WICHITA, Kan. (KSNW) — As the water level at Cheney Reservoir continues to drop, the City of Wichita is asking residents to limit lawn watering to one or two days a week to save water. But some home and property owners are worried their lawns won’t survive in the summer heat.
How much water is needed?
Matthew McKernan is a Kansas State University Research and Extension Service horticulture agent based in Sedgwick County. He said the important thing is to water deeply and infrequently.
“Allow water to penetrate deeper in our soils as we water with larger amounts,” he said. “And we want to make sure we provide periods of mini-drought in between our waterings so when we get to these extended periods of drought within our community, our plants are better adapted to be able to survive those longer periods of dry conditions.”
Watering too much? Wichita puts out call to action, considers higher water rates McKernan said deeper watering encourages roots to grow deeper into the soil, which will help prolong the life of plants.
Tall fescue
“Our tall fescue lawns, which is one of our most common lawns in this area, only requires an inch to an inch and a half of water per week,” he said.
Turning on the sprinkler and walking away is not enough. McKernan said people need to know how much water they’re putting down. To measure, use a rain gauge, an empty tuna can, or a plastic container.
“Once you’ve reached that water level in that container from one inch to one and a half inches, you can turn off your irrigation system for the week because that’s the amount of water that applies, that’s needed to keep those plants alive,” McKernan said.
Warm-season grasses
He said warm-season grasses, such as buffalograss, bermudagrass, and Zoysia, can be great choices because they can handle drier conditions.
“If we’re able to soak the soil six to eight inches deep, we can allow that grass to be watered once only every two weeks in order to have a healthy green lawn,” McKernan said of the warm-season grasses.
Cheney Reservoir, Wichita’s water source, continues to drop Tips for all grass types
During a drought and the heat of summer:
- Increase the mowing height. A short lawn requires more frequent watering.
- Reduce fertilizer use. Fertilizer use increases growth, which requires extra water.
- Water early. Watering in the early morning reduces evaporation and helps prevent disease that occurs when lawns are watered later in the evening or the heat of the day.
- Take a close look. If there is water runoff, adjust the water rate.
- Observe. Check that the irrigation system is not leaking or watering sidewalks and driveways.
Trees
McKernan also has advice for when to water trees. For a mature tree, he suggests soaking the ground to about 12 inches deep.
“That water is going to be enough to carry that plant through for the next three to four weeks without the need for additional water,” he said.
Newer trees, ones planted within the past five years, need more frequent watering.
“Typically, those trees need about 10 gallons of water per week, and so we can easily measure that with two 5-gallon buckets that we fill and dump at the base of that tree,” McKernan said.
He suggests that when water use is limited, water the plants that are hardest to replace first.
How to measure water depth in soil
We asked McKernan how long it takes for water to reach depths of 6, 8 or 12 inches. He said it varies depending on the soil.
- Sandy solid can typically absorb up to 2 inches of water per soil per hour.
- Heavy clay soils can absorb up to a quarter of an inch per soil per hour.
- Silt/loam soil can absorb up to three-quarters of an inch of water per soil per hour.
“The best way to evaluate the depth of soil moisture is to use a small trowel/shovel to dig a small hole, or use a soil probe, screwdriver, or rod in order to test for soil moisture in the soil,” McKernan said. “The screwdriver or rod will easily be pressed into areas of moist soil and stop or be difficult to insert once it reaches the dry zone of the soil. You can measure how far your screwdriver or rod easily is pressed into the soil to determine how deep you have been able to water.”
Dormant doesn’t mean dead
“Allowing the lawn to go dormant during hot, dry weather and watering plants just to keep them alive rather than keeping them green and lush is another suggestion for residents to just be OK with. It’s OK to let it go a little brown,” Abbey Draut, another K-State Extension Service horticulture agent, said.
She said it may not feel right to allow plants to go into dormancy, but many plants naturally survive periods of drought by entering a temporary dormancy.
The goal is to keep the plants alive, not thriving.
“Tall fescue can naturally become dormant and brown during hot and dry periods, and then it will recover acceptably when growing conditions improve in the late summer and early autumn,” Draut said.
She said dormant lawns may be able to go two to three weeks without water.
“After two to three weeks of dormancy, it’s important to keep the crowns of the dormant grass alive by applying about a quarter of an inch of water every couple of weeks, either by irrigation or by rainfall,” she said.
Draut said established tall fescue lawns growing on good soil and maintained appropriately can survive up to eight weeks without substantial irrigation.
“Early fall is the ideal time to perform important cultural practices on cold-season lawns, such as fertilization, core aeration and overseeding,” she said. We recommend watering in mid to late August to green up and revive dormant lawns so they can respond to these practices.”
She said you should not follow an irrigation schedule that causes your lawn to bounce between active growth and dormancy.
“Each time the lawn resumes growth after dormancy, stored energy and reserves in the plant are depleted,” Draut said. “A continuous pattern of dormancy followed by active growth can stress turf and may slow its recovery with improved weather conditions.”
She said newly planted trees, shrubs and plants will require more watering as they are not fully established and cannot survive the drought as easily. That’s why the City of Wichita is asking people not to overseed lawns or plant new trees or shrubs this fall.
Other water conservation tips
- Add mulch to flowerbeds and gardens to conserve water.
- Pull weeds that compete with plants for water.
- Consider replacing plants that are high-water use with more drought-tolerant species.
Free advice
The City of Wichita and the K-State Extension Office have partnered to put drought and lawn and gardening advice on the Save Wichita Water website . Click here for the irrigation education portion of the site.
Draut and McKernan recommended these articles in particular:
The K-State Extension Office in Sedgwick County also has a free Garden Hotline. It is your chance to get expert advice on lawns, gardens, and conserving water. There are three ways to reach the experts:
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