drain it between uses, or else, boiling hot sun heated water drips out on your plants for the first several minutes.

[TRAILRIDER]

Thankyou, good information. I plan to use weed cover for most of the beds, so I will put the hose underneath. And yes I was wondering what kind of hose to use, so you gave me something to think about.

[ronbre]

better to use UNDER the mulch otherwise you might end up only watering the mulch and not getting the roots of your plants