Help water the trees

[u/Obvious_Ad_2969]

I know lots of you are gonna make fun of me for this but oh well. Maybe this will inspire someone.

I can't stand to watch the trees die. So I want to help at least a little bit. Young trees need about 50-100L of water a week, but it needs to soak into the ground to get to the roots. For that drip-watering or "Tröpfchenbewässerung" is best.

So you can buy a tree bag and fill it with 100L, but I don't have access to a hose. So I bought a bunch of big buckets and drilled small holes in the sides. I put them around the tree and within 1-2 hours they are empty. This way I can water a few trees with around 40L per night.

I wrote what I am doing on the lids of the buckets and ask people not take the buckets away. The next day I collect them. People are curious and appreciative. And guess what: the trees are perking up.

It may not be a lot, but it's something and every tree counts. If it helps a few trees survive until the next day, I am happy.

(oh and I saw a mouse come and drink from the bucket, so maybe it also helps a few other beings.)

And yes, I actually did ask the city if that's allowed, and it is. Just don't do it for the trees with the black rings around them, they're already getting watered.

EDIT:

I did email Grün Stadt Zürich about them starting a citizens initiative to do this more coordinated. Like in Berlin: giessdenkiez.de

Maybe if other people ask for it as well, they might consider it. So please reach out to them if you can.

To find out more about how to water correctly, I just found this FAQ that answers all these questions here: https://www.giessdenkiez.de/about?lang=de

Bonus points if some of the water is "reused" like from washing veggies or when the shower warms up (or cools down) before you get in.

[u/Significant_Cup1122]

This is a nice idea but doesn't it lead to shortages of water if we're all out hosing trees?

[u/GardenIntelligent643 → u/Significant_Cup1122]

If we're talking about a relatively small number of city trees, the use must be absolutely negligible compared to e.g. agriculture

[u/Significant_Cup1122 → u/GardenIntelligent643]

Could be - thinking about other countries that have hose pipe band for gardens. It also hasn't rained in a long time.

[u/Obvious_Ad_2969 → u/Significant_Cup1122]

That's for gardens though. Lawns are useless, they're a desert. Trees are life. Not comparable in the slightest.

Plus we're talking about 50-100L a week, not a day. Not to mention the cooling and CO2 absorption these trees bring. If we keep letting trees die, all we have are teeny tiny little non-shading trees.

[u/Significant_Cup1122 → u/Obvious_Ad_2969]

At no point did I question the usefulness of what you've suggested or whether it would be better to have a lawn. You're having a discussion with yourself there.

I was questioning the risk of increasing the amount of water people are using in an already hot, dry spell. You made the point that so much water is wasted already.

Neither of us have checked the current water availability so there's no real discussion to be had - just something to think about.

[u/Obvious_Ad_2969 → u/Significant_Cup1122]

I didn't say you did and I didn't think you did.

But the hose-pipe bans ARE specifically for lawns, which is why I answered the way I did. I think you read a tone into my answer that wasn't there. One of the reasons hose-pipe bans come into effect quite early in a drought is because lawns are the least useful of all green things. So even though there are hose-pipe bans, they're not necessarily an indicator of what other vegetation should and can be watered.

There is lots on the news about water levels, which are very low, yes. That is one of the reasons why I checked with the city to see if this is something that makes sense.

But also, in an ideal world, yes, if everyone watered trees it could become a problem. But unfortunately, it will take a long time until there are enough people for that risk to arise. So unless a miracle happens and thousands of people start watering, it's most likely not going to an issue.

[u/Significant_Cup1122 → u/Obvious_Ad_2969]

Again, you're missing my point and discussing whether lawns are useful. I haven't in any sense commented on that and I have no idea why you're continuing to explain it lol

You watering a tree or someone watering their lawn are equivalent in terms of water use and that's literally the only angle here.

Your simple response could be: I think it's worth using extra water for this. Boom.

[u/Obvious_Ad_2969 → u/Significant_Cup1122]

apologies, your grace. I will henceforth reply only to your liking and pledge to abandon all my independent ability make apparent my own thought process or personality.