Rain Gauge:

Making Sure Your Garden Gets Enough Water

Supplies:

Can with straight sides

Ruler | Permanent marker

           

Sink a plain old tin can into your garden soil out in the oven. It should be in a place where the leaves of plants don't block the rain, or sprinkler, or whatever you use to water your garden.

Then you can "gauge," or measure, how much water your plants have had from Nature in the form of rain, and act accordingly. If the rain gauge is empty, better water. If it's full, empty it out, and don't water that day.

First, place a ruler inside the can, and use a permanent marker such as a Sharpie to mark off inches from the bottom up. Then bury the can a few inches into the soil so that it'll stay upright.

Check the water level in the can at least once a week. You'll want to make sure that a  combination of rain and sprinkling will equal an inch of water a week. If not, you'll have to sprinkle or hand-water a little extra.