Summer Lawn Watering Made Simple: Water Conservation Tips for Healthy Grass
Did you know that July is Smart Irrigation Month? Additionally, July is the hottest month of the year in South-Central Pennsylvania, and it is sometimes the driest.
Your lawn has cool-season grasses, which grow best in cooler weather, such as spring and fall.
In the summer, your lawn may turn tan or brown due to a lack of rain. But it doesn’t mean that your turfgrass has died—it’ll bounce back when cooler temperatures return.
You also play a part in keeping your lawn alive during July by incorporating water conservation tips and using efficient irrigation tools.
In this blog post, you’ll learn more about water conservation, efficient irrigation, and summer lawn watering:
- Timing is Everything: Summer Lawn Watering Done Right
- Embrace Cycle-and-Soak: Water Conservation Tips for Healthier Roots
- Upgrade to Efficient Irrigation Systems and Save.
First, let’s start with the basics: the best time to water your lawn during the summer.
Timing Is Everything: Summer Lawn Watering Done Right
Did you know there are the best and worst times to water your lawn during the day? Experts recommend watering your lawn between 4 a.m. and 10 a.m. during the summer. The worst time to water your lawn is in the evening because it will sit on the grass overnight.
Using a garden hose to irrigate your lawn is an inefficient method. Instead, you can set and forget with an automatic sprinkler system that’s hooked up to WiFi or Bluetooth.
For example, you program your sprinkler system to turn on at 4 a.m. and operate in cycle-and-soak mode, alternating 15 minutes on and 30 minutes off to allow water to soak through the soil.
Why do you need to water so early in the morning? Because it’s the coolest part of the day, there’s less wind, and the sun won’t evaporate the water. Additionally, the water won’t sit on your grass overnight, which can lead to fungal diseases.
Read more: Stay Green: Expert Lawn Watering Tips for Summer
What happens if you don’t have an in-ground irrigation system?
Then use soaker hoses that you can buy online or at your favorite retailer. Soaker hoses have tiny holes that emit drops of water, eliminating waste. Additionally, the water is at ground level, allowing more of it to percolate deep into the soil.
You can buy a timer for your soaker hoses that allows you to run cycle-and-soak intervals.
Keep in mind that your lawn only needs 1-1 ½” of water per week—and that includes any rainfall amounts. Plus, the water needs to reach 4-6” into the soil.
You want to ensure that your water sprinklers have rain or moisture sensors that turn off your system automatically when there’s sufficient soil moisture.
Embrace Cycle-and-Soak: Water Conservation Tips for Healthier Roots
As we discussed earlier, the cycle-and-soak method involves your irrigation system turning on for 10-15 minutes and then off for another 30 minutes, allowing the soil to absorb water.
Your goal should be to ensure that turfgrass roots receive the most water by reducing runoff, allowing the entire grass plant to survive a hot, dry summer. Here are other water conservation tips for healthier turfgrass roots:
- Check your sprinkler system to ensure all parts are functioning correctly and that there are no broken sprayheads or pipes. An irrigation contractor can fix any fractured systems. Read more about hiring an irrigation contractor here.
- Ensure your mower blades are sharp; dull blades can cause plant injury, leading to disease and insect infestations, as well as stress to turfgrass.
- Don’t mow when there’s a dry spell and your yard turns brown; you’ll be stressing the turf, and it’ll use too much energy to recuperate.
- You want to mow high over the summer. While your neighbor may be scalping his lawn, don’t give in to peer pressure. Use the one-third rule, where you take off only the top third of turfgrass each time you mow.
- Stay on a fertilizer. However, you need to cut back on fertilization when it’s hot because you can burn your grass.
- Consider using compost on your lawn instead of fertilizers to save money and give your lawn a natural boost of nutrition.
Upgrade to Efficient Irrigation Systems and Save
If you have an older sprinkler system, it may need to be recalibrated with smart controllers and other technology that make in-ground sprinkler systems use less water.
Here are some lawn care watering tips when you recalibrate your irrigation system to work efficiently:
- Ensure that you use different irrigation valves for your lawn and landscape
- Install a backflow preventer
- Don’t set up your sprinkler heads in narrow turf areas that are under 10’
- Install a smart irrigation controller on your sprinkler system that’s programmed to adjust based on soil moisture and weather
- Connect a rain sensor to your controller to automatically shut off the system when the sensor detects rainfall
- Connect a soil moisture sensor to your controller to override automatic watering when there’s enough soil moisture in the root system
- Use multi-stream rotor nozzles on your lawn sprinkler to apply water slowly and evenly. They’re also wind-resistant and reduce water run-off.
Let Tomlinson Bomberger Help You Conserve Water
If you need your irrigation system recalibrated or require assistance with summer lawn watering, contact us today!
We can recalibrate your irrigation system and provide lawn care maintenance, ensuring you have a beautiful, well-irrigated lawn—no matter the weather, including July.
Sources:
LoveYourLandscape.org, Mowing Height Recommendations.
WaterUseItWisely.com, All About Irrigation – Drip, Drip, Hooray.
Ibid., Prevent Water Runoff—Try Cycle and Soak.
Ibid., Programming Your Irrigation Controller/Timer.
