Summer Lawn Watering Tips

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Water early in the morning. Avoid watering in the afternoon.

Wet the soil to a depth of four to six inches. Use a soil probe or screwdriver to determine the depth the water actually reaches. One to one and a half inches of water every five to seven days should be adequate. Make sure to figure in rainfall received each week.

Do not use a sprinkler that sprays a fine mist into the air. A sprinkler that releases large drops of water close to the ground will save water.

Water sloping lawns at the top of the slope so water penetrates the soil.

To determine how much water your sprinkler applies:

1. Space out three to five cans at different intervals from the sprinkler. The last can should be near the edge of the sprinkler coverage.
2. Run the sprinkler for 30 minutes.
3. Add water in all cans. Divide the total inches by the number of cans to obtain an average.
4. To find out how many inches of water are applied in one hour, multiply the average by two.
5. Adjust sprinkler to deliver one to one and a half inches of water per irrigation event. Watch your yard the first few times to see if runoff occurs before irrigation time has expired. If runoff occurs adjust irrigation time to reduce runoff loses.