How much water does your lawn need?
Common Southern grasses like Zoysia, St. Augustine, Bermuda and Centipede don’t really need a lot of water. These grasses have deep root systems that allow them to withstand drought. If your lawn is healthy and established, you are mostly off the hook. So, how much water does your lawn need?
Sounds too good to be true.
Southern grasses like those listed above, really can survive for weeks without water. Brace yourself because it won’t be pretty. The grasses will go dormant and turn brown. Once they get water (whether from rain or your watering) they will recover.
Remember that going dormant doesn’t mean your lawn is dead, it is just resting and saving its’ energy.
Dormant lawns aren’t pretty lawns.
It’s true. No one wants to work all year (or invest in the upkeep) on a lawn that turns brown. Instead of letting that happen, here are a few guidelines to help you with watering.
- If your lawn looks a little gray or dull, water it!
- If you walk across your lawn and your footprints stay sunken, water it!
- Water your lawn before 10:00 a.m. when the weather is cooler. This gives the water time to soak in and evaporate with wind and sun.
- OR….
- Water in the afternoon around 6:00 p.m. allowing the grass to dry before it gets dark.
- Instead of watering once a week and possibly “overwatering”, divide your watering between two times a week.
As long as your lawn gets 1-1.5 inches of rain/water per week, your lawn will be fine.
There’s an app for that.
Today we have “smart” options that allow you to program your watering systems. Water your lawn from your smart phone and even link it to the local weather system to water at exactly the right time.
Starting with a healthy lawn is the most important part of having a beautiful lawn. A strong and healthy lawn is much more able to withstand extreme summer weather conditions. Whether battling high temperatures, excessive rain or drought, a healthy lawn can fight back.
Lawn and Pest Solutions can get your lawn to that healthy status. You can keep it that way with some simple watering tips. Give us a call and we will send a licensed lawn technician ASAP. We serve neighborhoods and businesses from Memphis to all over North Mississippi.
