It's raining today but we can't always depend on the rain to keep our gardens green. All it takes is one dry spell and our vegetables suffers. Leaves droop, growth stops and bugs chew our weakened plants.

Plants that suffer dry-spell stress are susceptible to molds and fungus and all types of disease. In contrast, healthy vegetables grow quickly and are healthy enough to withstand disease and the odd bug chomping on the leaves.

The secret is water, ideally a small amount every day so that each plant has moisture available at the roots when it needs it.

We have all used sprinklers to water the vegetable garden at one time or another. And we know how the heavy fall of water from sprinklers can bend the plants over and cause runoff. Of course, many plants do not like wet leaves, especially on a hot sunny day.

There is an alternative to sprinklers in the vegetable garden - drip irrigation. Instead of blasting our plants with the hard spray from a sprinkler, drip irrigation waters slowly, drop by drop, right at the root of each plant.