As spring turns into summer, forecasters are predicting below average rainfall for many areas of the country. Naturally, precautions for water conservation will be essential and for many regions this will mean restrictions on watering the lawn.

The following tips will help you keep your lawn healthy during drought periods and still allow you to do your part to conserve water.

Design and Layout:

• Don’t Skimp. If you have to cut back on watering it is better to increase the time between watering rather than increase the amount of water you apply during each irrigation.
  
  
• Water Efficiently. Light sprinkling does little good for your lawn. Instead water to a depth of six to eight inches to encourage deep rooting. These deep roots offer grass a larger reservoir of moister to draw from to withstand dry periods.
  
  
  • To measure water penetration, probe the soil with a stiff rod or screwdriver. The rod or screwdriver will move easily through moist soil but will be harder to push when it reaches dry soil.
    
    
  • Do not water at night but water early morning. When watering in early morning you don't lose water from evaporation like you would do during the middle of the day and you do not enhance diseases (since the water will evaporate from the leaf blades in a few hours) as you would by watering late in the evening or a night (by watering late in the evening the water sits there and provides and ideal conditions for disease buildup).
    
    
• Be Weather Conscious. Be sure to adjust your watering schedule with changes in the weather. Water less frequently during cool or wet weather, and be sure to turn off automatic systems when it rains.
  
  
• Avoid Waste. Set a timer to make sure you don’t forget sprinklers are running. To prevent runoff on lawns growing on slopes or heavy clay soils it is best to pulse irrigate. Run sprinklers for 10 minutes, turn them off to let the water soak in, then water for another 10 minutes. Repeat the cycle until the soil is wet to depth of six to eight inches.
  
  
• Irrigation System. If you have an automated system, occasionally watch it run to make sure everything is operating properly and water isn’t being wasted through runoff or over-spray.

Other measures such as proper mowing and regulating the use of fertilizer can also help you cut back on the amount of water your lawn requires. Follow these simple tips to help maintain a healthy lawn with less water.

• Choose Ready-to-Use. When gardening, use fertilizer and insect control products that do not require mixing with water, such as Bayer Advanced™ PowerForce® Multi-Insect Killer Granules or Bayer Advanced™ Dual Action Rose & Flower Insect Killer Ready-To-Use.
  
  
• Time Your Applications. When applying granular insect control products such as Bayer Advanced™ PowerForce® Multi-Insect Killer Granules, be sure to time the application during a routine watering. This will allow the insect control to properly soak in without requiring additional watering. The Multi-Insect Killer Granules should not be watered in with a heavy watering. You don't want the material to soak in. Instead, you want to lightly water in to help activate the Multi-Insect Killer Granules.
  
  
• Mow Higher. Tall grass develops deeper roots for increased foliage. This foliage also provides more shading for soil to help reduce evaporation. As a general rule, set your mower at the upper end of the recommended mowing height, but remember different grasses require different mowing heights. For example:
  
  
  • Kentucky Bluegrass, Tall Fescue -- Set cutting height at 3 in.
    
    
  • Bermudagrass -- Set cutting heights at 1.5 in.
    
    
  • St. Augustine -- Set cutting height at 2.5 to 3 in.
    
    
• Fertilize Less. Slower growing lawns require less water, so cutting back on fertilizer can help reduce the amount of water your lawn needs to grow strong. In addition, cool season grasses, such as Kentucky bluegrass and fescue, slow down naturally and require less water during the late summer.
  
  
• Aerate Warm Season Lawns. Aerators remove small plugs of soil from the lawn increasing water penetration and soil aeration, while reducing thatch. That translates to deeper roots and a stronger lawn.

The Other Alternative

Obviously, the other alternative that will really help you save water is to let your lawn dry out and turn brown. This may be necessary in some regions where drought is severe, but this option is not as bad as it seems. Cool season grasses such as Kentucky bluegrass and tall fescue, naturally go dormant in hot weather, require less water and still recover nicely the next season.

Warm season grasses, such as bermudagrass or St. Augustine, naturally grow most vigorously in the summer and go dormant in winter. They are also tougher grasses that get by on less water than their cool season counterparts. Even if you let them go completely dry, there’s a good chance they’ll come back next year.