All lawns in Michigan require 0.5 to 1.5 inches of water per week. That means only a 10-15 minute watering during dry weather for many home sprinkling systems.

Water lightly and frequently. Grass roots are short (often less than 4" long) and can't absorb the excess water. Light, frequent watering also reduces the stress to the grass plant, which reduces the potential for disease and insect damage.

During the most dry parts of the season turf should be watered 2-3 times on each watering day starting around 10 am and no later than 5 pm. Each turf zone should be watered between 5 and 7 minutes per cycle. During drought or high heat seasons, turf should be watered from 4-7 days weekly. Watering too early in the morning can result in the turf becoming dried out by 4 pm, the warmest part of our summer days. Turf that becomes too dry may result in weaker root systems, and invites pests such as grubs and some diseases. Watering too late in the evenings can allow water to sit for too long without being absorbed or evaporating, which can cause a variety of fungi to appear, as well as weakening the root system. Watering should be cut back during the fall and spring months due to less evaporation from the turf’s base soil and thatch layer, and increased natural rainfall.

Most of our clients’ home sites are built on clay. Clay only absorbs about 10-20% of the moisture that normal soil does. This means that watering lightly and frequently is that much more important. Water evaporates at a faster rate during daytime hours and can “sit” on the clay in the evening. Watering too much is equally dangerous with clay-based turf. Heavy watering cycles, even during warm weather seasons, can actually wash nutrients from the soil (including applied fertilizers and pest control products) before they can take effect.

A good visual example is along curbs throughout subdivisions that have a “rusty” stain along the edges. This indicates watering has been too heavy per cycle and most water, natural nutrients, and possibly any applied products have washed out from under the turf and above the clay. This practiced over a period of a season greatly increases the chance for weeds, die back, disease and significantly increases water bills unnecessarily.

Watering cycle times should vary through-out the season, depending on weather and sub-surface conditions. We may ask clients to alter watering times, cycle times and days depending on issues such as diseases through the season.

Turf should never be “soggy” or dry. Healthy turf should have a moderate level of moisture from the thatch layer to around 4 inches in depth. This is also true of newly seeded areas and areas of new sod. Because roots have not been fully established with seed and new sod, it may take heavier watering due to the more porous nature of the soil.