Sprinkler turn on

[hghclsswhitetrsh]

What Jer lacks in truck he makes up for in grass. Hehehe. Looks good though!

[Jer]

What Jer lacks in truck he makes up for in grass. Hehehe. Looks good though!

Nah, I just research before I commit to anything because I can't afford to waste money on mistakes & like having the best of everything... to include trucks.

[Jefe's AR]

I'm w/ Jer. Only I use Ironite and Revive. The only fertilizer I use is the stuff the landscapers put down when I have them aerate. Aeration is critical. Twice a year. In the Fall if you only do it once. Fertilizer as well.

I turned on my sprinklers last weekend. Have mowed twice. Power raked this weekend and will have it aerated and fertilized on the 30th. My research suggests that aeration is best done when the lawn is pretty much fully active. So later in Spring and earlier in Fall. Mid October for me.

Water rarely hurts anything but your wallet.

[Dave_L]

You all got me excited. Probably going to fire them up tonight.

[TRnCO]

Seeing what the weatherman is predicting this weekend, I'd say no need to rush on watering.

[Aloha_Shooter]

No sooner than Memorial Day, want to see what this year's rains look like. I think I had turned them on early back in 2006 and we got those daily rains ... I turned them off and never had to turn them back on all summer. Ever since then, I want to see what the rains look like before I waste time and money with the sprinklers.

[Jer]

Seeing what the weatherman is predicting this weekend, I'd say no need to rush on watering.

Rarely does 'rain' equate to useful precipitation for your lawn in an arid region like Colorado if your goal is a healthy and robust lawn. I've had people criticize me for watering while it's raining but just because it's raining doesn't mean there's enough water there to replace even 2min of watering directly with direct irrigation. Personally, I love having a lush green lawn and there is no such thing as 'too early' for me because the greener the better so when we're consistently away from well bellow freezing every night I get them on and then drain the backflow the day of another freeze upcoming.

No sooner than Memorial Day, want to see what this year's rains look like. I think I had turned them on early back in 2006 and we got those daily rains ... I turned them off and never had to turn them back on all summer. Ever since then, I want to see what the rains look like before I waste time and money with the sprinklers.

That was a good year. I hardly watered at all and if we had better soil here in this neighborhood I could see not having to use irrigation all summer that year. It was the perfect combination of lower temps, consistent rain, higher humidity and low winds. It was a perfect storm of positive conditions and I doubt we'll see that again for years to come. We've already had some pretty windy days and the wind will zap your lawn dry a lot more than most people realize. Once you're focus is the efficiency on how much water you use you really start to recognize how much more you need during windy periods. So I guess I'm saying that if your plan is to wait and see if it's going to be that perfect again to save money from turning on the sprinklers at all the entire summer it's probably not worth the gamble. Also, why not turn them on yourself and then you won't have to worry about the money aspect?

[Jefe's AR]

Are your water costs that much?

You can do A LOT of watering for the cost of a bag of fertilizer. And likely just as effective unless you have other problems with your lawn.

[Aloha_Shooter]

I DO turn my sprinklers on myself. I just don't see the point in wasting potable water if the grass gets what it needs naturally. I strive for presentable but not showcase. I'd rather spend $5 on ammo than the lawn ... ;-)

[Jer]

Are your water costs that much?

You can do A LOT of watering for the cost of a bag of fertilizer. And likely just as effective unless you have other problems with your lawn.

My watering costs are very low actually. A $20 bag of that fertilizer I posted will last me a full season or more. When I first moved to Colorado I wasted a TON of water on my lawn because in Nebraska we had great soil so all you did was water more when your lawn wasn't deep green and healthy. I was watering like crazy and my lawn still looks dried out and crappy. Couldn't figure it out until my neighbor asked me what I used for fertilizer and I was like.... fertilizer? lol A couple of decades later I have more of a focus on feeding properly and my watering is a fraction of my neighbors even though my lawn is far healthier. I think it comes down to do you want a truly healthy and impressive lawn or do you just want something to take up the area around the outside of your house and be just healthy enough to keep your neighbors from hating you? Not everyone takes pride in their lawn these days so lots of my tips will be lost on most reading them.