6 Essential watering gadgets
PREVENT plants from getting thirsty during hot and dry weather by making sure you’ve got the right watering kit. From a super tough hosepipe to a fancy water butt, here are six of the best products to keep your garden looking fresh this summer.
1 Draper Water Butt Pump
Most gardeners use their water butts to fill up watering cans, but this submersible pump with a 350-watt motor has a connector that allows it to be attached to a garden hosepipe or micro-irrigation system. It can be submerged up to a depth of three metres, switches off automatically when the water level is close to the bottom, and comes with a ten metre-long electric cable and plug.
£54.98 toolstation.co.uk
2 Gardena Wall-Mounted Hose Box RollUp XL
Fed up with having to crank a handle to wind in your hosepipe? Then check out the wall-mounted hose reel from Gardena that features an automatic rewind function – the 35-metre long hose unwinds smoothly and retracts with a small tug. The black and blue plastic housing comes with hooks for storing accessories, and its bracket swivels by 180 degrees, making it easy to manoeuvre.
£164.95 worldofwatering.co.uk
3 Haws Warley Fall Green Watering Can
An old-school watering can is just the thing for delivering water accurately to the roots of plants. This classic model from Haws, is made from galvanised steel with a green powder coated finish and has a twogallon capacity. Weighing 10kg when full, it comes with a non-drip, brass sprinkler head and boasts a long spout that makes it easy to reach to the back of displays. £74.99 haws.co.uk
4 Hozelock Tuffhoze
If you’re fed up with flimsy hoses springing a leak, then Hozelock have come up with an answer with the aptly named Tuffhoze. Consisting of a PVC inner core that’s surrounded by a durable woven textile jacket, it’s claimed to be 50 per cent lighter than traditional hoses and stays free of kinks when pulled around the garden. Available in three lengths, it comes with a 30-year guarantee.
5 Lechuza Balconera Color self-watering planter
Take the guess-work out of keeping planters watered with this self-watering device from Lechuza. Measuring 50cm long by 19cm wide, with a depth of 19cm, the UV and frost resistant plastic container kit features a planter liner, a sump that holds three litres of water, and a water level indicator, and comes with substrate for drainage. It’s available in eight colours, including petrol blue and coral red.
£37.99 lechuza.co.uk
6 Noblesse Decorative Water Butt
Some water butts stick out in the garden like a sore thumb but this has been built to be both attractive and useful. Made from polyethylene, the geometric, charcoal-coloured unit has a textured finish and a lid that can be removed to allow plant pots to be displayed on top. Fitted with a swanky chrome tap, it holds 60 gallons of water and measures 105cm high by 79cm wide, with a depth of 41cm.
£317.99 waterbuttsdirect.co.uk