Raised beds with drip irrigation are the easiest way to grow your own vegetables.

In our video on raised beds, Tricia shows you how to create a raised bed in minutes, using Insta Brace or jumbo-sized Smart Pots. Raised beds offer easy planting, weeding, and harvesting. Want to make the watering easy too? Add drip irrigation -- with a timer, it will deliver a steady supply of water to your plants, whether you're in the garden or on vacation in Paris. We have a diagram showing you how to construct your own drip lines and sprayers, and we offer a pre-made kit too. The only complicated part about drip irrigation for raised beds is the initial connection to the outdoor spigot. We'll walk you through that process right now, and you can also see our video on the subject.

Set Up Your Water Source

Watch Tricia connect her irrigation system to a spigot. This is the way to start to any kind of timed, drip irrigation system (large or small). Attach the Y Connector to your outdoor spigot and then add the other parts in order:

• Y Connector with Shut Off
• Electronic Water Timer
• Vacuum Breaker
• Flushable Y Filter (no longer need the brass adapters with the filter)
• Pressure Regulator
• Filters are recommended for all drip irrigation systems, but if you have very clean, city water you might be able to get along without one.

Poly Tubing Gets The Water To Your Raised Bed

Poly tubing is the spine of your drip irrigation, and it's purple in this diagram. Use Power-Loc Tees (black in this diagram) to connect the 1/2" poly tubing. You can see the shaded areas, showing the scope of the sprayers. This diagram shows several blue dots for Olson O-Jet Sprayers on Olson Riser Tubes and Spike Stakes: 4 45° sprayers and 2 180° sprayers. The 2 360° Sprayers in the center have 1/4" Barbed Couplers connecting 1/4" poly tubing to Irrigation Stakes. If your bed is smaller you might be able to eliminate the 180° sprayers. You can choose the spray diameter of your Ultra-Jet Sprayers to fit your raised bed. This diagram shows blue sprayers with 11" spray diameter for a bed that is approximately 2'x2'.

For more information:

We have advice, and installation tips, at our Drip Irrigation page. We have a helpful video guide to start your journey. If you’re in the Grass Valley area, come to our store and nursery where our knowledgeable staff will answer your questions and show you the full range of irrigation products.