Proper watering is one of the most important steps that you can take towards having a healthy lawn. Achieving this consists of not only being sure to water your lawn regularly but also providing it with the correct amount of water and even more importantly, making sure that the water reaches its target area in the soil profile. While it may seem as though it’s as easy as setting out a sprinkler and letting it do the work, there are many variables that contribute to whether or not the water actually reaches and stays where it needs to be.
Since our main objective is to have water reach a certain area of the soil profile, then soil composition is obviously the most important variable. Knowing what your soil is composed of and roughly their proportions will help you make informed decisions on watering. The more organic the composition of the soil, the more moisture retention you will have. On the other hand, the more sand your soil contains, the more water will drain away. A good mixture of the two will not only allow the water to move through the soil profile but also be retained by the surrounding organic matter, thus helping to deliver water and the dissolved nutrients that it carries to the roots of the grass. However, not everyone has the perfect organic-to-aggregate ratio in their lawn. This is where proper watering technique comes in. If compaction issues persist throughout your lawn, such as the hardened organic areas underneath trees and surrounding tree roots, then interval watering should be utilized.
Homes are designed to have water drain away and into ditches or subsurface drainage areas. With compacted soil, this poses a particular problem because the water does not have much chance to reach below the soil surface. This can be combated by watering these areas in short intervals rather than extended periods of time as conventional wisdom may suggest. If an area reaches its saturation point within a few moments, the rest of the time spent watering is wasted and the excess water runs off and fills lower lying areas such as ditches. On the other hand, if you water an area until you start to see runoff or pooling and then pause watering until the pooled water has been absorbed into the ground, once watering is resumed, the water will effectively be forced through the soil profile and reach the root zone where it is needed. Repeating this process a few times may be needed in extremely compacted areas. Once soil saturation has been established over a period of time, the lawn will be much more receptive to regular watering.
Nutrient-rich organic matter is a necessary component when trying to achieve a healthy lawn. However, too much organic matter can retain unwanted moisture and inhibit oxygen exchange to the roots as well as encourage soil-borne pathogens such as fungus. As a result, overwatering can be as detrimental if not more so than not watering your lawn enough. When organic material is in abundance and water can easily reach the roots of plants and remain there for days at a time, frequent watering is unnecessary. Watering as little as once a week should be more than sufficient in those types of soil. If in between these weekly intervals drought stress is detected on the lawn, then additional watering may be done.
By using these tips and techniques, you can ensure that the time you spend watering your lawn will be beneficial and it will help your lawn achieve a strong root system, which is the basis for a healthy and durable lawn.
