"DrTeeth" wrote in message
...
On Mon, 25 Aug 2014 14:35:49 EDT, just as I was about to take a herb,
"gareth" disturbed my reverie and wrote:

then also run a horizontal wire resting on the
ground for as long a distance as you can manage.

Stupid question time. Should the wire be insulated or not? Is it being
used as a radio counterpoise or an electrical earth? I can do both the
rod AND the wire and have them on parallel.

The wire must be insulated from earth, because the reason is to provide
the counterpoise that the otherwise lossy earth provides.

Ideally, there should be a complete earth mat of several radials, but
as you intend the use of a longwire, then running along the ground
underneath the long wire should suffice.