Save Water. Save Money.

OUTDOOR WATER SAVING TIPS

In Utah the average person uses 60% of their drinking water to water their landscape.

Follow these simple tips to see how you can save water and money outside your home and maintain the beautiful landscape you desire. 

1. Avoid spray washing of sidewalks, driveways, parking areas or other paved surfaces. Use a broom instead.
2. Use a bucket to wash your car or take it to a carwash instead of using the hose.
3. Check outside faucets for leaks and make any repairs necessary.
4. Check, adjust, and repair your entire irrigation system components frequently. Pay special attention to possible broken, leaky, or malfunctioning sprinkler heads and valves.
5. Adjust misaligned sprinkler heads to water landscaped areas only.
6. Only water your lawn when needed.
7. Watering late night or early morning are the best times to minimize evaporation, allowing water to percolate into the soil.
8. Modify watering cycles. For example, instead of running each zone of your sprinkler system for 30 minutes, consider running each zone for 7-8 minutes in three consecutive cycles allowing a 5-10 minute break between each cycle.
9. Use sprinklers for larger grassy areas, drip systems for planters, and water by hand small pots and brown grass patches.
10. Use higher settings in your lawn mower. Longer grass shades root systems and holds soil moisture better than a closely clipped lawn.
11. Weed your lawn regularly. Weeds compete with other plants for nutrients, light, and water.
12. Use fertilizers only in small portions as needed. Although they promote plant growth, they also increase water consumption.
13. Use native plants in your landscape - they look beautiful and use less water than regular turf.
14. Turn sprinklers off following a rainstorm. Discontinue watering until landscaped areas are in need of water.
15. Adjust sprinkler schedule according to the season.
16. Water manually only when needed during early and late season months.
17. Group plants according to water needs and set a specific irrigation zone for these. For example, trees and shrubs may have different watering requirements than turf grasses.

Edible Gardening Essentials: Watering Tips Worth Soaking Up