[Hugh R]

I'll be drip irrigation with soakers on my 100 plus oak trees beginning tomorrow. The arborist recommends using soaker hose that delivers 1 gph/foot of soaker hose set at about 15 feet from the trunk of the tree, which means around 50 feet of soaker hose for six hours, or around 300 gallons/tree, maybe more depending on the moisture levels I get in the soil. 300 gallons for a 3 foot trunk diameter oak doesn't seem like much. He says do it 2-3 times per year.

I'll also be pouring Merit 0.5G on the soaker line at about 1 lb (two cups) for a small tree (12"dia.) and up to 4 lbs. for a 4' diameter tree. I've gotta experiment with the amount of water on small versus bigger trees. The experts say water then post hole dig a foot or two down and look at the soil and see if it looks moist.