There are a lot of different lawn sprinklers on the market and knowing more about each style will help you find a good garden sprinkler for the area you want to water. Rotary Sprinkler When buying a rectangular sprinkler, opt for a model that offers an area coverage of at least 200 m² . Realistically, most sprinklers fall short of their advertised area coverage – unless you have excellent water pressure – but 200 m² is a good indication of their power. These sprinklers will generally be able to spread water up to 20- 25 metres. Assembling the Wisdomwell sprinkler is really simple and only needs you to pop a couple of parts together and attach a hose. As mentioned, there’s no settings too speak of so it’s just ‘plug and play’ and I think some people will appreciate that. Even among the best and most adjustable sprinklers, there are others that stand out, and for us it was the Karcher oscillating sprinkler pictured below . It just gives you so many options, including turning off individual jets. Weight and stability

Manufacturers will also talk about the size of the area the sprinkler covers in square metres. This gives you a good idea of how much of your garden will get watered, but keep in mind that the spray pattern will have an impact. Remember: if your sprinkler can’t water the whole lawn or garden, you can always move it around (though you might want to turn it off first). Is there anything else worth looking out for? The main joy of this sprinkler, however, is that it really lets you define your rectangle very precisely. The first impression is that there are a lot of twisty bits at the end, but after a little playing around we found that they’re pretty easy to get to grips with. Unless you have a large garden, you may find that a rotary sprinkler wastes water, watering fences or even your neighbour’s garden. Rectangular Oscillating SprinklerThis model is a strange looking little thing, almost resembling a mini surface to air missile launcher or futuristic tank. The plain blue plastic base is in contrast with the grey sprayer head and its multiple orange switches, and it certainly stands out. This colour scheme is probably going to be one of those love it or hate it things, but I did like that it made the sprinkler easy to see and therefore less likely to be trodden on. The usual comments apply: the strength of your water pressure will affect maximum coverage. Make sure that your tap doesn’t have a pressure-limiting attachment fitted, as removing this can sometimes make all the difference. Even so, even with limited pressure, this rectangular sprinkler can reach further than some competitors because it has smaller holes which drive up the pressure inside the unit. The Gardena OS140 pop-up sprinkler is our choice for the best in this category, bringing the reliability that this brand is known for, and a healthy dose of style to go with it. Watering performance is good (but not amazing) with average water pressure, and the build quality is among the best out of all the products we tested. Personally, I prefer to opt for metal whenever possible, and that’s why I would go with either the Orbit travelling sprinkler or the Aqua Joe oscillating sprinkler if it only came down to durability. Either that or something heavy duty like this. Types of sprinklers

Although I don’t personally use them because of my artificial grass, this unit does also have ground stakes to keep it in place. This can be useful if you’ve pets, kids or crazy water pressure! Because of the adjustable pattern and flow control, rectangular sprinklers are suitable for most sized gardens. They attach to a garden hose and can be stored away when necessary. The idea of having your sprinkler constantly set up and ready to go is obviously enticing for most people, but at the same time the thought of having hoses permanently spread across the lawn is often off-putting.As a result, its range can extend anywhere from 7 – 17 m (water pressure permitting), and its width covers around 8 – 13 m. We’d seen the advertising videos where a grown man is standing with both feet on this sprinkler and all that happens is a bit of bending before returning to shape, so of course we had to try that for ourselves. Sure enough, it took my 14 stone like a champion, something I doubt any of the plastic sprinklers could have done without showing signs of damage. Some of the best garden sprinklers have adjustable settings, so you can customise their coverage on a case by case basis. It’s useful to have a sprinkler that allows you to choose how many jets are on , as this makes it possible to change the width it covers. Equally, being able to turn the sprinkler off without turning off the tap is a real plus. For gardeners who like to play around with settings and get them just right, it’s worth nothing that this sprinkler can’t be switched off from the unit itself.