Four Watering Tips for Your Ottawa Lawn

When it comes to keeping your lawn health, hearty, and disease-free, nothing beats a well-engineered automatic sprinkler system. Whether you're in charge of a sprawling golf course or a moderate backyard, proper irrigation is an essential part of your lawn's diet. From sunny mornings to scorching afternoons, the following four tips will help you make the most of your irrigation system, and help prepare your lawn for the long summer ahead.

Tip #1 –  Set a Schedule
Routines are great – they help you make it to the office on time and make it easier to find your keys in the morning. A well-thought-out irrigation routine can help improve the health of your grass. Scheduling your residential or commercial sprinkler system to automatically refresh your lawn every morning is great, but did you know that you can now schedule your irrigation system to come on only when your lawn requires watering? New weather-sensing technology can actually calculate exactly when your lawn requires moisture, creating a custom watering schedule based on realtime weather data, soil type, and your local climate. For more information on these environmentally-friendly sprinkler systems contact a Nutri-Lawn representative today.

Tip #2 – Hit the Saturation Point
A professionally installed residential sprinkler system will automatically water your lawn to the point of saturation. Too much water and your grass could become infected by any number of common lawn diseases. Too little water and your lawn will become malnourished and more vulnerable to insect attacks. If you're working with an older model sprinkler system, the experts at Nutri-Lawn recommend scheduling the unit to come on during the early morning hours, preferably around dawn. This will ensure that the vast majority of the water is absorbed by your lawn rather than lost through the process of evaporation. While many Ottawa residents prefer to turn their residential sprinkler systems on in the evening, our experts don't recommend it. Watering in the evening will leave your grass moist over night, which could lead to the outbreak of disease or worse, a fungus infestation.

Tip #3 – Don't Forget About Your Landscaping
While grass likely accounts for 85% of your landscaping, it's not the only plant life you'll need to consider when planning your irrigation strategy. Luckily, the lawn care experts at Nutri-Lawn can provide you with a fully zoned irrigation system that's customized to provide your grass, plants, shrubs, and trees with just the right amount of moisture.

Tip #4 – Spot Check Your Sprinkler System's Performance
Mismanaging your sprinkler system's water distribution can have devastating effects on an Ottawa lawn. If you're worried that your automatic sprinkler system isn't set properly, try this simple test before giving the experts at Nutri-Lawn a call. Place an empty tuna can on your lawn the next time you activate your residential or commercial sprinkler system. Let the sprinklers run through their cycle. When your sprinklers turn off, check the water level in the tuna can. If your automatic sprinkler system is working correctly, there should be about an inch of water in the can (provided your commercial sprinkler system doesn't have a weather smart feature). If you find that your older sprinkler system is constantly mismanaging your irrigation, it may be time to upgrade to a new weather smart model like those mentioned in tip #1.

Is your lawn getting enough H20 love? For a full assessment of your lawn's irrigation needs, contact the residential and commercial sprinkler system experts at Nutri-Lawn today. Our custom consultations are always complimentary and obligation-free.