What Is The Best Time To Water The Lawn

How Can You Tell If Theres Enough Or Too Much Water

Its all too easy to overcompensate for the heat and overwater your lawn. The trouble is, this is a wasteful habit which will cost you money, and it wont be doing your lawn much good either.

A tell-tale sign that youve overwatered is when you see water runoff the lawn, down the pavement and into the drain. At this point, the soil is no longer absorbing the water and its literally a waste of money.

If the ground feels overly muddy or spongy, then thats another sign that youve applied too much water. An increase of weeds or thatch can indicate overwatering as well, as can fungal-growth, such as mushrooms.

If you want to check that youre using the right amount of water, theres a couple of options. Tom Hilton recommends one such method: Sprinklers can make this a much easier job, allowing you to get an accurate measurement of how much water youre using by simply marking a container with an inch mark and seeing how long it takes to fill up. This will give you a great idea of how long to leave them on for, but obviously the traditional hose or even watering can methods are still effective.

You can also check the soil regularly as its being watered using a screwdriver shaft. All you need to do is time how long it takes for the water to reach 6-inches deep. Once you have this time, you know how long to leave your irrigation system running in the future.

When Is The Best Time Of Year To Water My Lawn

In Australia, droughts and restricted water access are commonplace so its essential to switch up your watering habits depending upon the season.

In winter, you should limit how often you water your lawn whilst the summer months call for more attention with watering recommended two to three times a week.

What Is The Best Way To Water My Lawn

Unless you want to get up before the sun rises to water your lawn, we advise getting a watering system installed. On top of letting you get extra sleep, choosing and operating a watering system correctly can also reduce water bills, insect and disease problems, and maintenance requirements. Also, keep in mind that certain landscape elements, such as flowers and potted plants, may require more attention and water than your irrigation system will be scheduled to provide for the lawn.

Watering your lawn correctly during the summer months is crucial and sets up your lawns health for the remainder of the year. While figuring out what the proper amount of water is for your lawn is feasible, we highly recommend having a landscape professional come out and inspect your property. They can help you determine the best watering frequency plan for your propertys specific needs, including the lawn and other landscape elements that may require different watering patterns. Landscape professionals can also install and maintain your irrigation systems for you.

While water is crucial to the health of all landscaping, it needs to be applied correctly. If you think your property is not being watered correctly or you have general questions about watering frequency, contact us! Wed love to help you find a solution for your specific needs and improve the overall health of your property.

Also Check: How To Fix My Lawn Mower

Achieving Optimal Lawn Care Results

The decisions you make for your lawn are important and can make a huge difference in the success of its growth and performance. Watering is one of those factors that really can play a huge role in the overall success of your lawn. Even though its a simple task, it is a vital one.

When youre investing in professional lawn care, you expect professional results. If your lawn is struggling due to not receiving enough water , then you should feel comfortable working with your lawn care company for advice and guidance on how to make improvements. You might even consider the installation of a professional irrigation system if youre struggling to provide your lawn with all of the water it needs.

At Master Lawn, we believe that a healthy lawn is a team effort. If you ever have questions about the best time to water your lawn in Tennessee or Mississippi, how often to water it, or anything else of that naturewe are here for you.

If youre ready to work with a lawn care company that will be there to provide you with guidance on any lawn care issues that arise, talk to a lawn care expert, choose from 3 program options, and become the master of your lawn.

The Best Time To Water Your Grass

Follow these eight tips for healthy grass with a deep, strong root system.

Proper watering is as important to maintaining a lush, green lawn. Too little water and the grass will shrivel up and die too much water and itll become over-saturated and die. Watering a lawn seems like a simple enough task, but for most of us knowing the best time to water your grassand how long to water your lawncan be confusing.

To provide you with a time-proven, easy-to-follow strategy for watering lawns, we contacted lawn care expert Matt Maurer, owner of PureLawn Lawn Services, with branches in Cincinnati and Dayton, Ohio. Matt shared with us the following eight DIY-friendly tips for growing a resilient, healthy lawn with a deep, strong root system.

Want more on home and garden care?

The absolute best time to water your lawn is the early morning, before 10 a.m., says Maurer. Cooler temperatures and calm breezes help keep evaporation to a minimum. And watering in the morning keeps the turf cooler during the hottest parts of the day, which means less stress on the grass.

As a general rule, you should water long enough to moisten the soil down to about 6 inches, which is the average depth of a healthy grass-root system. It takes about one inch of water to properly hydrate normal lawns to that depth. But, Maurer warns, âEach lawn has different soil. You have to water for your specific property.â There are a few ways to determine whether your lawn is getting the right amount of water.

Recommended Reading: Where To Buy Murray Lawn Mowers

Signs Of A Dry Lawn Before It Turns Brown

• Your footprints will remain visible in the grass after you walk across it. Dry grass wont spring up quickly it will remain flat.
• The grass will start to have a bluish/gray color to it. This is one of the first signs of watering problems.
• Grass blades will fold along the center vein and look thin and needlelike. Well-watered grass will be wide and flat.
• The soil must be wet or moist at all times It can never be dry or dusty, not even for a day. If you cant pinch the soil into a moist ball, it is too dry.

Proper Lawn Watering For A Greener Lawn In The Lehigh Valley Or Buxmont Pa

If you have more questions about watering your lawn, were here to lend an ear and help you answer those questions. At Joshua Tree, we view lawn care as a partnership between us and our clients. Were doing everything we can on our end to ensure your lawn is healthy and green but it also takes some help on your end, including proper watering.

We are always available to help make that process easier and ensure that you know what your lawn needs to thrive. Theres a lot of misinformation out there but were here to help you set the record straight.

If youd like to find out more about our three lawn care program options so that your lawn can receive the best possible care, contact us for a free consultation or give us a call at 610-365-2200 so that we can answer any questions.

Ready to get started?

You May Like: How To Bid Commercial Lawn Mowing

Frequently Ask Questions :

Is it better to water my lawn in the morning or evening?

It is generally better to water your lawn in the morning or evening when temperatures are cooler and there is less evaporation.

Is it okay to water my lawn on a windy day?

It is best to avoid watering your lawn on a windy day, as the wind can blow the water away from the roots of the grass, making it less effective.

Can I water my lawn at night?

Watering your lawn at night is generally not recommended, as the grass can stay wet for an extended period of time, which can create an ideal environment for fungal growth.

When Is The Best Time To Water Grass In Hot Weather

last updated on By William Aguinaldo

Disclaimer: The Spruce Tools is reader-supported. We may earn an Affiliate Commission at no cost to you. When you purchase items through our links. Learn More

Having a lawn brings with it a good amount of responsibility. If not taken care of properly, your house could have a bad and messy outlook. Especially in summer, it is essential to have proper watering during hot days.

In this article, we will provide some tried and experimented lawn watering tips that might come in handy.

Many factors contribute to the proper growth of grass. Among them water is one of the most significant ones. However, it is one of the challenging ones too.

During hot weather, it is crucial to maintain a balance between too much and too less.

Finding this balance is a tricky business and since this balance differs from weather to weather, it simply adds more to the plate.

This article will solely focus on the proper watering of grass during the hot weather. In such times, extra watering is required when the grass is comparatively drier, and the soil tends to absorb more water than usual.

Practically, the best time to water grass in hot weather is when the temperature is low. This is normally in the early morning, when the sun has started to rise. At such times, you can see dew drops on the grass blades.

Recommended Reading: How Much Does It Cost To Have Your Lawn Rolled

Do Lawns Really Need To Be Watered

Whether or not your lawn needs to be watered depends on many factors. The type of grass you have, for example, will dictate how much water it takes to stay alive. Some grasses, like Kentucky bluegrass, perennial ryegrass, fine fescue and tall fescue, are very drought tolerant and may not require watering at all if your area receives adequate and consistent rainfall.

However, allowing lawns to go without supplemental water during dry spells also can mean that your lawn will dry up and go dormant until adequate natural water returns .

A dried up lawn is not a look, however, and many subdivisions with HOAs are definitely going to frown upon this choice. You do run the risk of your lawn dying entirely, but as long as it gets at least an inch of water every two to three weeks, it should be able to recover.

If you let nature take its course and leave your grass to grow or die with the rain, its important to be consistent. Either dont water or do water, but watering sometimes and not at other times is a good way to kill your lawn off permanently. Supplemental irrigation during prolonged droughts of a month or more is the only exception to this rule, as grass without any water for that long is almost certainly doomed, no matter how free range of a grass parent you are.

How Frequently To Water

Irrigation frequency will vary based on grass species, rainfall amounts, soil type and amount of compaction, shade presence, geographical location in the state, and, most importantly, by season. Irrigation systems should be reset seasonally to reflect the differing water requirements of grasses based on time of year. Table 1 lists some average seasonal irrigation frequencies for maintenance of St. Augustinegrass in north, central, and south Florida. These frequencies assume that no rainfall occurs, so if rainfall amounts total at least ½ to ¾ “, the frequency can usually be reduced. Often, homeowners are unaware that an irrigation system should be adjusted seasonally, and failure to adjust for seasonal changes will usually lead to overwatering. Overwatering will harm long-term turf health because it greatly increases disease susceptibility and thatch buildup and leads to a shorter root system, which reduces the turf’s overall stress tolerance and ability to survive with less water. Additionally, overwatering promotes the growth of certain weed species such as dollarweed and sedges.

• Leaf blades are folded in half lengthwise in an attempt to conserve water .

• The grass takes on a blue-gray tint rather than maintaining a green color.

• Footprints or tire tracks remain visible on the grass long after they are made.

Don’t Miss: How Much Does Lawn Doctor Service Cost

How Much Water Do You Use When You Water Your Lawn

All lawn areas require 1- 1.5 per week. This is best done in one to two waterings per week depending on your soil type and if we are experiencing heat waves . The trick here is to water deeply so that the roots grow down deeper into the soil to chase the water, thereby leaving more soil above them to protect them during periods of dryness and excessive heat.

How Much Water Does My Lawn Need

The most ideal amount of water your lawns need is about an inch or an inch and a half per week. With this amount of water, it can moisten your soil up to 6 down, which is the depth of a healthy grass root system. Watering daily however is not advisable especially if youre only doing it to get that inch of water that your lawn needs every week immediately. Watering daily results in weak lawns that dry out fast because of the shallow root system that develops. In contrast, irregular watering with just the right amount of water to reach that inch by the end of the week permits roots to grow deeper, developing a strong root system that is healthy and weather and disease resistant.

You May Like: What Will Kill Violets In Lawn

Buy Or Diy A Rain Gauge

You can purchase one at a gardening store or mark 2.5 cm on a can or cup that you already have. Place the rain gauge within range of your sprinkler system and time how long it takes for the water line to reach 2.5 cm. Once you have this information, you can add a timer to your sprinkler system that will shut it off automatically.

Watering Different Types Of Grasses

Cool season grasses are grown in areas with cooler, northern climates or they are planted in the off-season in warmer areas. These grasses usually start growing when the soil temperature reached about 40-60F. they have a peak growing season in spring or fall. The watering requirement for a cool season grass is typically around 1 inch per week.

Warm season grasses grow in warmer areas with soil temperatures between 60-65F. their peak growing season is during the summer. Because of their heat tolerance, they have deeper roots that can go up to 4 feet below the ground. Their watering requirement typically is between ½-1 inches per week. Although is especially hot areas, it can increase up to 1.5inch

Read Also: How To Install New Sod Lawn

Is It Bad To Water Grass Everyday

Watering on a daily basis is not beneficial to your lawn. Too much water can be just as damaging to plants as too little water and the excessive irrigation will invite future disease problems. Dry soil is an indicator that the lawn needs more water. If the soil is dry, it is dehydrated and needs water.

Knowing When To Water

Read Also: When To Aerate Lawn In Nj

Allow The Lawn To Dry A Bit

Allow the lawn to partially dry out between watering. It doesnt want to be wet all the time.

Your lawn will show you when its getting dry and needs water. When you walk on the grass, you can look back and see your footprints. The grass also changes color from bright green to a dull grayish blue when its dry.

How To Check If Youve Watered The Lawn Enough

Generally, the easiest way to gauge if you have watered enough is by observing the appearance of your lawn. Healthy lawns appear green and thick while dry lawns start to go grey/blue and the leaf starts to shrink.

For an added measuring technique, consider sinking a standard screwdriver into the grass. Your lawn is well-watered if the tool quickly sinks between 15 to 18 centimetres.

To ensure that your lawn remains in this condition, use wetting agents, like Aquaturf. These prevent the formation of dry patches that can occur despite sufficient watering. Wetting agents are effective in all soil types and should be used once a month to ensure the best protection.

You May Like: How Often To Apply Fertilizer To Lawn