While watering the garden can be relaxing, it's a time consuming task to ensure all your outdoor plants get the hydration they need. To save lugging around a heavy watering can or wrangling with a garden hose, setting up the best drip irrigation system offers a pain-free way of ensuring your garden gets the water it needs. They are also a handy gardening tool to own if you are going to be away from home.
Different plants have different watering needs as Modern Gardens contributor Geoff Hodge explains: "While it's true that all plants need a regular supply of water at their roots to ensure strong, healthy growth, not all need regular watering. Most established plants respond to drought by sending out deeper roots in search of soil moisture."
Best drip irrigation systems at a glance:
This is not the case for all your outdoor planting though, as Hodge continues: "The exception is container plants, especially hanging baskets, because their roots are restricted. These are more-or-less totally dependent on you for all their water needs and as the compost dries out extremely quickly, they may well need watering daily in summer – or even more regularly in very hot, sunny or windy periods. Here, an automated water supply can make a world of difference."
Drip irrigation systems come in a wide variety of designs offering different practical uses. Some advanced options are designed to be installed throughout entire full-size greenhouses for a comprehensive, year-round watering solution, others can just drip-feed a few plants pots, hanging baskets, or window boxes. These kind of systems are exempt from hose pipe bans, meaning they are a wise purchase in case of heat waves. Whether you want to hydrate your hydrangeas, water your wisteria, or drench your dahlias, we have a savvy solution to suit.
Best drip irrigation systems
Best drip irrigation system for greenhouses
MIXCThis is a complex bit of watering kit that can cover a large volume of plants and offers three different spray types to suit their needs. This is an ideal option for a greenhouse, but reviewers have reported success using this setup in borders, pots, and for vegetable growing.
This system gives you nearly 70 metres of irrigation tubing that can efficiently water an area of around 15 square metres. The irrigation tubing connects to your garden tap and then you can decide where you want the 16 tributaries to be placed, and what type of sprayer you want on them, with sprinkler, misting, and drip emitters being the included options.
Pros
- Comprehensive and expansive watering solution
- Offers different kind of watering methods
Cons
- It's complicated to set up the entire system
Best drip irrigation system for hedges, bushes, and borders
Gardena If you're looking to keep your hedgerows healthy in dry weather, Gardena has you covered with this drip irrigation kit designed to do exactly that. It's a relatively simple setup giving you 25 metres of hosing that you lay on the ground where you want to water. As the water passes through the pipe it's slowly emitted through the pre-cut holes.
Reviewers praise this as being a great starter kit ideal for those new to drip irrigation, especially as you can expand it with more Gardena products. As well as being simple to set up this is low maintenance thanks to Gardena's self-cleaning membrane technology within the piping. This comes with 15 pegs to secure the pipe to the ground.
Pros
- A great starter set that arrives ready to use
- Extension options are available to expand the system
Cons
- Only supplied with 15 pipe pegs - you may want to buy more
Best micro drip irrigation system
Hozelock We're fans of Hozelock's "Micro Irrigation Kit" which isn't as tiny as it sounds - it can capably water up to 15 containers. The drippers stake into your plant pot's soil so are suitable for use with all kinds of growth; plant pots and containers, hanging baskets, window boxes, and even borders if they are compact.
Hozelock's easy-to-install 'Push to Fit' design is popular with reviewers for its simplicity. This is modular, so you can expand the system. In addition, this is compatible with any timed water controller so you can enjoy the convenience of automation, something reviewers say is well worth doing.
Pros
- Capable of watering up to 15 pots or containers
- Tool-free setup with a 'Push Fit' design
Cons
- Need to buy a separate controller for automatic watering
Best solar-powered drip irrigation system
Gardena Gardena's AquaBloom drip irrigation system offers the ultimate in convenience as it does not require power or a hose pipe water source. This is because it's solar-powered and can draw water from a bucket. It can water up to 20 plants and works to a height of up to four metres. This makes this standalone system a fab choice for balconies.
The irrigation control unit has the solar panels integrated into it for a tidy solution. Via the control unit you can set when you want the system to activate, and for how long for. This gets the thumbs up from reviewers who have had success with this when they have gone on holiday for a week and left it to look after their precious plants.
Pros
- Does not require a water tap or a power supply
- 14 pre-defined watering programs to suit your needs
Cons
- Some reviewers describe the instructions as a bit patchy
Best drip hose irrigation system
Mamizo MAMIZO offers a classic 'drip hose' set which gives you a classic 'leaky pipe' setup that is very versatile in how it can be used. It's 50 metres in length so you can run it along beds, borders, and shrubs, or thanks to its flexible nature you can encircle fruit trees or even create lines down rows of vegetable plants.
Making it an even more adaptable watering solution, this hose comes with L- and T-shaped connectors, so it's possible to cut the hose down and have it snaking out on different directions. Reviewers like this versatility but do warn to double-double check your measurements if you are cutting it up.
Pros
- Generous 50 metre hose length for great coverage
- Heavy-duty hose that's UV-resistant
Cons
- Requires at least 0.6 bar water pressure
Best drip irrigation system for holiday cover
Gardena We're giving this Gardena option the accolade as best for holiday as one reviewer happily states this ensured their plants stayed alive for more than a month while they were away. Thanks to the fully sealed transformer, this can be used in and outdoors, but do bear it mind it needs to be plugged in to the mains, although the water is drawn from a bucket or similar source.
This has an integrated timer that works for one minute each day. There are three water distribution units that can each support 12 water emitter outlets. One users warns that if your plant is large, or particularly thirsty, you may want to consider adding more than one emitter to the container.
Pros
- Three water distributors with 12 outlets
- Can be used both indoors and out
Cons
- Not programmable to change the default settings
Best drip irrigation system for growbags
Hozelock This drip watering kit from Hozelock is another strong choice for pots, containers, hanging baskets, and window boxes. However, as the drippers stake into the soil and deliver water to the plants' roots, this is a also great choice for growbags. There are 20 drippers that you can position separately, or if you are using them with growbags, in a row.
The included select controller offers you 16 pre-set programs to supply water from once a week up to four times a day, but also boasts a manual watering function, meaning that during dry spells you can water whenever your plants need it. Reviewers warn the 15 metre hose line doesn't feel like it goes far, so this is best set up in a compact space.
Pros
- Offers both manual and automatic watering
- Drippers deliver water directly to the plants' roots
Cons
- Instructions are described by some reviewers as "limited"
How we chose the best drip irrigation systems
All of these drip irrigation systems have been hand-selected by our team of Modern Gardens shopping experts. We carefully considered the style, functionality, and usability in our selection of the best. Our team has spent hours investigating and researching all types of drip irrigation systems to make it easier for you to find the very best, and we'd never recommend a product we don't believe in.
Where possible, we also test and share the latest and best products you should know about. And with help from Modern Gardens Magazine, Garden News and Garden Answers, we share expert gardening knowledge to help you get the most from your product.
How do I install a drip irrigation system?
The answer to that really depends on the system you're looking to set up. The best advice is to follow the manufacturer's instructions and maybe check out any tutorial videos available online. Geoff Hodge has a few words of wisdom…
"Always plan your system first, and lay out any piping before you cut or fix it permanently into place. Although it's possible to change layouts later, it's best to get it right first time. Bear in mind that large containers probably need more than one dripper to water them correctly."
And one more handy tip from Hodge: "Look for ways to hide any tubing and piping, running it along walls for instance."
Can I set up a drip irrigation system if I don't have an outside tap?
While most of the drip irrigation systems we're featuring do require a connection to a garden hose, there are options that can work from a water butt or even a simple bucket. These are generally more compact and suited to a smaller amount of pots.
How much water can I save with a drip irrigation system?
It depends on the style of the system, but you could save up to 70 per cent compared to lawn sprinklers or conventional irrigation methods, and you can look forward to a saving of up to 90 per cent compared to hand watering.
Can I use a drip irrigation system during a hose pipe ban?
Yes! To the joy of gardeners with thirsty plants everywhere, trickle and drip irrigation systems are exempt from hose pipe bans as they use such an economical amount of aqua.
What is drip irrigation not suitable for?
While this method of watering is fabulous for greenhouses, large growth, and well-established plants, drip irrigation with black-coloured hoses or pipes can get very hot when it's sunny, so it's best not to set up a system near delicate plants, such as seedlings, as they could scorch them.
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Amy-Mae Turner is a Commerce Content Writer for Modern Gardens, Yours, Take A Break Pets, and A Modern Kitchen. When she's not pottering in the garden or mucking around in the kitchen, she can be found having doggy cuddles with her two beloved cockapoochis.