Watering Efficiently for a Healthy Lawn
Watering a lawn is something that is often overlooked or considered trivial; however, it is a very important aspect of lawn maintenance. The ideal lawn is one that receives enough water from rainfall that it seldom requires extra watering. That said, there are areas where supplemental watering is a must due to an insufficient amount of rainfall. The ideas presented here are intended for those areas of the country.
The soil and the type of weather you are having will play a role in how much extra watering is or is not required of your lawn. Before the heat of summer sets in, decide what type of watering schedule you will adopt and then be consistent throughout the season.
Many people rush to water their lawn when the first hot days of summer make themselves known. It is actually best to allow your lawn to suffer a mild level of drought before you water it. This helps to increase the rooting. Signs that your lawn needs watering include grass that has turned a darker shade and grass that remains flat and footprinted on after being walked on.
When you do water your lawn give it a good soaking, which allows moisture to soak down into the roots and replenish it where it requires it the most. However, make your waterings as infrequent as possible as too much water can promote disease and mildew, and it can stifle the lawn’s growth. Frequent waterings also promote the growth of weeds and root systems that are shallow. The exception to the infrequent watering rule is lawns that have been newly seeded.
The best time of day to water your lawn is early in the morning. Lawns are generally wet from dew in the early morning and respond well to supplemental watering. Watering in the middle of the day is not recommended because of excessive evaporation (especially on very hot days). The evening is not recommended because the risk of diseases getting started is much greater. The exception to this is if you are going through a period of very hot temperatures, and at night it does not dip below 68 degrees. If you water early or late in the day, then less evaporation will occur, which means that the roots are more likely to receive the moisture they need.
