And the winners are.............

[jack]

last comment, had only 4 hours sleep last night. been finishing work at 2am for 4 nights running now and have 2 more nights to come, so that may help explain previous posts.
caffeine has side effects

[Sam]

Approx 13 shires in Qld (mainly south east, I believe) have imposed the following:

No sprinklers whatsoever.

Hand watering only between midnight and 7 am and 7 pm and midnight on alternate days (odd numbers Tues, Thurs, Sat - even numbers Wed, Fri & Sunday).

You can, however, water your car anytime, so long as you use a trigger hose.

Comment has been made that whoever made up the rules is not a gardener.

In our shire, Caboolture, for at least ten years we have been able to sprinkle on the alternate days as above between 6 am and 8 am and then 5 pm to 8 pm, hand watering any time. I'd be happy to only be able to hand water in those hours. I don't want to water before 7 am as it is far too hot and the water just evaporates. I don't particularly want to water after 7 pm - it is dark then and I hate toads. It has also been pointed out - how much fossil fuel etc are we wasting if we have to light up the entire garden to be able to water. Also, a lot of elderly people are saying they just do not feel safe being outside in the dark.

The other thing for our family is that we HAD a lovely routine with the kids, watering late afternoon in the relative cool of the day, with the kids eating whatever vegetables they could. I think it is bordering on the ridiculous to take them outside in the pyjamas to run around in the dark.

Got home this afternoon with our nearly 6 year old saying "Gee Mum, we could sure do with some rain". I couldn't have said it better myself.

Another thing. Technically, grey water systems are still illegal up here. Legislation is under way. They should be approved for use in March 2006.

Sam

[Marrion]

I do sympathise with everyone. We have been experiencing a bad drought in our little corner of Tas when the rest of the state has been having floods We have had some relief now and the paddocks are once again looking green, we had been selling off our cattle and looking at agisting our breeding cows.
I am rather spoilt as far as the garden goes as we have several springs on our property that feed the dams and never run dry.
Did you know that Hobart is second only to Adelaide as the driest capital?
The idea here is to encourage people to put in tanks to catch rainwater (of course that is our only supply of household water as the dam water is not of good enough quality for drinking ). Perhaps local councils should be looking at subsidising ratepayers to put in tanks .
So much lovely water is wasted when it rains!!!

[Sam]

Some of the councils are subsidising rain water tanks.

Another part of the restrictions I forgot.

You can fill a swimming pool any time and new ones are being approved.

Newly established lawns can be watered for up to an hour a day for about two weeks (I think). Receipts must be kept and shown.

A journalist wrote an article in today's paper about being fined $75.00 for sprinkling out of hours. He was caught trying to fix his sprinkler system at just after 7 am (when we were allowed to sprinkle). He did point out that it would be impossible to repair at 4 in the morning. The inspector agreed and then gave him the fine. Council, however, did not agree.

[Shotgun Paul.]

last comment, had only 4 hours sleep last night. been finishing work at 2am for 4 nights running now and have 2 more nights to come, so that may help explain previous posts.
caffeine has side effects

Morning Jack,

I believe you have got broad shoulders and I just know you can
handle it just dont let the mongrela get you down.
By the way I agree with you on this one

Regards,
Paul.

[Shotgun Paul.]

Approx 13 shires in Qld (mainly south east, I believe) have imposed the following:



Comment has been made that whoever made up the rules is not a gardener.







Another thing. Technically, grey water systems are still illegal up here. Legislation is under way. They should be approved for use in March 2006.

Sam

Yeh right and my name is Bob Hawke to.

[Herby]

Water water water, just thinking about it makes me want to pee
ok that's better, now where was I?

It's a huge issue and one problem i see is there's no uniform system and every council and state has their own ideas,
it's confusing and i don't think there's enough people prerpared to go out of their way to save water to make a significant difference.

Problem we have in major cities of australia is not really drought, it's Culture!
drought isn't new, there are countries that would have gone to dust by now if they had our water using practices, they manage very well simply because they have been saving water since the year dot.
what these people do on a day to day basis to save water,
an aussie does it, installs a water tank, or a water saving shower rose and puts his hand out and says..
ok so i've done my bit to save the world, now pay me!
what culture is this gonna lead to?
when will people ask the government to pay us when we say g'day to people?

I try and save rain water using 200l plastic drums (truck companies that have a truck wash have these drums) tanks are a waste of money, they are expensive and as 95% of people don't have plumbing knowledge, it's way too expensive to call a plumber in to do it!
you can dedicate half your property to saving rainwater BUT.. if it's not raining then where's the water coming from?

Grey water is not the answer either, if your applying good water saving methods inside the house then there shouldn't be much grey water at all.

Gardeners/Farmers above all would be the best water savers already, doesn't take long to realise the importance of water if your relying on it.

it's the rest that are causing this problem, the concrete driveway hosers,
spa bath's, swimming pools, sprinklers, people with lush lawns! and industry.

I think it's a temporary problem anyway in the big picture, the water issue will be reversed aventually, what with the polar ice caps melting,
there will be plenty of water for everyone, i'm sure!

[Marrion]

Well said, Ben Even though I have unlimited water for my garden I don't waste water, anything I use inside (detergent free) gets poured onto my plants.
Also I have friends in the city who can't bear their cars to be dirty, they are shocked at the state of mine but as I live on an unsealed road I would be wasting so much water to keep it clean that I prefer to drive around with my status symbol
Yes farmers are good conservationists (especially now). Our forefathers cut down trees for pasture and we now plant them to prevent landslips etc. etc. I could go on about the amount of water just lying there in the Ord Scheme that I am sure could service all of WA if pipelines were put in place, but I guess its a contentious issue and not one that we will resolve here.

[kitkat]

Whoo Hoo...Kitkat is back ....and fancy being picked as a winner no less! I have had computer probs and been offline a few days ..what a nice surp0rise to find Ian's email when I fianlly got back online......... ....Thanks so much to Ian for the competition and to all my net gardening buddies for your congratulations ..I am sure you all deserved to win.
Not sure yet what I will buy with my winnings ...probably some more fruit trees I think...what fun I have never won a thing in my life ...not even the smallest raffle so this is a real first for me....made my day ...my week....my month!!

[Kerrie]

LOL I know how you feel, Kitkat! I was over the moon when I won my voucher. I hope you enjoy the fruits of it as much as I did! I had a blast scouring the catalogue, practically cackling with glee as I figured out how I could best spend it.

Kerrie

[kitkat]

Yes Kerrie, I thoroughly enjoyed the prize winning /decision making process....I am now waiting with bated breath for my plants to arrive...I am pushing the envelope a bit by planting citrus this late in the year but they will be nurtured with loving care when they arrive and their holes are ready and waiting for them...nice cosy beds with yummy citrusy food included.There are heaps of worms in there too which is a good sign.