Greater Vernon Water

How you can Help Reduce Water in Your Yard

Remember:  Watering your lawn and garden should change with the weather.  If the weather is cool, humid or rainy you should decrease watering time and / or skip scheduled watering.

Always be aware of the watering restrictions before watering.  Just because it is your day to water (odd /even day) doesn't mean you have to water.  Ensure that you adjust your irrigation system with the changing weather and watering restrictions.

Test your lawns watering needs by walking across it.  If you step on the lawn and you see footprints it is a good time to water.  If the blades of grass spring right up, you don't need to water just yet!

Watering should be done before 10 am and after 7 pm when the weather is cool and calm.  Watering should be avoided when the weather is windy.

The Tuna Can Plan

Over the summer the water use in Greater Vernon more than doubles.  This drastic increase in water use is mainly due to lawn and garden watering.  The following is an easy way to control how much water goes on to your lawn.

1.  Place 3-5 tuna cans at different distances from your sprinkler.

2.  Run the sprinkler for 15 minutes.

3.  Measure the average depth in the cans and use the following chart.

How to Conserve Water on the Farm

1.   Refrain from irrigating during hot/windy periods of the day.

During the peak of the irrigation season, it may not be possible to wait to irrigate due to logistics of getting around the entire farm.

• During the early and late part of the irrigation season there may be more flexibility in planning irrigation times.
• Water savings can be realized in May, June, and September.

2.  Know your crops' water requirements.

It is possible to determine how much water your crop is using by evapo-transpiration and applying a crop coefficient.

• Knowing how much to water your crop uses can help you determine the amount of water that is taken up from the soil.
• The next irrigation should then only be long enough to replace the moisture.

3.  Repair leaks in the irrigation system

If you have a water meter installed, the irrigation system can be checked by turning off the system and monitoring the meter to see if it is still running.

Also look for perpetual wet spots along the irrigation line that do not dry up between irrigations.

4.  Know your livestock's water requirements.

Never save water by limiting the amount of water your animals' drink, but pay attention when filling containers.

• A water tub that is accidentally left to run over while filling with a hose is responsible for the loss of 5 gallons of water a minute.
• Install floats on water tanks that will shut off the water supply when the tub is full.
• Keep water clean so animals don't waste water.

5.  Select a more efficient irrigation system.

Selecting systems that are not as susceptible to evaporation can increase irrigation efficiencies.

• Using sprinklers instead of a stationary or traveling gun can reduce water use by 5-15%, especially in windy areas.
• Using a drip system instead of a sprinkler system can save up to 20% of total water use.

6.  Know how much water you use.

Understanding the amount of water needed on your farm is the first step in water conservation.

• A water meter can be used to monitor water consumption by livestock, household, irrigation, and other needs.
• Changes in consumption can indicate problems such as leaks which should immediately be fixed to prevent wasting water.
• Metering can also be used to determine when peaks in water use occur, allowing for planning.
• Noticing a reduction of water use by cattle can also be an indication of herd health problems.

7.  Improve sprinkler irrigation efficiency.

To achieve peak performance the irrigation system must be properly designed in the first place.

• Replace old nozzles.
• Run the system at the designed operating pressure and ensure sprinklers are properly spaced.  This will improve efficiency and prevent over irrigation of some areas while trying to cover dry spots.
• Check the pressure at the farthest and highest points of the lateral line.  The acceptable pressure variation along the lateral line should be +/- 10% (no more than 20% variance).

8.  Only apply as much water as your soil can hold.

Soils can only hold a limited amount of water before the water drains below the root zone or will run off the saturated soil surface.

• Light sandy soils hold less water than heavy clay soils.
• Determine how long you can run your irrigation system to minimize water loss.

9.  Use a soil moisture monitoring device or climate information to determine when to irrigate.

Often when the surface of the soil is dry there are still water reserves lower in the root zone that the crop can raw upon.

• By monitoring soil moisture within the root zone it may be possible to postpone irrigation by a few days.
• Climate information is used in scheduling irrigation
• Use the current climate and a five day forecast when scheduling irrigation.

10.  Adjust watering parameters under windy conditions.

When operating gun systems under windy conditions, lower the trajectory level and/or narrow the spacing to achieve the best uniformity possible.

• Learn how to adjust the spacing based on wind speed.

For more information please visit www.farmwest.com .