Do you know the difference between watering myths and reality?
You care for it. You feed it to ensure it grows to its fullest potential. You constantly toe the line between being too involved and not doing enough to keep it nourished enough to flourish.
All of our lawn parents out there know exactly what we are talking about. Lawn owners everywhere have heard countless tips on how to water their lawn. Whether or not they’re useful is a different story.
Fertilization, aeration and weed control play important roles in keeping a healthy lawn. But, let's not forget two of the most important things you can do for your lawn: mowing and watering. They may seem mundane, but they can have a big impact on the health of your lawn.
A proper watering plan is certainly part of the formula and we’re here to help set the record straight about some common watering myths.
Myth: Your lawn should be watered only when it looks brown and dry
Reality: When your grass enters a period of time without sufficient access to water, it may trigger the dormancy stage, which causes it to turn brown. While this doesn’t mean your lawn is dead, extended stress like this can eventually kill your roots.
As a rule of thumb, when a green lawn starts to take on a dull gray or blue-green hue, it’s time to give it a drink. Paying close attention to the color of your lawn will help you make sure it gets a drink long before it turns brown.
While it may seem like putting your lawn on an automatic schedule is the best option, that doesn’t account for extra help from April Showers (or May, or June, or you get the picture).
Myth: A healthy lawn will show footprints
Reality: A healthy lawn is a springy lawn. Your footprints should disappear as you walk across it. During the hotter months, your lawn’s elasticity will start to fade due to dehydration preventing it from perking back up after walking on it.
Turfgrass is composed of 70-75 percent water and when it starts to lose that moisture ratio it wilts, leaving tell-tale depression marks behind. So, a good indicator that your lawn might be suffering from heat stress and dehydration is if your footprints remain on your lawn after more than a couple minutes. Give a wilting lawn a good drink to help it spring back.
Myth: You need to water when it is hottest outside
Reality: While you may see your neighbors out in the hot afternoons, we recommend watering between 5 a.m and 10 a.m to make the most of your irrigation tactics. Watering in the morning allows water to soak into the soil and avoids saturation during the stressful heat of the day, which can actually worsen heat stress.
Alternately, watering in the evening may result in increased disease activity as standing water on the leaves may leave some grasses susceptible to fungal or bacterial pathogens.
Myth: Your lawn needs to be watered daily during extreme heat
Reality: Unlike people, lawns don’t require constant hydration in the heat. In fact, your turf prefers less frequent drinks in larger quantities. Watering too often can lead to turf disease and shallow root systems, making grass weaker and more vulnerable to drought, lawn-feeding pests, and other problems.
Lawns generally need about an inch of water each week. To make sure you're watering the correct amount, place an empty tuna can on your lawn and run your sprinklers until the can fills. This watering technique will encourage deeper root growth which means you’ll have a stronger, healthier lawn. In hotter weather with less rain, your lawn may need more water more often, especially if it is showing signs of wilt, which is nature's way of letting you know it is time to water.
Find Your Lawn Care Partner
Creating a watering plan can be tricky. There are so many different factors that go into creating the right combination of lawn care treatments and watering including your climate, soil condition, grass type and lawn usage. Partnering with TruGreen and our experienced team can help answer any questions you may have about getting your lawn set up for success.
TruGreen's lawn services are some of the most comprehensive in the industry and are tailored to your lawn’s specific needs.
First things first, our certified specialists need to get a lay of the land. Once a plan has been tailored to the unique needs of your lawn, you can proceed with confidence knowing that your lawn is backed by the TruGreen Guarantee®, which means that, for as long as your plan is in place, our specialist will come to your home as many times as necessary to ensure your satisfaction.
To learn more about TruGreen’s lawn services, call today at 866.688.6722 or compare our plans now.
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