Lawn Watering
Introduction:
It’s that
time of year again when the spring rains have stopped, the
sun is higher and hotter, and the lawn is drying out from
lack of water. If the lawn is not going to dry up and
disintegrate from the hot sun of summer it will require lawn
watering periodically.
The question when it comes to lawn watering is how much
water does a lawn need and when is the best time of day to
water it. And the answer depends on the type of grass as
well as the type of soil.
Watering is a key element, and perhaps the most crucial, element in
successfully maintaining a beautiful lawn. If you have an
in-ground lawn irrigation system your lawn watering will be much
easier than having to pull sprinklers around the lawn trying
to get an equal amount of water on the entire lawn surface.
This is an especially difficult task if you have a large
lawn even if you use multiple sprinklers simultaneously.
Whatever method you use you must get sufficient water on the
lawn to prevent it from drying out.
Generally when lawn watering it only needs about one inch of water a week to
survive, depending on your location. If you are in an
environment that has long hot sunny days it will need more
and somewhat less if the weather is humid. If the soil base
is sandy rather than loam, it will require as much as one
and a half inches of rain a week. Frequently it is only an
estimate of how much water you have put on the lawn. The
best way I’ve found to measure the amount of water you are
putting on the lawn is to use tuna fish cans set in several
location to collect water as you run the sprinklers. Tuna
fish cans make an excellent one inch watering (rain) gage.
Lawn
watering should be performed in the late evening after sun
down to prevent rapid evaporation. An alternative is in the
very early morning. Late evening is better because it allows
the water time to soak into the ground and root system
before daytime sun evaporates it. You should never water
during the heat of the day nor on a windy day as most of the
water will evaporate long before it can do any good. Water
at least twice a week, a half to three quarters of an inch
during each watering is better than a single watering. Use
more water if your soil is sandy.
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