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Water New Lawn

How to water new and established lawns?

Watering is an essential requirement to nourish both the new and established lawns. However, the needs of both the lawns differ from one another. New lawns demand special care as they establish, with good attention to water. Similarly, the established lawns may demand less water, except during the summer when the temperature is high. 

Lawn care is all in the details, and we take care of every single one to give you the lawn of your dreams. Contact us today!

New lawns need more water to establish as they have no root system attached to the soil. Thus you have to keep the lawn wet for a longer duration compared to the established lawns. Regardless of the lawns you have, you should know the water requirements.

How to water a new lawn?

Follow the steps listed below to water a new lawn: 

Step 1 – In this step, you must prepare the soil to be seeded. If you find thatches around more than ½ to 3.4 inches, consider dethatching them and getting rid of the debris. It will allow the seeds to come in touch with the soil. If you are planting grass seed on any bare soil or over sparse grass, you must loosen the top half-inch of soil with a steel rake, which helps keep the seed raked properly after spreading. 

As per the soil test result, you can use starter fertilizer at this juncture. However, many lawn owners like to wait upto two weeks after seeding before applying the fertilizer. This way, the fertilizer starts working on time when the seed has begun its germination. 

Step 2 – You now have to spread and rake the seed into the yard, which will make it lightly covered. It is recommended to use a heavy rate while planting grass seed in bare soil. Similarly, you have to use lighter rates for overseeding in established lawns. Seeds can spread with the help of a rotary or drop fertilizer spreader. 

Before watering your new lawn, always check how deep you should put your seed covered with soil. The seeds require light covering, and you must plant them to a maximum of one inch deep. When you rake a seed, you can find some amount of seed showing over the surface. Even if it touches the surface, it can germinate, but you can get good all-around contact when it is completely covered.

Step 3 – Make sure you irrigate your soil twice a day daily. The soil in the lawn should not completely dry out. Avoid soaking or flooding your yard If you plant the seed in bare soil. When you water a new lawn, make sure you use enough water to keep the soil moist at a good seed depth. Heavy rain can wash away the seeds while standing water in your yard can have some adverse effects.

Step 4 – Once you find the seed sprouting, you are supposed to water it. However, you should apply light water and allow the soil to dry slightly before watering it again. It is often not recommended to saturate the soil during the seedling stage. The wet soil can add severe root diseases, including Pythium Blight, which eventually kills the roots. The humid weather can have some ailments when compared to dry weather. 

To grow cool-season grass, you should plant it during the fall, when the daytime temperature is not that harsh. The seedlings will remain in good condition if the lawn keeps getting water. However, growing the warm-season grasses is recommended during the spring season. If you have a hot spring season, you may need to water the seedlings to avoid damage. Do remember that warm-season grass can take some time to germinate. 

Step 5 – When you find the grass growing to a few inches tall, you have to slash down the watering activity by once in two or three days. However, the frequency will depend upon the temperature. Small size seedlings can suffer if you see the high temperature making the soil dry. Soil can dry fast on hot days as compared to the humid environment. 

Step 6 – Once you find the grass reaching its cutting height for any specific grass kind, you can start watering deeply. But keep the frequency on the lower side so the soil can remain wet for around four inches. Once you water, avoid watering once again until the grass starts showing stress signs. It will allow the roots to grow deep inside the soil without reaching the available nutrients and water.

Things to consider when watering a new lawn 

To germinate seeds, you must keep the soil consistently moist. It helps in keeping the soil temperature in the right range. You can find the germination times varying with different species, but most lawn seeds take 3 to 21 days to germinate. When dealing with new lawns, the best way to keep the soil moist is by lightly sprinkling the seeded areas twice or thrice a day. You can use sprinklers, and check the best watering tools

While doing that, you should note that the soil does not dry. If the germination process has started, you cannot afford to keep the seed dry as it can perish. Also, you need frequent watering for different reasons. These depend upon the factors like the type of soil and weather conditions like wind or temperature. Sandy soil requires more water than clay or loamy soils.

How to water established lawns?

Follow the steps listed below to water an established lawn: 

Step 1 – Unlike the new yards, you do not have to water too often in an established lawn. Regardless of the frequency of watering your yard, you should know the right time to water it. To help reduce evaporation and prevent the disappearance of water, it is always recommended to water in the early morning. 

However, daytime watering may not damage the yard, but it can add inefficiency and cost to the water supply when you have wind and sun on top of other factors. Always water the lawn when the grass needs it. When the grass becomes dark and blackish, it demands irrigation. 

Step 2 – Once you note when to water your lawn, the next thing you should know is how long to water. The irrigation duration depends upon the kind of sprinkler you use and the water your lawn’s grass needs. If you are using a pop-up spray sprinkler, it has the capacity of spraying twice the water you get from the pop-up rotor sprinklers. 

Hence rotors and spread should be kept in separate zones, while the run time should showcase a 2:1 output difference. Also, you already know that grass needs more water during summer due to the higher temperature. Thus, you have to adjust the sprinkler run times during summer. Lastly, avoid watering the same amount in July as you do in April.

Step 3 -The next thing you need to know is the type of seed. For the ordinary seeds, you have to water them once or twice. Make sure you check that it should give one inch of water every week as per the location and time of year. Maintaining this schedule and water quality is better than light watering several days a week. Light watering only gives shallow roots that make your yard less drought tolerant.

Step 4 – You should know to troubleshoot the sprinkler performance. One of the best tools to find out the water-related issues in your lawn is the set of collection cups. Installing proper collection cups at different places on your lawn will help you know the problem with the sprinkler. 

You have to place one in the area with issues and one at the place which seems reasonable. This information will help you adjust the sprinkler system coverage allowing your lawn to get sufficient and consistent water.

Things to consider when watering an established lawn

All the functions, including watering in an established lawn, go as per the variables, including soil type, water conditions, traffic, grass type, sun exposure and the required turf performance. Also, in any established lawn, the irrigation rates can vary wildly. The water requirement should be as high as 2 inches per week for cool-season grass. The source could include the in-house irrigation system or rainfall. 

The quantity of water on your lawn can go down if you are happy with keeping the aesthetic goals down. The next element that impacts watering is the amount of traffic you put over your lawn. The higher the traffic, the better the irrigation and fertilization systems. In any established yard, you should water deeply at irregular intervals. It helps promote deeper roots that are important for capturing the benefits of rain.

In conclusion, new lawns demand special care as they establish, with good attention given to water. Similarly, the established lawns may demand less water, except during the summer when the temperature is high. 

The above steps about watering depending upon the type of grass and weather conditions will help you maintain a comfortable water schedule. Stick to them, while for professional help, you can consult lawn care service providers like Eden. 

Lawn care is all in the details, and we take care of every single one to give you the lawn of your dreams. Contact us today!