I have 3’ of drop in elevation along the area I’m planting blackberries and grapes and have a choice which direction to plant the rows. Would it be best to plant the rows at a flat level elevation to catch the run off or would it be best to plant the rows down hill so they don’t get to much water during the wet season? I plan on having drip irrigation but it would be nice not to have to water them all the time. I have 2" per hour drainage from the perc test I did. If I did plant them flat I guess they would need to be slightly raised so the water doesn’t pond or I could put small drainage ditches from row to row down the slope? Or should I put them at a 45 degree angle to slow the water down but still allow the water to flow through the row in heavy down pour (perfectly east to west)?
Light interception is best for rows running North and South. The slope 3’ in 60’ is pretty modest.
East/ West rows leave the North side of the plants mostly in the shade.
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you’re right that is that north/south is better for fruit because each side of a row will get sun. to be perfectly pedantic, light interception is better at high latitudes with east/west plantings because the noon sun doesn’t hit the dirt between rows like it does in north/south. this can lead to small yield increases for east/west plantings of some crops like corn. as you get closer to the equator this flips since the sun goes more overhead and north/south is better for both light interception and light distribution
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