6 Food Plot Watering Systems That Beat Summer Drought

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Choosing the Right System for Your Food Plot

There is no single "best" watering system. The right choice for your food plot is a balancing act between your plot’s needs and your available resources. Before you spend a dime, you need to honestly assess your situation.

Think about these core factors:

• Water Source: Are you using a well near the house, hauling water in a tank, or pumping from a pond? The source dictates nearly everything else.
• Power Availability: Access to an electrical outlet opens up options for powerful pumps and timers. If you’re off-grid, you’ll be looking at solar, gas, or gravity-fed solutions.
• Plot Size and Shape: A half-acre square requires a different approach than a long, narrow 100-yard strip cut through the woods.
• Budget and Time: How much are you willing to invest upfront, and how much time can you commit to managing the system each week?

A common mistake is buying a sprinkler without considering water pressure or buying a drip kit for a broadcast clover plot. You have to think about the entire chain: where the water comes from, how it gets to the plot, and how it’s applied to the soil. Matching the system to your specific circumstances is the first and most important step to success.

Rain Bird Drip Kit for Maximum Water Efficiency

Drip irrigation is the undisputed champion of water conservation. By delivering water slowly and directly to the base of the plants, you virtually eliminate loss from evaporation and wind. More importantly, you aren’t watering the weeds between the rows, which gives your desired crops a significant competitive advantage.

These all-in-one kits have made drip systems incredibly accessible. They typically include a pressure regulator, a filter, the main supply line, and smaller emitter tubing. Assembling it is straightforward and requires no special tools. You just lay out the lines along your crop rows, punch in the emitters, and connect it to your water source.

The major tradeoff is that drip irrigation is designed for row crops. It’s a perfect match for corn, soybeans, brassicas, or sunflowers where you can run a line right down the row. It is not an effective solution for broadcast-seeded crops like clover or alfalfa, which require full coverage. The lines can also be a target for curious deer or chewing rodents, so periodic checks for damage are a must.

Melnor Flat Soaker Hose for Simple Root-Zone Flow

If a full drip kit seems too complex, the soaker hose is your answer. This is the simplest tool for getting water to the root zone. The porous hose weeps water along its entire length, providing a slow, deep soak that encourages strong root development.

There’s no real setup involved. You just unroll the hose and snake it around the base of your plants. This makes it an excellent choice for smaller, rectangular plots or for giving a boost to a specific section that’s struggling. It’s a fantastic, low-cost tool for establishing perennials during their first critical year.

The primary limitations are distance and terrain. Most soaker hoses operate best at lengths under 150 feet and on relatively level ground. On a slope, water will disproportionately leak out of the lowest point, leaving the higher sections dry. Think of it as a simple, targeted solution, not a system for covering a large, uneven area.

Orbit Traveling Sprinkler for Large, Even Coverage

For big, open plots, a traveling sprinkler is a workhorse. Often called a "tractor sprinkler," this device follows the pattern of your hose, slowly pulling itself across the field while casting water in a wide, circular pattern. It’s one of the best ways to simulate a slow, steady rain over a large area.

This is the ideal choice for broadcast-seeded plots of an acre or less, where uniform coverage is essential for germination and growth. Clovers, cereal grains, and brassica blends all benefit from this type of watering. You set the path, turn it on, and let it do its work for several hours.

Be warned: this system has two major requirements. First, it is thirsty. You need a high-volume water source with significant pressure—a weak well or a small pond pump won’t be able to power it effectively. Second, it is not water-efficient. A lot of water is lost to evaporation, especially if you run it in the middle of a hot, windy day. To maximize its effectiveness, always water in the early morning or late evening when temperatures are cooler and winds are calm.

IBC Tote Gravity-Feed System for Remote Locations

For that perfect food plot tucked deep in the woods with no power or water, a gravity-feed system is your off-grid solution. The heart of the system is a 275-gallon IBC tote—a large, caged plastic tank—placed on an elevated platform. This simple setup creates your own personal water tower.

The principle is basic physics: the higher you lift the tote, the more water pressure you generate at the outlet. Even a platform built just a few feet off the ground can create enough pressure to run a soaker hose or a simple, low-pressure drip system. It’s a reliable, low-tech way to provide consistent moisture to a remote plot.

The real work isn’t building the system; it’s filling the tote. This usually involves hauling water in a smaller tank on an ATV or truck, or using a gas-powered transfer pump to fill it from a nearby creek or pond. This is not a low-effort system. It requires a significant commitment to logistics, but for a critical hunting plot far from civilization, it can be the single factor that makes or breaks your season.

Solariver Solar Pump for Ponds and Natural Sources

If you have a pond, creek, or river bordering your food plot but no electricity, a solar pump is the missing link. These kits harness the sun’s energy to move water, turning a natural feature into a practical irrigation source. It’s a brilliant solution for bridging the gap between water access and power access.

A typical kit includes a solar panel and a submersible pump. When the sun is shining, the pump moves water from your source to your plot. It’s a simple, direct system that requires no batteries or complicated inverters. The flow is dependent on the intensity of the sun, providing the most water on the hot, clear days when your plants need it most.

You must pair a solar pump with an efficient application method. These pumps are designed for steady, low-to-medium volume flow, not high pressure. They are a perfect match for filling an IBC tote or directly feeding a drip or soaker hose system. Do not expect a solar pump to run a large impact sprinkler—that’s not what they are built for.

Orbit B-hyve Smart Timer for Automated Watering

Consistency is the key to successful irrigation, and automation is the key to consistency. A smart timer like the Orbit B-hyve takes the human error and guesswork out of your watering schedule. It acts as the brain for your entire system, ensuring your plot gets the right amount of water at the right time.

By connecting to your home’s Wi-Fi, the B-hyve allows you to set, change, and monitor your watering schedule from an app on your phone. Its most powerful feature is "Smart Watering," which uses local weather station data to automatically adjust its schedule. If a big rainstorm is forecast, it will skip the next cycle, saving water and preventing over-saturation.

This device is a force multiplier for any system connected to a pressurized water source, like a well with a hose spigot. It can control drip lines, soaker hoses, or traditional sprinklers. However, it does require Wi-Fi and a conventional water source, making it a poor fit for off-grid, gravity-fed systems. For plots within range of your home, it’s the single best upgrade you can make for efficiency and peace of mind.

Maintaining Your System for Season-Long Success

Your watering system is a tool, and like any good tool, it requires maintenance to perform reliably. A system that fails in the middle of a July heatwave is worse than no system at all. A few simple habits will ensure it works all season long.

The number one enemy of any irrigation system is clogging. Every system, especially those using drip or soaker hoses, must start with a filter. This is non-negotiable, particularly if you’re drawing water from a pond or tote where sediment is present. Clean this filter weekly. Once a month, walk your lines to look for leaks from animal damage or emitters that have become blocked.

Don’t neglect end-of-season care. Before the first hard freeze, drain every drop of water from your hoses, pumps, and distribution lines. Water expands when it freezes, and it will crack fittings and ruin hoses. Bring timers and any electronic components inside for the winter. This simple shutdown process will protect your investment and ensure your system is ready to go next spring.

Ultimately, beating a summer drought is about choosing the right tool for your specific situation and keeping that tool in good working order. Whether it’s a high-tech smart system or a simple gravity-fed tank, a reliable source of water protects your investment and turns a good food plot into a great one. Plan ahead, match the system to the site, and you’ll be rewarded with a green, productive plot all season long.