by William Rettig, Water Efficiency Specialist for the City of Spokane
North Idaho summers are made for being outside, whether that’s cooling off in Coeur d’Alene Lake, hiking in the mountains, or tending to the yard, it’s impossible to spend too much time outdoors. But, when it comes to watering your lawn, more isn’t always better. Most people water too much, gaining little benefit for their grass and skyrocketing their utility bills.
On average, lawns only need one inch of water per week. Yet it’s common to overwater, saturating the soil and even flooding it. Not only is this wasteful, but it can actively harm your grass. Overwatering causes shallow root growth making plants less resilient and thirstier as they can’t access deeper stored water. Over watering also promotes diseases and pests. Waterlogged roots are deprived of critical oxygen, slowly suffocating them. It is estimated that up to 50% of the water we use for outdoor watering is wasted.
Overwatering strains our drinking water system and supply. Summer water usage can exceed ten times winter usage. Most local water systems are designed around the 4-5 months of peak sprinkler season. We draw water from the Spokane Valley-Rathdrum Prairie Aquifer which exchanges water with Coeur d’Alene Lake and the Spokane River. As we deplete our aquifer, we are also pulling water from our lakes and rivers which is essential to wildlife and recreation. Overwatering is costly in more than one way, but there are small inexpensive actions you can take to control your watering.
Why do so many of us overwater? In part it’s due to convenience. There’s a “set it and forget it” mentality when it comes to sprinkler systems especially when they run in the early morning. Leaks can go unnoticed until the high bill arrives; when your sprinklers are off, check your water meter. You have a leak if the meter is running. There’s the instinct to turn up the watering at the slightest sign of dryness when a simple sprinkler adjustment can achieve the same goal. If you have dry spots, check to see if the spray from your sprinkler covers all the way to the next sprinkler. Fixing leaks and spray patterns may require having your system tweaked by a professional, but fixing these sources of overwatering will save you money overall.
Habits matter as well, and many homeowners water based off their routine and not plant needs. Even when temperatures hit the high 90s and above, a healthy lawn doesn’t require daily watering. Deep, infrequent watering in the morning encourages root growth and allows time for the surface to dry; cultivating a healthy green lawn that conserves water. A smart weather-based controller can help. Smart controllers personalize the watering to your landscape and use local weather data to ensure you’re only watering when necessary.
There are other solutions to conserving water. Replacing high-maintenance grass with drought-tolerant and native plants or low water grass alternatives are a great water wise solution. And no, low water doesn’t mean rock and cactus, unless that’s what you like. There’s a diverse selection of native and drought-tolerant plants that will add color and texture to your landscape while providing ecosystem services that support local wildlife. There are grass alternatives if you want to maintain that aesthetic, such as fescues, and groundcovers like creeping thyme or clover. Clovers even fix nitrogen from the air and enriches nutrients into the soil without fertilizers. It also stays greener with less water. We’re lucky to have such a clean and abundant water source, but that doesn’t mean unlimited. Making smart water conscious decisions and rethinking how we landscape can protect our precious water resources that make this area home. For more information about outdoor water conservation, visit outdoorwateringnerds.org.
