Hosepipes
A hose is a valuable tool to maintain plants in any garden larger than a few square metres. Plants need water for good health and a hosepipe can help you provide additional water to distant areas of the garden or for plants that need copious watering.
Garden hoses are generally made from rubber or PVC, many include several layers of mesh to prevent kinking. Any kinks in the hose will restrict the flow of water and may damage the pipe itself. Flat hoses are available; although these tend to kink easily, they may be neatly wound flat onto a reel to save space. There are also 'curly' hoses that do not require a hose reel; even after being used to their full extension they simply retract back to their original size and shape.
When choosing a hosepipe, make sure that it will be long enough to reach all areas of your garden.
Attachments
Hose-end attachments may be connected to control the stream of water coming out of the pipe, creating a far reaching jet or a fine mist. Most have a shutoff trigger action to prevent wasting water. There are also watering wands, which are long tube extensions with a sprinkler head at the tip. These convert the hose to a long-distance watering can to make it easier to water containers, hanging baskets and beds.
The first garden hoses were made around 400BC, of ox gut.