Garden tips 4 ways to make your sprinklers smarter

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KUSA – Governor Hickenlooper has proclaimed July as Smart Irrigation Month for Colorado. This is well timed since July is often our hottest month and when we use – and waste – the most water in our yards.

The goal of smart irrigation is to use less water and still keep our yards healthy. When we maintain plants in a healthy state, they fight off weeds, insects and diseases. A stressed lawn -even the one brown spot you might have – will be much more prone to weeds and diseases than a healthy lawn that gets adequate water.

Here are four things you can do to make your sprinkler system smart, beginning with the least expensive:

First, make sure that your sprinkler system is properly adjusted. If a sprinkler is watering the driveway instead of the lawn, you are wasting water and killing the grass. Since most of us don’t see our sprinkler systems because they run while we’re asleep, we do need to check them out occasionally during daylight hours. Turn on the system and make sure the sprinklers are spraying water where it needs to go.

Second, don’t let a $2.99 spare part stand between you and healthy plants. The little nozzle in the sprinkler sometimes needs to be replaced. Or the sprinkler head itself gets damaged by the lawnmower. These parts need to be repaired or replaced to have an efficient sprinkler system. Remember that sprinkler systems are made up of mechanical parts – just like your car – and they need regular maintenance to perform properly.

Third, consider using drip irrigation to water all the areas other than the lawn. Like the name implies, “drip” technology allows water to drip slowly around the base of plants. There’s minimal evaporation loss and the water goes directly to the soil where the roots are. That makes it very water efficient. Drip technology is especially smart for veggie gardens because it’s best to avoid spraying water directly onto the leaves of most plants. Doing so often results in disease problems. Because drip lines are above ground, they are easy to see, move around and reconfigure as needed. That makes them user friendly as well as water efficient.

Finally, select a sprinkler timer that allows you to water three or more times on the same day. Having this feature assures that plants get all the water you need on your watering day, but because the water starts and stops at various times, it has time to soak in. This is called cycle-and-soak scheduling. For example, if you need to water 30 minutes total, this type of timer lets you water in three 10-minute intervals rather than all at once. Too much water all at once is often more than the soil can absorb at one time which creates run-off. Using the cycle-and-soak method to water at different intervals makes your sprinkler system more water efficient – and that’s smart.

Information courtesy Associated Landscape Contractors of Colorado – sponsors of the 9News Kitchen Garden and the 9News Water Wise Garden. For help with your landscape needs, go to www.alcc.com and click on Find a Pro.

(KUSA-TV © 2012 Multimedia Holdings Corporation)