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TURF WATERING

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Title: TURF WATERING Author: Texas Agricultural Extension Se Last modified by: Duval County Created Date: 9/1/2004 2:33:22 PM Document presentation format – PowerPoint PPT presentation

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Title: TURF WATERING


1
TURF WATERING
Edited by Vincent Mannino, County Extension
Director Texas AgriLife Extension Service
2
Watering your lawn seems like a simple task, yet
there is more to it in Texas!
  • It is about
  • Knowing about how much water is needed
  • Producing a healthy grass that can persist on
    the least amount of irrigation water
  • Knowing how to water your lawn efficiently for
    the good of the lawn
  • Keeping applied water on your landscape by
    avoiding misapplication and runoff which can
    carry sediment, nutrients and pesticides AND
    wastes water!

3
Average Annual Rainfall
10
20
40
30
50
5
Rainfall lessens as you go west. Irrigation
requirement is greater in west Texas for the same
grass one would grow in East Texas (Bermuda grass)
4
What do I need to know about my lawn and how does
that influence how I water?
5
Most homeowners ask
  1. What do I need to know about my lawn (soil type,
    grass type, surface slopes, what sprinkler system
    is used to apply water) and how does that
    influence how I water?
  2. How do I know when my lawn truly needs water?
  3. How often should irrigation water be applied?
  4. How much irrigation water should be applied?
  5. What time of day to water?
  6. How long does my irrigation system need to
    operate to apply the right amount of water?

Lets try and answer these questions
6
1. WHAT TO KNOW Grasses differ in drought
tolerance and this affects water use. Table
assumes grasses grown in areas of adaptation!
Drought Tolerance Warm Season Grasses
Excellent Buffalograss
Bahiagrass
Bermudagrass
Very Good Bermudagrass hybrids
Zoysiagrass
Good St. Augustinegrass Centipedegrass Seashore paspalum
Medium
7
1. WHAT TO KNOW Water use and water loss.
  • Grass plants are nearly 80 water by weight!
  • Grasses use water to take up soil nutrients
  • Grasses cool themselves by moving water out
    through tiny pores in the leaves (a process
    called transpiration)
  • Transpiration cooling is essential for the
    overall health and maintenance of turfgrass.

8
More to know . . .
  • Water lost though transpiration is greater under
    summer-like conditions high temperature, sunny,
    windy with low humidity.
  • Water is also lost from soil reservoir by
    evaporation from soil surfaces.
  • Evapotranspiration (ET) is a term that describes
    total water loss from the turf/soil system.

9
2. How do I know my lawn truly needs water? Signs
of Water Stress
  • Signs of water stress (wilt) will likely appear
    in localized spots in the lawn due to different
    soils, shade, or unique micro-environments.
  • These spots can be hand-watered without watering
    the whole lawn
  • Water stressed grasses usually show visual signs
    of wilt
  • Leaf rolling
  • Loss of turgor pressure. When a grass wilts
    footprints in the turf do not spring back
  • Water stressed or wilted areas turn color from
    green to a bluish/purplish color to off color
    brown patches.
  • Note Lawn grasses, can withstand periods of
    water stress without permanent damage to the
    plant. Try and stretch the period of time between
    irrigations. Hand watering the hot or wilted
    spots will actually make your lawn more tolerant
    of droughty conditions

10
Irrigation The Plants World
  • Field capacity (plant is full, soil is full,
    oxygen is fine)
  • Desiccation (dry wilt)
  • PWP (permanent wilting point)
  • Excessive water (water logged)
  • PWP (permanent wilting point)

11
Wilted Turf
12
3. How often should water be applied?
  • Roots initiate growth from the crown.
  • Roots function best when the plant is healthy and
    the soil has air in its pore spaces
  • Most of the roots are usually in the upper 1/2 of
    the total root system depth - see figure to right
  • Poor drainage or compacted soils reduce root
    growth and root depth

13
  • Lack of moisture - no water and may be in a
    drought.
  • Drying out has occurred
  • Roots near surface dieback first and then dieback
    progresses into the soil
  • Roots only viable at deeper depths if water is
    available
  • New roots can still grow out of the crown if
    water is replenished in root zone and growing
    conditions favor root growth.

14
  • Light watering
  • Roots stay healthier near surface where
    irrigation is
  • Deeper roots extract water and then decline
  • Plant in depleted moisture condition can pull
    water from the deep
  • Reducing water even more will greatly weaken the
    stand
  • Exceptions are made in very heavy clay soils.
    Infiltration is poor so more frequent watering
    with less water is best done to get water to
    gradually move deeper into the soil

15
  • Saturated
  • Too much rain
  • Too much irrigation
  • Poorly drained site
  • Most soil pore spaces are filled with water
  • Roots stay near the surface since that is where
    the roots find some air
  • Saturated soils reduce drought tolerance
  • Solution is to correct surface drainage to
    provide 1 to 2 slope

16
4. How much water to apply.
1 square foot of turf
  • You pay for water in gallons (Bmt.3.66/1000
    gal.)
  • An inch of water over 1 acre equals 27,154
    gallons
  • OR 0.62 Gallon/ft2
  • 0.62 times 128 gallons 79.3 ounces
  • 27,154 gallons / 1000 gal. 27.154 units X 2.44
    66.26 per watering

1 Inch 80 ounces/ft2
17
How Much Water Is Applied Over Time?
  • Uses Catch Cans to measure water applied over
    time in inches! Water and measure at the same
    time of day.
  • Checks the uniformity of water distribution for
    each sprinkler head.
  • Determines an irrigation systems application
    rate for each zone.
  • Helps understand irrigation system weaknesses and
    strengths and the need for repairs.

18
5. What time of day should I water?
  • The best time to water is in the early morning
    (400 - 600 am)
  • wind is low, water pressure is highest, consumer
    demand is low, evaporation rates are low.
  • Watering in the evening
  • places water droplets on the leaves for extended
    periods of time, which enhances disease.
  • Water as deeply and infrequently as possible!
  • If possible, water to a depth of 4-6 inches into
    the soil.
  • You may have to use additional cycles on the
    irrigation system to achieve this so as to avoid
    runoff.
  • Use a soil probe or screwdriver to check your
    watering depth.

19
What is a Sprinkler Irrigation Audit?
  • Evaluates existing irrigation system performance.
  • Checks the uniformity of water distribution for
    each sprinkler head.
  • Determines an irrigation systems application
    rate for each zone.
  • Helps understand irrigation system weaknesses and
    strengths and the need for.

20
Types of Sprinklers
  • Traveling Sprinkler
  • Oscillating

21
Types of Sprinklers
  • Impact
  • rotary

22
Types of Sprinklers
  • Ring
  • Oscillating

23
Types of Sprinklers
  • Spinner
  • Pattern

24
Ending Thought!
Does pavement really need water to survive?
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