Watering

 Watering is a challenge. Knowing when & how much to water along with the best time can be frustrating. We’ve put together this guide to help you with your watering needs to optimize the treatments to your lawn.

How Much Do I Water?

Water enough to wet the soil to a depth of four to six inches. You can use a screwdriver to check the depth. If it’s hard to push into the lawn or you can’t push it in all the way to the handle you need more water. 

When To Water?

Turfgrass takes on a dull, dark appearance & leaves begin to roll when they need more water & in some cases turns yellow/brown in color. The best time to water is early morning or late evening when winds are calmer & temperatures are lower. 

Determine Watering Amount

1. Determine how much water your sprinkler applies

• Set several empty cans in an irrigated zone.
• Run sprinkler till you get an average of ½” in each can.
• Determine the amount of time it takes in each zone to provide ½” of water.

2. Set your system to run according to the time of year & weekly rainfall conditions applying ½” per watering.

• Water as needed throughout the winter.
• Spring requires 1″ per week. (2 times per week)
• Late Spring/Summer 1.5″ per week. (3 times per week)
• Summer 2″ per week. (4 times per week)
• Late Summer/Fall 1.5″ per week. (3 times per week)
• Fall 1″ per week. (2 times per week).

3. Subtract any rainfall from the required watering totals to determine how & when to water.

Soil Type

Sandy soils require more frequent watering while loam & clay soils require cycled watering to avoid a runoff. Slopes may also require cycled watering to avoid an excessive runoff.