Adequate water is essential for a lush lawn. You can spend a fortune on lawn care, landscaping plants, and pretty flowers only to lose them all during a time of drought if you don't have an irrigation system. Installing the right system requires some planning, and it's best done at the same time you're planning the layout of the landscaping elements. Here are some things to know about irrigating your lawn.

Learn About Code Regulations First

You want your lawn to be green and lush all the way to the curb, but your city may have regulations on how close to the curb you can place sprinklers. If the radius of the spray is two feet, you'll need to keep the sprinklers two feet from the edge of your lawn. Spraying into the road is a waste of water, and if your area has water restrictions, you might be fined for spraying water into the street. A possible alternative is to put shields on the perimeter sprinkler heads so water sprays toward your lawn and not away from it.

Another thing you'll want to learn from your city code office is when you can run the sprinklers. You may be restricted to certain days or certain times of the day, especially during times of drought. Also, your city may require the use of reclaimed water in irrigation systems or at least give you the option of using reclaimed water, which would help cut down on the expense of using your sprinklers.

Choose Drip Irrigation Or Sprinklers

One thing you need to decide is if you'll have drip irrigation or sprinklers installed. You can even have both put in. Drip irrigation systems are installed in gardens and in beds of flowers and landscaping plants. Drip irrigation is a low-flow system that drips water from a hose with multiple holes in it. The hose is usually buried just a few inches under mulch. This system requires some planning since you'll need to branch the water towards the various plant beds in your yard. A drip irrigation system isn't suitable for watering a lawn.

A sprinkler system that sprays water from heads buried in the yard is the best way to keep grass healthy and lush. The heads pop up when the sprinklers turn on. A well-designed system waters your lawn evenly so every inch of grass receives just the right amount of water. You can have a sprinkler system installed that also waters plants and flowers, or you can keep the sprinklers on the lawn and use drip irrigation for your plants.

Both systems can be set up to operate automatically on a timer so the water comes on at the exact time and day that you want it to whether you're at home or not. That way, you can be sure your yard gets the amount of water it needs to stay healthy and strong even when there are long periods with no rain. Contact a service, like Hydrotech Irrigation Co, for more help.