I worked for the last 3 years in depth with dryland situations,mostly in South India in and around Auroville which has all the typical characterisitcs of a Tropical Dry Monsoon Climate.The last 2 years in this area the monsoon rains where almost non existend and we could observe big shifts in rain patterns and climate patterns.The situation is getting more and more serious,ground water tables are starting to shrink,reforestation efforts depending on monsoon rains are failing and dryland rain dependend farmers are loosign there crops to drought!

We started to look into Broadscale Waterharvesting Strategies,as we all know the famous Swale is in all the books but there are a few more things to consider.I am sharing here to sets of principles and links to websites which influence my way of thinging and knowledge development.

1.Watershed Artisans - Craig Sponholtz - http://www.watershedartisans.com/

10 Principles:

1. *Manage landscapes to increase ecosystem services and productivity.

2. *Protect and expand natural moisture storing areas.

3. *Stabilize active erosion to prevent further incision.

4. *Restore dispersed flow and increase infiltration at every opportunity.

5. *Cultivate regenerative plant communities to retain and build soil.

6. *Harvest runoff in place before attempting to move it.

7. *Transform “waste” runoff and sediment into resources.

8. *Create site-specific solutions using natural forms and processes.

9. *Anticipate likely failure modes and avoid creating new problems.

10. *Strive for beauty and inspiration.

2.Brad Lancaster - http://www.harvestingrainwater.com/

1. begin with long and toughtful observation

2. start high in landscape and work down – water gravity useful!!!

3. start small and simple

4. spread and infiltrate water flow – swales!

5. Always plan overflow and manage as resource

6. maximize living and organic groundcover

7. maximize beneficial relationships and efficiency by stacking functions – swale used as path and mount as planting area

8. continually reasses your system

plus on a gardener level i found this tips from Toby Hemenway very useful:

Five water conservation techniques:(the fivefold path to water wisdom)

1. High organic matter content -holds moisture and add fertility

2. Deep mulching – slows evaporation,cools soil,add fertility

3. water conserving plants – need less water,survive drought

4. dense planting – shade soil and smoother weeds

5. soil conditioning – catches water,builds humus,directs water where needed

and please always remember and keep in mind:

MOST EFFICIENT WATER HARVESTING STRATEGY IS CONSERVATION!