I have 5 rainbarrels, 55 gallons each that feed into a 250 gallon plastic utility pond. I use that pond as a reservoir to pump out of into soaker hoses through out the garden. In 2010 I was a lone gardener and used a third of the space to plant with tomatoes, peppers and some squash, only.
I ran out of water very early. I refused to supplement with city water. I knew I would get enough food for me through the summer, but none to freeze, so I lived with that.
My great wish for this year is to find or have donated to us a slim line, ( 60" diameter, 147" high) 1200 or 1500 gallon cistern! Wow! Holy artichoke!
Used is fine, new is fantastic! Another size would be tough to accomodate on the small footprint I have but if you have one that is larger, please let me know and I will try to make it work.
Ideally, it should be ON my house roof, not on the ground, with an open top. But I don't want to take that chance right now-testing the old joists.
Last summer, as a preventative to sure premature death of the tomatoes and peppers, I routed my basement washing machine drain hose out (through a hole I had drilled into the grout that used to run drip waste water from water filtration system,) the side of the house, into a garden hose, that was set up to run into the pond. It really helped supplement the plants through September, although still not adequate. It was a sad summer.
Soapy water is good for plants, as it is phosphate free, and my tomatoes and peppers were essentially bug free. Grey water recycling. Into the soil. Soil is a filter, soap is phosphate free.
