When we water the lawn, we imagine that we are watering the grass plants but actually our aim is to restore the moisture held within the soil. The soil is actually a reservoir holding water for the grass plant to draw upon. During periods of drought the moisture in the soil evaporates and the grass plant can no longer access the water it needs. It begins to wilt and turns brown after a short period. In these circumstances irrigation of some sort is needed if we are to keep the lawn providing a safe green playing surface or a green backdrop for our flower beds. If you have been taking care of your lawn the root systems should be well established which will provide some protection if only because they can draw on water lower down in the soil.
Water is essential for the plant to continue with the process of photosynthesis which allows the plant to continue to grow and give a good green leaf. It also pushes nutrients through the soil while micro-organisms convert fertiliser into food that the plant can take up through its root system.
Grass will soon tell you when you need to water it. The Grass leaf will begin to change its colour and take on a brownish tint. It will start to wilt and lose its resilience. If left the leaf will turn brown and begin to shrivel up. Below the surface the rooting system will also dry up and could ultimately die.
Now for the good news. Grass roots are very durable and will come back if they have been properly nurtured prior to the dry period but if it remains dry for too long you run the risk of losing the lawn altogether.
Watering is best done in the evening because the water will not evaporate so quickly as it would if you irrigated during the day and it will have all night to soak down into the soil.
The quantity of water required will depend on the type of soil the lawn is growing on. For instance, sandy soil will not hold its moisture as well as loamy soil or soil with a high clay content. It is thought that in hot dry weather lawns can lose up to 25mm of water in 7 days.
To replace this would require 27 litres of water per square metre. Which leads us to the question of how often should I irrigate? A little and often should not be on the agenda because this only encourages shallow rooting which will quickly dry out in hot weather.
Infrequent and heavy applications will be better for your lawn and encourage deep rooting and a healthier grass plant. A heavy watering every 7 days in hot weather should be sufficient. Don’t forget that a very dry surface will not take up water easily. It will tend to shed the water sideways and run off without doing its work. One way around this is to give the lawn a light watering and let it soak in before giving it the full treatment.
There are many types of sprinklers on the market for you to choose from but whichever one you choose you need to remember that the bigger area it covers the longer you will need to deliver the required amount of water. You should also make note how wide the sprinkler is spraying so that when you move it you can make sure that there are no gaps. If necessary overlap the irrigated area just to make sure of this.
Finally remember that the plant needs moisture to keep the nutrients moving within it and the soil needs water for moving the nutrients through it to the grass roots so there really is no substitute for keeping your lawn well-watered.
