ECHO's demonstration gardens showcase crops and techniques representative of various climate zones. In recent months, the monsoon area of the farm has undergone renovations to better show irrigation and gardening methods suited to climates with a pronounced dry season. Basin gardening is one of the techniques being shown. The idea is to establish "basins" on a 1% slope that can
be irrigated with some type of a pump, like the treadle pump shown in the bottom photo, to bring water from a stream or river to the gardens. In our case, we are pumping from a shallow well. The borders of each basin were established with a mixture of clay and sand. Water is channeled along the top of the clay walls towards the basins. Outlets to each basin can be blocked (e.g. using small sand bags) to control watering. Watering takes quite a bit of work- one or two people to take turns pumping and someone to guide the water to the basins. However, with flooded basins vs. raised-bed culture, the soil does not dry out quickly. Thus, the gardens do not need very frequent watering.
ECHO's demonstration gardens showcase crops and techniques representative of various climate zones. In recent months, the monsoon area of the farm has undergone renovations to better show irrigation and gardening methods suited to climates with a pronounced dry season. Basin gardening is one of the techniques being shown. The idea is to establish "basins" on a 1% slope that can 
be irrigated with some type of a pump, like the treadle pump shown in the bottom photo, to bring water from a stream or river to the gardens. In our case, we are pumping from a shallow well. The borders of each basin were established with a mixture of clay and sand. Water is channeled along the top of the clay walls towards the basins. Outlets to each basin can be blocked (e.g. using small sand bags) to control watering. Watering takes quite a bit of work- one or two people to take turns pumping and someone to guide the water to the basins. However, with flooded basins vs. raised-bed culture, the soil does not dry out quickly. Thus, the gardens do not need very frequent watering.
