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So How Much Water Does Your Lawn Really Need?
It has been a pretty wet rainy season, but that will soon be ending and once again homeowners will be faced with
the prospect of having to turn on their irrigation systems to keep their lawns green, because most everyone loves
to keep their lawns and turf areas green year-round. In addition to recreational and aesthetic benefits, properly
maintained healthy turf areas provide many functional benefits, including ground water recharge and filtering of
pollutants and runoff. Healthy lawns also add value to our properties and quality of life. While irrigation of turf is
the most frequently required practice for maintaining our landscapes, in most years, the rain that falls in South
Florida contributes substantially to meeting the total water demand of turfgrasses. However, some supplemental
irrigation is needed, especially during the drier winter months from February to May.
Research shows that overall, homeowners over-water as much as 2–3 times the amount needed by the plants,
based on estimates of climate demand. Thus many of us are guilty of overwatering, causing us to pay more than
necessary for keeping our lawns or other turf areas green.
The University of Florida/Institute of Food and Agricultural
Sciences recommends watering when 30–50 percent of
turfgrass wilts, appears bluish-grey in color or does not spring
back when stepped on. An efficient watering wets only the turf
grass root zone, does not saturate the soil, and does not allow
water to run off. Florida soils are typically sandy and hold 1 inch
of water in the top 12 inches of soil. If the roots are in the top
12 inches of soil and the soil is dry, then 3/4 to 1 inch of water is
required to wet the area thoroughly. This should take about 20
to 25 minutes for each zone of turf area being irrigated on a
two times per week watering schedule. It is especially
important to remember to check your automatic irrigation clock
(or controller) if you are using one and to reprogram your
controller to make seasonal adjustments and apply water according to the needs of the plant material.
Based on estimates that 50% of household water consumption is used for landscape irrigation, you may be paying
$350 to $650 more yearly than necessary for irrigating a typical residential lot of 1,000 square feet of turf area.
IRRIGATION TIPS
 Check your irrigation system frequently for broken sprinkler
heads and leaks.
 Have an irrigation system efficiency evaluation performed by a
professional. Regular irrigation system maintenance can reduce water
use by 15% or about 9,000 gallons annually.
 Install a rain shut-off device on your irrigation system if you don’t
have one and/or consider installing a soil moisture sensor. This sensor
can potentially save a household more than 11,000 gallons of water used
for irrigation annually.
 Create a FLORIDA-FRIENDLY LANDSCAPE by reducing your turf
area and establishing a mulched landscape area of trees, shrubs and groundcovers. Learn how at
www.floridayards.org and
http://www.broward.org/NaturalResources/NatureScape/CreateNaturescape/Pages/Default.aspx
 Use rain barrels to store captured rainwater from roofs.
 Contact your water and wastewater service provider to install a separate meter for irrigation use.