Other than the air we breathe, water is the single most important element in our lives. Water is a valuable natural resource. Safe, reliable, good-tasting drinking water is a carefully manufactured product. It’s collected, treated, tested and delivered to your home and business 24 hours a day. It is vital to conserve water inside and outside of your home year round. The idea of conserving water may seem difficult at first, but many major water saving tips are actually easy to accomplish without any inconvenience! Achieving one act of conservation each day will help significantly reduce the amount of water that is used each year! Practice the following tips to aid in your communities’ efforts to save water, and to reduce consumption on your monthly bill!
Some Lawn irrigation Tips
In summer months, outdoor usage accounts for half of the water used by an average household. Here’s how you can reduce outside water consumption without sacrificing the beauty of your lawn.
Know when to water
Watering is only necessary when the soil is dry. Dig your finger into the soil. Only water if
it’s dry to a depth of 1 1/2 inches. The best time to water is in the morning. If you sprinkle your lawn under the midday sun, you’ll lose as much as 30% through evaporation.
Shorter sessions are better
Lawns can only absorb so much water. Three 10-minute sessions, spaced half an hour apart, are much better than one 30-minute session that results in run-off. The best tools for the job When you water, use a sprinkler rather than a hand-held hose. Sprinklers provide steady, uniform watering, covering a large area at a consistent rate. Soaker hoses are great for smaller areas in gardens and around shrubs. These porous hoses, placed on the ground, deliver water slowly right to the root zone.
How much is enough?
A mature, healthy lawn needs between 0.7″ and 1.0″ of water a week during the summer. In cool, cloudy weather, 0.7″ should be sufficient. In hot, sunny, windy weather 1.0″ may be needed. Use a rain gauge to monitor how much water falls naturally, and supplement as needed. Here in New England, generally it is not necessary to irrigate during the spring and fall.