An irrigation system makes sense for home and business owners that want to ensure their lawns, gardens, and greenspaces are watered consistently and adequately all-season. However, when mistakes are made in installing or maintaining systems, you could be wasting water, time, and money, which makes the system ill-effective and inefficient.
Is your irrigation system as efficient as it could be?
Coverage
Make sure that you carefully measure and then assess the coverage that your irrigation system is providing. It should cover the edges, sides, and corners, ensuring that all of your plants, foliage, or grass is getting the same amount of water.
Timing
Are you setting your system to water at the right time? The best time to water a yard, garden, bed, or tree is in the early-morning hours; this ensures moisture is absorbed before the cooler temperatures of evening, in the Carolinas and southeastern United States.
Separation
Make sure to set-up separate systems – i.e. heads and nozzles – for the different features of your greenspace. For example, don’t use one nozzle for a lawn and garden as lawns require more water than most beds, which results in waste.
Nozzle-heads
Don’t mix your nozzle-heads in one irrigation area to double-up on watering efforts; this wastes water, and actually shows little favorable impact on the landscape. Plus, this could result in issues with overwatering, particularly for any bordering trees, as their deep roots require less-water than other flora and foliage.
Rainfall
It is easy and inexpensive to augment your irrigation system with a rainfall shut-off device. In fact, one of these devices can result in 15% less water utility, which saves money in monthly water costs. Plus, it is a great step toward sustainability.
Attention
While irrigation systems make it seemingly effortless to water your yard and garden, it still warrants some attention. Periodically, assess the soil to see what the moisture level is and whether the coverage area is adequate. Failure to periodically evaluate and adjust your irrigation nozzles could result in uneven watering or dead foliage.
Experience
While setting up an irrigation system isn’t difficult, there are things learned with experience that are invaluable. For instance, it may be difficult for a novice to determine the best spray pattern, nozzle-heads, or timing for their system; talk to a landscape professional in the Charleston area for more information.
Is your irrigation system as efficient as it could be? Consider these tips and speak with a knowledgable landscape professional in the Charleston area for more insight and information pertaining to the best irrigation systems and approaches for your distinct green-space. Let the experts at Natural Tendencies Landscape Professionals help you make your irrigation system more efficient, while helping your lawns, flowers, and trees thrive