When rain is not enough. Tip #4 Watering wisely
Just like us, your lawn deserves a refreshing sip to keep hydrated. It’s something we feel nature should do for us. And yes, at some times of the year, rainfall will be enough to give your lawn the moisture it needs, but at other times a parched lawn is just a step away from turning into a desert. So keep it green, keep it seen, keep it feeling a barefoot dream!
Watering wisely is not as hard as you think. Most of us will think of watering when the lawn looks yellow or discoloured, or has dry and crusty leaves, but you can catch it before it gets to this stage. A good trick for checking if your grass needs watering is to do a “footprint test”. If your footstep leaves a noticeable indent in the lawn, it needs watering. If the grass springs back, it doesn’t need to be watered.
Answering the ‘when to water’ question is easy. As a general rule, the best time to water your lawn is between 6am and 10am (the earlier the better). Mornings tend to be cooler and less windy, meaning water is slower to evaporate. Less evaporation gives the water a chance to soak into your lawn and reach the lawn roots more effectively. This is advised over watering at night because night watering can lead to fungal problems.
How often to water requires you to consider a few factors - your location, type of grass, and season. Most Australian lawns are warm season grasses like Buffalo, Kikuyu, Couch and Zoysia. Warm season grasses tend to be better suited to Australia’s climate.
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In Winter: Water only if needed. Some may not need watering unless there is an extended dry spell.
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In Autumn/spring: Once a week is a good guide. If you feel there’s been a decent amount of rain, once a fortnight. Don’t worry, you don’t need to live your day constantly checking the weather app! However be wary. Water too often, and you risk encouraging shallow roots and fungal disease.
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In Summer: Every three to four days, especially when the weather is hot and dry. In summer if don’t water enough, your lawn is likely to discolour, get patchy, or die entirely.
How long to water for? Generally 20 to 30 minutes of watering with a sprinkler system is a good guide. Water less frequently but make sure you water deeply. This promotes deep roots and trains your grass to be more drought tolerant. Watering frequently and lightly promotes shallow roots that can more easily get stressed by heat and drought.
For those who want to get technical, how long to water your grass comes down to how much water your grass needs. You want the soil to be wet to a depth of 150mm. This generally takes 20 to 30 minutes of watering with a sprinkler system. You can check the watering depth by sinking a shovel or screwdriver into your lawn or digging a small hole to check the soil.
Another way to keep track of this is to place an ice-cream container on your lawn before you start watering. Once the water in the container reaches a depth of 10mm to 15mm, you’ve watered enough, and the idea here is that 10 to 15mm of water should penetrate the soil to a depth of about 150mm.
Lastly Check for water restrictions in your area: Each state or territory has different water restrictions so make sure to check the rules in your area. The Bureau of Meteorology provides access to current water restrictions information for the whole of Australia.
And remember a well-maintained and healthy lawn improves air quality, prevents soil erosion and actually minimises the amount of water you need to use overall. Healthy grass, is stronger and more resistant to weather conditions and requires less frequent watering compared to a ho-hum lawn.
