posted 8 years ago
I have made a sort of bell, for the end of a hose, by attaching a small yogurt container, that has many holes drilled in it. These holes are about 1/16 inch, so much more flow than you receive from those little single directional soakers.
I sometimes carry a 2 quart stainless steel bowl. The hose is directed into the bowl when I'm walking between pots. Once I reach a big pot the bowl is dumped along with the flow of the hose. But during all of that time including while the bowl is being dumped, the stream from the hose is directed at the bowl. This prevents water from being blasted out of the pot. These are pretty big pots, so they can absorb the five gallons or so per minute.
I have also held a smaller bowl in my hand and just allowed it to constantly overflow, when a larger area is being watered. If the water needs to shoot a few feet, the bowl can be held so the stream hits the side and shoots away. This also flattens the stream, so that there isn't too much erosive power in any given spot. It can be done in a manner that lets the water shoot upwards. It then falls down like rain. The various bowl techniques are good for people who get cold hands.
With a little experimentation, almost anyone can find a method that works better than whatever piece of junk they are currently using.