Drought

What does it really mean to have a drought? The answer depends upon who you are.
To many people, it means that you should't wash your car frequently or water the lawn. It means that you may take shorter showers. For a farmer, drought means trouble. It means the plants that she has raised/ bought, grown and cared for, may not survive. Time and energy lost. If they survive, they will grow more slowly than if they grew with regular rain fall or irrigation. This means a later season, fewer customers, less profit. The plants, whens tressed will set fewer fruits also. A lower yield and shorter growing season mean less revenue for the farmer. If the plants die, the farmer suffers a loss of investment and potential revenue. 
Drought means that we either accept the negative outcome or we mitigate the situation and find a way to irrigate. 
​Drip irrigation is an excellent method of irrigation as opposed to overhead watering. Overhead watering creates an enormous amount of water lost through overspray, evaporation and runoff. The plants also have greater potential for disease, fungus to spread and the leaves to be damaged when watering overhead. When plant leaves are wet, they water droplets magnify the sun's rays and create spots on the leaves, damaging them and their chlorophyl production capabilities. Without chlorophyl, the plants don't produce energy. 
I have a very simple irrigation system: a garbage can with a hose. I punctured the bin with a tool and inserted the hose into the hole. The water bin sits up on the bed of my truck and by gravity feed, the water trickles out and I am able to walk the hose through my rows of plants. It's such a simple method that my 2 year old son can help!