A bi-product of Kansas City’s sunny – some might say sweltering – summer months, comes a need to pay closer attention to your lawn, inspecting for weather-related damage, assuring proper restorative care is given and, on a related note, being certain your lawn is receiving an adequate amount of water. The trouble is, many homeowners have little know-how when it comes to nurturing and maintaining a lush, green lawn even when temperatures are scorching and rainfall is sparse.
Lawn Damage Can Start in the Spring
One of the challenges for sustaining healthy lawn growth in the summer is ironically related to an abundance of rainfall in the spring. Excess rainfall means grass and other plantings are not forced to develop deep root systems in the spring – an abundance of spring water leads to shallow roots that are ill-equipped tap into ground moisture just inches below the surface. In addition spring rains often strike with such volume and intensity that pooling water in lawn low areas can occur which can literally “drown” grass – or even lead to mold and fungus that can cause severe lawn damage and also be a danger to small pets that spend their lives in close proximity to the damaged lawn areas.
The Hose and Sprinkler System
We’ve all been there. Dragging hoses and sprinklers around the yard in an attempt to get the right amount of water to each area of one’s property. The difficulties of this system are many. Different areas, say flower beds and shrubs, require a different amount of water than a sunny lawn area – or a shady area with a large Oak tree as centerpiece. Multiply those issue with the common denominator that everyone today is highly occupied – and more likely than not to leave a sprinkler running in a specific area for too long of duration, even overnight. This can lead to the same problems as the heavy spring rain issues noted above.’
Smart Irrigation Month
The national Irrigation Association has designated July as in an effort to increase public awareness and to ensure consumers stay informed on methods to preserve water while also yielding better lawn results. When considering ways to conserve water, it is important to know the details of your property and be cognizant of your terrain.
It is crucial to know that our Midwestern clay soils can only absorb two-tenths of an inch of water in one hour. This is why many automated irrigation systems apply water in two to three applications per week – to promote proper absorption. Familiarizing and educating yourself on your soil type can help you to understand how quickly water will be absorbed without runoff and waste. Eliminate water waste not water supply!
Work Smarter Not Harder
The turf professionals at Heinen Landscape and Irrigation know the importance of using water efficiently and can custom design an irrigation system specifically for your property ensuring your yard gets precisely the amount of water it requires to stay healthy during times of extreme heat and little natural rainfall. And, by adding a WiFi-enabled irrigation controller, such as the Rachio Gen 3, your yard will get the ideal amount of water to keep your lawn looking vibrant, without the worry of water waste.
Smarter Systems = Less Wasted Water
The Rachio Gen 3 is the latest model from the Rachio line of irrigation control systems, with cutting edge and environmentally friendly features designed to save water – tailored down to your specific neighborhood.Rachio’s Weather Intelligence™ Plus feature adds “hyper-local” accuracy to current and projected weather conditions obtained through internet linkage to the nearest National Weather Service reporting station. No other smart sprinkler controller offers weather monitoring this precise or reliable – and, the controller’s direct monitoring of local weather patterns allows it to skip watering when rain is imminent, saving water and money!
A Smart Irrigation system is only as effective as its layout and technology is just one aspect of installing an effective irrigation system. If watering-zone planning and design is flawed, your lawn, shrubs and other plantings are at risk of over or under saturation. The irrigation pros at Heinen are experts at watering zone design and layout – with the seasoned skills necessary to create custom sprinkler zones tailored specifically to your property’s landscape features and while minimizing zone overlap
If you’re interested in learning more about the advantages of installing a fully automated underground home irrigation system or, if you just want more information about the new Rachio Gen 3 controller for your existing sprinkler system, Heinen can help! Just give Debbie at Heinen a call at (913) 432-5011.
Watering and soil tips courtesy Dennis Patton, Kansas State University Research and Extension.
