Water – Our most precious resource
Do you remember when you didn’t buy water? Do you remember drinking water from the tap? These days water is $1 a gallon and the water from the kitchen sink has to be purified before we can use it to cook and clean the dishes–let alone drink it!
Irrigation accounts for 1/2 of water consumption in central Florida–that’s a lot of water. Choose native plants that are adapted to the area and need less water. Check your hoses and sprinkler connections regularly for leaks-a drop wasted each second adds up to gallons per day. On slopes, plant native species that will retain water and reduce runoff. Be responsible! Know your watering days, don’t water between 10-4 and know that the steps you take to preserve and conserve COUNT.
“Irrigation accounts for 1/2 of water consumption in central Florida–that’s a lot of water”
Fertilize Responsibly — Fertilizer that is applied correctly — applications vary based on the grass species , your location and time of year — will keep your yard and landscape healthy. Improperly applied fertilizer can run off your lawn and into local bodies of water harming the water quality and threatening plants/animals that depend on clean water to survive. **It is never true that if a little is good, then more must be better.**
Add mulch to reduce evaporation. Mulching reduces water need by as much as 50%. It also prevents weed growth and stabilizes soil temperatures while providing nutrients to the soil as it decomposes. Plants go dormant in winter months which means the mandatory watering restrictions limit your irrigation to one time per week during eastern standard time.
Use high efficiency irrigation nozzles and reduce watering of driveways and sidewalks to save up to 30% of your irrigation use. Don’t water the lawn if it’s raining-sounds funny, but do you have a good rain sensor on your irrigation box? See the water wise neighbor program at www.occonservewater.net and floridadep.gov for information.
Fertilize Responsibly– Fertilizer that is applied correctly, applications vary based on the grass species, your location, and time of year–will keep your yard and landscape healthy. Improperly applied fertilizer can run off your lawn and into local bodies of water harming the water quality and threatening plants and animals that depend on clean water to survive.
Always verify your landscape company is properly licensed by the state of Florida to fertilize your property. In our next blog, we will discuss licenses used by landscapers and pest control companies; so check back with us!