Providing your lawn with enough moisture is essential to a healthy lawn.
As the summer gets longer, the temperatures get hotter, which means more heat stress for your lawn and dry soil conditions. Your lawn’s needs vary greatly depending on soil type, grass species, and weather conditions, but the tips below are a good rule of thumb for watering most lawns we service throughout Central Iowa and across the Des Moines metro area.
“How often should I water my lawn?”
The best rule of thumb is to water your lawn whenever it needs it. During most of the growing season, watering once a week is sufficient. You may want to water your lawn twice a week if it is extremely dry. Some signs that your lawn needs watering include the grass turning a dark gray-green color, wilting, or it’s showing signs of loss of resilience – if your grass doesn’t spring back up after walking across the lawn, especially in the morning, there is a loss of resilience.
Water your lawn on infrequent, but deep watering cycles.
To keep grass roots growing deep, moisten the soil to a depth of 6 to 8 inches. This means you need to place about an inch of water on your lawn or run a sprinkler for about an hour. Just make sure you don’t over-water your lawn, as that can lead to fungal diseases. If you see water runoff on the edges of your lawn, you’re watering too much.
Early morning is the best time to water your lawn.
In the early morning, temperatures are usually mild, there is less wind, and water pressure is usually good. Watering your lawn in the afternoon may result in excessive water evaporation and wind disrupting sprinkler patterns. Watering your lawn at night may promote disease due to moisture remaining on the leaf blade for longer periods of time.
“My grass went dormant! Now what do I do?”
If your lawn goes completely dormant during the summer, it is okay to water it to restore growth. If you do water your lawn, it is best to continue watering it to prevent additional dormancy cycles. Plants get energy for re-growth from the root system, so each time your lawn recovers from dormancy, it reduces the size of the grass root system a little more. This back-and-forth can compromise the health and vitality of your lawn.
Consider grass that is more heat resistant.
If you still want a great-looking lawn but don’t want to water it, there are grass species available that could be a better fit for your lawn. Our PRO-TURF Services team can advise you on the best grass seed for your soil type and our hot Iowa summers and still give you a lawn that is the envy of the neighborhood.
Concerned your lawn isn’t getting enough moisture or have other lawn care questions? Contact our team of professionals for a free lawn assessment.
Watering tips for summer:
- Watering once a week is sufficient; twice a week if it’s extremely dry
- Water infrequently, but deeply
- Water your lawn in the early morning
- If your grass goes dormant, you can water it – but don’t stop!
- Plant grass seed that is more heat resistant
