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Water Saving Techniques on Existing Systems

or

How to Optimize Available Irrigation

Assess your system:

Too often spray irrigation is less than efficient and can waste a great percentage of what is supposed to be delivered to the plant material

1.    Seals on sprinkler heads can wear  and leak  and often do not allow sprinklers to fully pressurize thereby not allowing efficient delivery.

2.   Heads are mis-aimed, spraying water on adjoining plant material already being watered by another system, or onto paving. 

3.   Heads are dirty or worn, often resulting in a dry spot that may inspire over watering the rest of the turf trying to green up dry spots .

4.   Make sure  your system is not  over pressurized. An over pressurized system atomizes the irrigation, carrying it away from where it is needed.

5.   Each pop-up sprinkler has an internal filter that needs to be maintained.

Clean Your Clock:

Irrigation timers have multiple programs and start times, check to make sure there are no programs, other than the ones necessary.

Inspect  Drip System:

Visually confirm that each emitter is operating properly and each appears to have the same flow rate.  Check to make sure that each

emitter is actually watering a plant and that it is in a proper relationship to the plant.  They often must be moved as root systems

grow, water is absorbed apically, towards the ends of roots.

Use  Proper Watering Techniques:

Water before it gets hot, but not in the middle of the night (this invites pathogens).

Water deeply and infrequently, this technique drives the roots down, thereby creating a root system that is deep and stress tolerant.  Drought tolerance can be created by developing sturdy root systems.  The idea is to exceed the root system with irrigation, allowing it to dry up before reapplying irrigation.  Recognize successively longer run times  will be needed as root develops, allowing for more time between  run times.

A new plant will need frequent, but shallow irrigation.

Avoid  overhead watering when windy.

Mulch
Organic mulch applied at adequate rates moderates soil temperatures and slows water loss, it also increases microbial and mycorrhizal activity, both beneficial to plant health.

Mulch covers unsightly drip irrigation lines.

Here are a few pics of  low water usage landscapes ........



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