Drought conditions are resulting in water restrictions in many
counties across Georgia.
When you’re only allowed a few hours for outdoor watering,
knowing how much water to give
your lawn is important.

University of Georgia experts say homeowners normally water
their lawns too much and
too often. This year, the drought and water restrictions are
keeping them from making this
mistake.

The Rule of
Thumb

"People think the more water they give their turf, the
better it will
perform," said Gil Landry, an extension turf scientist
with the UGA College of
Agricultural and Environmental Sciences. "But if your turf
gets too much water, you
create a catalyst for disease. An inch of water a week is the
rule of thumb."

So do you know when you’ve applied an inch of water to your
lawn? Most sprinkler
systems apply about one-fourth inch of water per hour.

"So you’d need to run your system for four hours to
apply one inch of water,"
Landry said. "But all sprinklers are different. They all
have different nozzles, so
you should test your system’s output."

Test Your
System

To test your sprinkling system, Landry said, place open-top
containers of the same
size, such as margarine tubs, randomly on your lawn. After an
hour, measure the amount of
water in each container.

"The difference in the amounts will give you an
estimate of the water distribution
and application rate," he said. "When you have an
inch of water in your
containers, you know you’ve applied enough water."

Landry says homeowners should also keep in mind how fast the
soil can absorb the water.
"Apply enough water to soak the soil 6 to 8 inches
deep," he said. "If your
system is applying water too fast, you’re just watering the
curb and sidewalk, because the
water is running off."

Water Right

To make the most of your efforts, Landry said, water between
sundown and sunrise.

Watering turf more often than recommended will actually hurt
its performance.
"Light, frequent irrigation produces shallow and weak root
systems," Landry
said. "A shallow root system prevents efficient use of
plant nutrients and water in
the soil."

Mowing your lawn regularly is important, too, especially
during a drought. "Mow
often enough that no more than one-third of the leaf tissue is
removed during a
cutting," Landry said. "And raise the mowing height.
This helps the grass
maintain a deep root system, which helps it find more
water."