Lawn watering is one of the essential lawn maintenance steps to keep your landscape green and attractive. On the surface, the task looks simple, after all, it involves applying water to the lawn. However, it may not be as simple as it presents, especially as there’s a huge chance of under or overwatering the lawn.
An expert Fayetteville, GA landscaping company clarifies that underwatering or overwatering the lawn is just as bad. Not providing as much water can kill the plants and grasses while adding too much water can also suffocate the lawn. Getting the right water volume for your lawn is an essential tip for keeping it lush and green.
As spring season approaches, below are the important tips to help avoid overwatering your landscaping.
Know Your Soil Type
Soil type is one of the most important factors when watering your landscape. Loose soils have bigger particles and are more aerated, allowing water to pass through them easily. Compacted soils, on the other hand, are harder to permeate and may hold on to water or moisture for longer.
Loose soils like sandy soils may require more water, especially as the water tends to drain quickly below the root zone while compact soil, like clay, becomes heavy when watered. Adding too much water to compact soil can lead to more surface runoff, water waste, and inefficient watering.
Learning more about the specific soil type on your landscape can help you determine how much water to provide. It can also give you a better understanding of water application frequency and effective water-saving strategies.
Establish A Watering Schedule
The soil and plant type both play an important role when establishing a watering schedule. Loose soil may need more water, which means frequent water application. Compacted soil may need a lower volume of water but more frequent application.
Knowing the right watering schedule for the plants and soil can help you make the best use of your water sprinkler system. It also gives you a better understanding of the right time of the day to deploy the water sprinklers for effective and efficient watering.
Water your lawn and landscape early in the morning for the best results. Early morning watering helps ensure that the plant gets as much water needed for its growth and development before evaporation starts.
Pro Tip: It is important to take stock of your watering schedules to make sure your plants aren’t getting too much water. Most lawns need an inch of water per week, but this volume can depend on factors like soil type, plant type, location, weather, topography, etc.
Water your lawn for about 30 minutes for the best results, however, check at the 10 to 15 minutes range to gauge how much more water your landscape needs.
Monitor Your Irrigation System
Most homeowners get too busy and forget about their automatic sprinklers. While it is the sprinkler’s job to kick off at set times, it may also be bad for your lawn and landscape if it already has the required level of water for growth and development.
It is best to keep an eye on your monitor to ensure it doesn’t come on after your landscaping has gotten the right water volume. Doing this can help save a lot of money on water bills and can keep your landscape protected from excess water issues.
Monitor The Signs Of Overwatering
Knowing the signs of overwatering can save you time and money. Detecting this problem early can save your landscape from peril while also saving you from extra water bills. Usually, an overwatered landscape will show common symptoms like constant wetness, green leaves turning yellow, brown spots and edges on leaves, or mushy stems.
These common signs are big indicators of waterlogging and require an immediate review of your watering schedule. You may need to halt your watering schedule until the water available to the landscape drains to an acceptable level.
Contact Landscapers For Professional Assistance
Landscapers are trained professionals who understand soil types, plants, topography, climate in relation to landscape health, etc. Their experience and expertise can be of great help to you and your landscape.
You can contact a professional landscaper to help with your overall watering schedule and needs. This can significantly improve the quality of your landscape and protect your pocket from extra costs in water bills.
Landscapers can also advise you based on your property’s topography, plant type, and help with setting up your sprinkler system for effective watering.
Following the tips above can help you protect your landscape and prevent common problems like fungal growth, root rot, soil compaction, and poor drainage.