MAILBAG
Weak borehole prompts a reservoir
S
IR ~ I, like most other
maplotters, have taken a
great deal of strain with
respect to borehole water
supply, to the point that my
house and all cottages are fed
from municipal water.
Currently I can only pump
about 1 000 litres per day
from my shallow borehole,
with the result that my veggie
garden is a barren wasteland!
It's ludicrous to try to sustain
veggies from municipal water
what with its punitive price.
What I have done,
however,on my 1ha plot, is to
investigate the possibility of
creating a large reservoir
(180 000 litres) to harness
rainwater from the rooves of
my cottages. Thus far, it is
proving to be quite sustainable for the following reasons:
K I dug down 1m into the
earth as an exploration. What
I found (in my neck of the
woods) was that the topsoil
was about 300mm deep,
followed by another 300mm
of sandy fine clay/top/subsoil,
and then the last 400mm was
a mixture of clayey subsoil
with an amount of decomposed Ouklip.
K I discarded the topsoil for
later use and tested the mid
soil. This ground proved to be
very useful (after sieving) to
form the basis of plaster sand,
(which I have subsequently
used to replaster wall areas).
K The bottom layer has
worked out just fine as a
"building mix" (after coarse
sieving) and furthermore it is
well-suited to making bricks.
My point is thus: On 1ha, it is
well worthwhile checking out
the possibility of creating a
rain water reservoir that can
ensure year round supply of
uncontaminated eco-friendly
water for garden and veggies.
My project is to create a 15m
long by 6m wide and 2 m
deep reservoir (1 m down
The Editor welcomes your letters, comments and
opinions, but reserves the right to edit
and shorten as necessary.
Senders’ names and addresses must
be included.
Afrikaans letters will be translated.
Post mail to: Letters, PO Box 14648,
Bredell 1623 or fax 086 602-3882
or e-mail [email protected]
5
www.sasmallholder.co.za
and 1m above ground). In my
particular case I am blessed
with having the aggregate and
all that I need to do is supply
cement and then waterproof,
topping the dam with a 100%
shadecloth.
Further to this, one could look
at buying fingerlings and
raising Tilapia or even getting
into the game of raising Koi.
The opportunities are only
limited to one's own imagination and fiscal restraints.
Giles Newby-Fraser
Midrand.