"Head to Head" Coverage...Now that you have just had your lawn "Polymized", it's time to make your water work for you instead of against you. Begin by insuring that you have sufficient sprinkler coverage. "Head to Head" coverage is preferred. Head to head coverage ensures that the radius of the individual sprinkler heads spray to the sprinkler heads adjacent to them.
After Care Watering Instructions
1. Deep Water - Adjust your sprinkler controller as follows: 10 to 12 minutes on spray heads and 40 to 60 min on rotors daily. Or, if you prefer, break the deep watering cycle up into 3 or 4 shorter watering cycles to eliminate run off. If there are watering restrictions in place in your area modify your schedule to accommodate night time watering only. (Usually the hours between 6:00 pm and 10:00 am, check your local city ordinances for compliance.)
2. Business As Usual - After the original deep watering, continue a normal, daily watering schedule for 7 to 10 days. 5 to 10 min for spray heads, 30 to 45 min for rotors. These watering cycles will activate the fertilizer, the soil bacteria in the fertilizer and hydrate the polymer. This technique is going to give the newly stimulated roots time to find the polymer. After you have completed this you are ready to fully hydrate the root zone and begin eliminating watering days!*
3. Root Zone Hydration - Your goal is to completely hydrate or fill the root zone with water. As you are watering, probe the soil with a soil probe, long screw driver or shovel. When you can penetrate 6 to 8 inches with little resistance, the root zone is hydrated and you may stop watering. Don't guess, you need to see or feel that the water is 6-8 inches deep.
4. Give Your Sprinklers A Break - Stop watering for 3 or 4 days before watering again. Repeat step 3 "Root Zone Hydration". This time will be easy, you will not have to completely fill the root zone from the bottom. All you need to this time is top it off.
5. Strrrretch - This time wait 4 or 5 days before you repeat step #3. Continue with his process adding a day between watering cycle until you have determined how long your lawn can go between water cycles...you have just determined your new watering schedule. The most important thing to remember is to re-hydrate the root zone each time you water. The drainage through the soil is still happening, but the polymer is slowing it down and holding the water where the roots can have access to it for a longer period of time.
6. Minutes, NOT days - You have learned a new watering technique and the hydrated polymer is now properly in place and is ready to go to work. If the lawn does show signs of stress (hot or windy weather), add in minutes to the watering schedule on the affected area only rather than adding a day to your water schedule. Remember, the goal is to reduce the number of days you water each week.*
Congratulations! You did it! Start saving water and $money$!
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*Customers
that have very sandy soil most likely will not eliminate watering days due
to the sandy soils lack of ability to retain water. Their reduction will come
from a reduction of minutes instead of days.
Note:
There are many factors that effect water use (Sun exposure, soil type, slope,
prevailing winds, current watering practices etc.). These instructions are
meant to be a guide. Your results may vary, feel free to experiment.
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EnviroMoist™
After Care and
Watering Instructions