The
Successful Gardener
Is your lawn looking like toast? Wish you had invested
in an irrigation system instead of the jet ski ?
Plants are ninety percent water, so it’s a no-brainer
that supplemental water is essential for great lawns
and gardens in the South. Before you dash out to purchase
a D-I-Y kit or professional service, you need to familiarize
yourself with some irrigation facts.
Lawn care professionals know that 75 % or more
of the fresh weight of turfgrass plants is water. For
golf course quality lawns, irrigation is the key cultural
practice. The greatest amount of water absorbed by
plants is used in transpiration (evaporation from leaves).
This is the primary cooling process.
Only one percent of the water absorbed
by the roots is utilized for plant growth. 
An explanation
about water loss can get a bit academic, but if you
are a technical person here is a little trivia. Evapotranspiration
(ET) is the process by which water is transferred to
the atmosphere from vegetative surfaces. The two components
of this process are evaporation and transpiration.
Evaporation is the physical process whereby water is
changed from a liquid to a gas. This occurs on water
services, such as ponds, streams, or wet vegetation.
Transpiration is a plant process whereby water is evaporated
through a series of openings on leaf surfaces of plants.
Before you invest your hard earned money in an irrigation
system, think about site considerations and maintenance
after installation. For the novice, a simple leaky
hose or drip irrigation may be as sophisticated a system
as you should attempt to install for shrub beds. (You
buy a filter and water regulator to manage the water
pressure, then connect the lines with its evenly spaced
emitters.) Irrigation system programming by a trained
irrigation technician is essential for most elaborate
turfgrass setups, because of the many variables involved,
such as slope, soil types, rooting depth, etc.
- Knowledge of the water reserves in the root zone
is a key requirement for determining irrigation needs.
On many turf areas, 75% of the root system is often
found in the top 4 to 6in. of soil. For cool season
grasses, such as tall fescue, the peak rooting times
of fall and spring, a critical time for sufficient
water. The roots and water needs of warm season glasses,
such as bermudagrass, often peak in the summer.
The best method of determining whether the proper
amount of water has been applied is to determine the
depth of water penetration following irrigation by
coring with a soil tube.
If water has not penetrated to the desired depth
-
by 6 to 8 hours after irrigation,
then irrigation times should be increased. Installing
a time rain sensor is an important consideration to
conserve water and save money.
-
Under most conditions, irrigation
is performed during the early morning hours, primarily
between 4am and 7am in order to conserve water. A time
clock is an essential component unless of course, you
are an early riser or retiree. There should be separate
zones for watering turfgrass and shrub beds to avoid
over-watering the shrubbery .
-
Cost is generally the biggest issue
for most homeowners. It is wise to get a couple of
estimates from contractors and compare the maintenance
contracts. If you rely on a home well for your water
source, be certain you have enough underground storage
capacity to run an elaborate irrigation system.
Ideas
for Toby?
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