Water the lawn heavily ( 2 in. ) on the installation day. Water one inch every day for the first two weeks or until the sod is rooted. Water one inch every third day for the next two weeks. You may need to continue with this schedule and or increase watering times if you are in a hot and dry weather pattern. After the sod has rooted well and has been mowed you can water 1-1 ½ inches every fifth day. Keep an eye out for any ‘hot spots’ that may require more supplemental watering. Once the sod is well established and is being mowed regularly it is best to water 1-1 ½ inches once a week. When you do water, water heavily at one time to encourage a deeper root system rather than watering more often for less time which can cause a shallow root system that will be much less drought tolerant. You may have to double or triple the amount of water for lush green growth during hot and dry weather conditions.

It is important to check your irrigation coverage to make sure all turf areas are getting watered properly. It is even more important to measure the watering zones to know how long you need to run them to get an inch of water down. It takes approximately 624 gallons of water to equal one inch of rain water on 1000 square feet (10,000sq ft lawn = 6,240gl ). Place two or three rain gauges or tuna cans out in a zone and see how long it takes for an inch of water to be put out in each zone. It is best to water early in the morning so you don’t lose water to evaporation during the heat of the day. For example, if you have 5 zones and it takes 1 hour per zone to get an inch of water down in each zone then your total water time is 5 hours. A good rule of thumb is for the irrigation system to be through watering by 7 or 8A.M. so you would need to start the system at 2 or 3A.M. If you do not have an automatic system then you may need to water much longer during the warmer part of the day. That’s okay because the need for water is much greater than the timing. Keep in mind that watering times and amounts will need to be adjusted depending on seasonal temperatures and rainfall amounts. Call our office with any questions or concerns at 770-632-7288 or contact us at  aabylawncare@bellsouth.net .