The way your lawn looks will reveal a lot about what might be ailing it. Most lawn problems are watering related. By not watering your lawn properly it can cause lawn funguses, kill beneficial microbial activity, and cause shallow grass roots. These common lawn care problems are all caused by improper watering techniques. A single lawn might have multiple issues, because some parts of the lawn are being overwatered, and some parts are being under watered.Organo-Lawn invented the lawn watering technique called 1-2-3-2-1 lawn watering to help keep lawns from being over or under watered. This lawn watering technique is specifically for lawns in Boulder and Fort Collins area, but this technique should be used everywhere.
This Boulder lawn is how an Organo-Lawn full season program lawn will look when it is watered properly.
Symptoms of Under Watering a Lawn
- Ascochyta leaf blight: a heat and stress fungus
- Turf yellowing
- Footprints that remain visible for a few minutes after a lawn has been walked on.
How long to program a sprinkler system?
Every sprinkler system is different and every zone on an irrigation system is different too. The best way to get an accurate measurement of a sprinkler system is to use a rain gauge or a flat-bottomed flat-sided container. A lawn will need different amounts of water depending on how much sun the lawn zone receives. A south facing aspect in full sun will require .6”-.7” of water, a normal facing aspect with partial sun will require .5”-.6” of water and a north facing aspect in full shade will require .4”-.5” of water per watering.Why Daily Lawn Watering is a Bad Practice
Our technicians often see lawns in Boulder and the Fort Collins areas struggling with poor color and more often than not we discover that the lawn is being watered every day of the week. Daily watering is a major problem because it causes short root systems, flushes nutrients from the soil, and it kills microbial activity. Daily lawn watering is even more damaging to the health of the trees, compromising tree’s root systems and causing major damage to the overall health of the tree. Daily lawn watering is a bad practice because it replaces air in the soil and kills beneficial microbes in the soil. Also, when a lawn is watered daily, the roots of the grass will only grow a few inches into the soil because they are learning that they don’t need to dig deep for water. These short roots struggle when it is hot and they will not be able to tolerate heat and drought stress and the end result will be poor resistance to Ascochyta leaf blight and a poorly colored turf. This Boulder lawn has brown spots that are caused by poor sprinkler coverage.
How Much To Water Your Lawn Per Week To Keep it Green
Full Sun (South Facing Aspects)
When Daytime Temps are Greater than 85 degrees F 2.1 inches of water per week (7/10th of an inch of water 3 times a week) When Daytime Temps are Between 70-85 degrees F 1.4 inches per week (7/10th of an inch of water 2 times a week) When Daytime Temps are Less than 70 degrees F .7 inches of water per week (7/10th of an inch of water 1 time a week)Normal Facing (East / West Facing)
When Daytime Temps are Greater than 85 degrees F 1.5 inches of water per week (1/2 of an inch of water 3 times a week) When Daytime Temps are Between 70-85 degrees F 1 inch per week (1/2 of an inch of water 2 times a week) When Daytime Temps are Less than 70 degrees F .5 inches of water per week (1/2 of an inch of water 1 time a week)Full Shade (North Facing or Full Shade)
When Daytime Temps are Greater than 85 degrees F 1 inch of water per week (1/3 of an inch of water 3 times a week) When Daytime Temps are Between 70-85 degrees F .66 inches per week (1/3 of an inch of water 2 times a week) When Daytime Temps are Less than 70 degrees F .33 inches of water per week (1/3 of an inch of water 1 time a week)This Is What a Properly Watered Lawn Can Look Like
This Boulder lawn is how an Organo-Lawn full season program lawn will look when it is watered properly.
