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Irrigation Tips

Landscape overwatering and water runoff is a waste of your money and natural resources.

A vibrant green yard might needless water than you think. To help take the guesswork out of ‘when’ and ‘how much’ to water your landscaping – and drastically reduce the waste of water runoff, consider resources such as the:

  • WaterMyYard program - free automated emails or texts on how much to water and when.
  • Cycle and Soak irrigation method - drastically reduce or eliminate wasted water.
  • ‘Smart’ Controllers - automatically adjust your irrigation needs based on local weather.
  • Wi-Fi Garden Hose Timers - use your Smartphone to control watering schedules and more.

 

WaterMyYard ProgramTexas A&M AgriLife Extention ‘WaterMyYard Program

The WaterMyYard program uses local weather data in sponsored areas to provide free weekly watering advice. This data is collected from an extensive network of weather stations and rain gauges, and, along with research-based understanding of plant water needs, allow experts to send free customized weekly water advice for your specific lawn and irrigation system.

WaterMyYard Screenshot

 

 

To sign up to receive automated WaterMyYard program emails or text-messages to know how much water your landscape actually requires:
Click Here button

 

 

A&M Cycle and SoakAgrilifeExtention – ‘Cycle and Soak’ irrigation method

The ‘Cycle and Soak’ method of applying water to the landscape is made up of multiple cycles for each station with a 30 to 60 minute pause to enable water to soak into the soil between cycles.

 

  1. The first cycle will break the surface tension of the soil and saturate the top layer of soil.
  2. The second cycle infiltrates the soil more efficiently and deeply after the first cycle.
  3. A third, and sometimes a fourth cycle, is beneficial if a slope is involved or if runoff occurs after the sprinklers run for just a few minutes.

 

For the A&M AgriLife ‘Cycle and Soak’ method document (pdf):
Click Here button

 

 

Smart Irrigation Controller“Smart”Irrigation Controllers

A ‘smart’ controller intelligently optimizes your in-ground irrigation system by automatically adjusting to weather conditions, making it easier for you to maintain a healthy landscape while cutting water use.Some models adjust irrigation needs to real-time weather conditions and automatically include ‘Cycle and Soak’ in the schedules.

 

If you are considering upgrading your irrigation controller,
this 2024 review might be helpful:
Click Here button

 

 

 

 

Wifi Hose TimerWi-Fi Garden Hose Timers

With a 'tap' on your smartphone, you can activate a timed 'quick watering' or set a watering schedule to finish before sunrise – for a garden hose sprinkler. Several timers integrate with home systems (Alexa, Google Home, etc.) - and have automatic 'rain & wind delay' features, much like irrigation controllers.

 

If you are considering a Wi-Fi garden hose timer,
this 2024 review might be helpful:
Click Here button