S O U T H F L O R I D A W A T E R M A N A G E M E N T D I S T R I C T

Sensible Sprinklingin South Florida

The South Florida Water Manage ment Districtis a regional, governmentalagency that oversees thewater resources in thesouthern half of the state. It is the oldest and largestof the state’s five watermanagement districts.

Our Mission is to manageand protect water resourcesof the region by balancingand improving waterquality, flood control,natural systems, and watersupply.

Saving a Little Saves a LotFor home and business landscapes, manySouth Florida residents irrigate to keep grassgreen year-round and tropical plantingslooking tropical. Typically, 50 percent or moreof home water use is for outdoor watering orirrigation. However, it is not uncommon forresidents to apply twice the amount of wateractually needed to maintain a healthylandscape — or more.

Whether sprinkling water comes from amunicipal supply, a well or another source, it’sstill ultimately drawn from one big SouthFlorida “pool.” To share the resource, SouthFloridians need to conserve water.Overwatering your landscape wastes bothwater and money.

Do All Lawns Need Irrigation?All plants need water. Rainfall provides enoughfor Florida’s native plants growing in the wild.During Florida’s normally dry winters, thesenative plants thrive in the residential landscapeas well. However, limited areas of turf grass,flower beds and accent plants usually needadded water at some times during the year.When irrigating turf grass, water thoroughly toreach deeper portions of the soil. In SouthFlorida’s typical sandy soils, 3/4 of an inch ofwater will penetrate to a depth of about 9inches and promote deep root growth. Healthyturf with deep roots is able to withstanddrought much better than turf with a shallowroot system.

Overwatering can promote undesirable weeds,create the need for additional fertilizer andother expensive lawn chemicals and cause bothrunoff and leeching of chemicals below the rootzone. Runoff containing lawn chemicals is amajor contributor to surface water pollution.Fertilizers or other lawn products that haveleeched below the root zone becomeunavailable to turf and contribute togroundwater contamination.

What Plants Make the Most Sense…and Scents?Many plants have low irrigation requirementsand, once established, need very little watereven during periods of drought. Choose yourplantings wisely. Seek input from your county’sextension agent and other resources includingthe South Florida Water Management District and the Florida Native Plant Society websites.

Many native plants can make your landscapewildlife friendly. Plants that attract and nurturebutterflies add tremendous appeal to your yard.Ideas can be found at the North AmericanButterfly Association’s website, which includesgardening suggestions for different regions ofthe country including a list of South Floridaplants that grow well and attract nativebutterflies.

Selecting the right native plants can not only savewater but also attract wildlife to South Floridalandscapes.

Keep Your Landscape Thriving and Save WaterThere are many ways to water your landscape — from hose“dragging” to automatic sprinkling. There are benefits to using thehose. Water can be directed to specific plants within a bed thatneed it, sprinkled on seedlings or applied deeply to planted treesor shrubs. Additionally, hose “dragging” can lead to increasedefficiency because it is natural for residents to not water duringperiods when rainfall is sufficient for plant needs. To conservewater, always use an automatic shut-off nozzle at the end of thehose. Using drip and soaker hoses also reduces evaporation andconserves water.

To save time and effort, many residents install automated sprinklersystems. Depending on how they are used, automatic sprinklersystems can either help save water or be a tremendous waterwaster. Systems vary widely in complexity and their ability to helpmanage water use efficiency. Many older irrigation timers operatesimply as a clock, applying water at a programmed intervalregardless of natural precipitation or the actual water needs of the

plants being irrigated. Unless they are properly managed, theseolder “set it and forget it” irrigation timers waste both water andmoney.

Tips for All Outdoor Water UsersTo use water most efficiently, water in the early morning whenwinds are usually light and the ground is cool and receptive.

Using mulch helps save water, too. Mulches in the landscape:

• Shade soils from direct sun so they stay moist longer.

• Protect soils from erosion.

• Limit weed growth.

• Slowly decompose, adding nutrients in the process.

• Provide habitat for beneficial soil organisms.

• Are appealing, adding a clean and unifying appearance.

The best mulches for Florida come from non-native trees, recycledwaste wood, including wooden pallets, and your own recycledyard clippings. These are regularly available from home supplystores and should always be sought.

Improving Existing Irrigation SystemsEnormous amounts of water are wasted in Florida by incorrectlyadjusted automatic sprinkler systems. Check your system and findout how (or who to call) to put the right amount of water where itis needed. Help is available from irrigation specialists trained inwater efficiency by credible organizations, such as the IrrigationAssociation or the Florida Irrigation Society. County extensionoffices and garden centers also have experts on hand to answerquestions about proper irrigation of Florida yards.

The first step to greatly improve an automatic sprinkler system isto install a rain sensor. Why water your lawn when nature is doingit for you? Home supply stores stock wired rain sensors for $15-25 and wireless models for $25-70. Rain sensors can be usedwith most existing irrigation timers and work by interrupting thesystem when rains have already provided adequate water. Whendrier conditions return, the rain sensor automatically restores thesystem to normal operation. Although different types of rainsensors are available, they all achieve the same results — savingsignificant amounts of water.

Other simple steps to improve the efficiency of your existingirrigation system include:

• Checking the alignment of existing sprinkler heads to assurethat water is directed away from impervious surfaces, such asdriveways and sidewalks.

• Promptly repairing broken sprinkler heads and leaks.

• Removing plant materials that have grown over or otherwiseblock spray heads.

• Capping or disabling irrigation zones or heads for establishedareas that no longer require supplemental irrigation.

Simple steps, such as checking the alignment of sprinkler heads, canimprove the efficiency of automatic irrigation systems and ensure theright amount of water goes where it is needed.

For additional steps to “tune-up” yourexisting irrigation system, please visit:manatee.ifas.ufl.edu/lawn_and_garden/water_wise/pdfs/IrrigationTuneup.pdf.

Get “Smart” to Save Water andMoneySome new irrigation controllers, known as“smart” controllers, save water “bymonitoring and using information aboutsite conditions (such as soil moisture, rain,wind, slope, soil, plant type, and more) andapplying the right amount of water basedon those factors,” according to the IrrigationAssociation. While these controllers wereonce limited to large applications such asgolf courses and parks because of theirhigh cost, home-based controllers are nowbecoming available for $200 or less. Initialresearch by the University of Florida showsirrigation savings with smart controllers upto 70-90 percent under normal Floridarainfall conditions and 30-40 percent underdry conditions.

Smart irrigation controllers set the amountof water needed by your landscape byusing one or both of the following

technologies:

Evapotranspiration ControllersEvapotranspiration (ET) is the sum ofevaporation and plant transpiration fromthe Earth's land surface to its atmosphere.Simply put, ET measures how much watera landscape actually uses. ET controllerscalculate the amount of water neededbased on local conditions usingtemperature, rain, wind, slope, soil, planttype or other factors. Weather conditionsthat the controller receives are obtainedfrom one of three sources:

• Weather data through a wirelesssignal from a local dataprovider. The data providercalculates ET based on local weatherdata collected from public and privatesources. The ET value is thentransmitted to the controller, whichautomatically adjusts the irrigation runtime based on local conditions. Thedata provider typically charges theirrigation customer a nominal monthlyfee for providing this service.

• Pre-programmed historical ET

data for the region. The localhistorical data may also be modifiedthrough the use of a sensor thatmeasures temperature or solarradiation. Historical ET controllerstypically are the least expensive type ofET controller because they do notrequire a sophisticated on-site weatherstation or the ability to communicatewirelessly with a weather dataprovider.

• A dedicated on-site weatherstation. Because weather events suchas rain showers can be highlylocalized, an on-site weather stationprovides the controller with the mostaccurate weather data possible tocalculate the amount of water needed.These ET controllers have typicallybeen used on large irrigation systems— such as those found in golf coursesor large parks — because of the addedinitial cost of installing an on-siteweather station. However, homeowner-oriented models with simplifiedweather stations are becoming

Rain sensors make sense, plusit’s the law!Florida Statutes (Ch. 373.62) requirethat “any person who purchases andinstalls an automatic sprinkler systemshall… install a rain sensor device orswitch which will override the irriga-tion cycle of the sprinkler systemwhen adequate rainfall has occurred.”

These devices are inexpensive, easyto install, and will work with mostexisting irrigation controllers. There isno excuse for running your irrigationsystem in the rain!

“Smart” irrigation controllers determine the right amount of water needed by yourlandscape based on a variety of factors — helping to reduce how frequently your watermeter runs.

SENSIBLE SPRINKLING IN SOUTH FLORIDA

South Florida Water Management District3301 Gun Club RoadWest Palm Beach, Florida 33406561-686-8800 • 800-432-2045www.sfwmd.gov

MAILING ADDRESS: P.O. Box 24680West Palm Beach, FL 33416-4680

EN04/25/12

For more information on thissubject, scan this QR codeusing a barcode reader appon your smartphone.

available.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) WaterSenseprogram has begun to label weather-based irrigation controllersthat meet the program’s criteria for fulfilling the watering needs ofa landscape without overwatering. For more information onirrigation controllers with the WaterSense label, please visitwww.epa.gov/WaterSense/products/controltech.html.

Soil Moisture Sensor ControllersSoil moisture sensor (SMS) controllers use sensors placed in theroot zone of the plants to regulate water use. On the most commontype of SMS controller, the sensor acts as a simple bypass devicethat interrupts the normal irrigation schedule when water is notneeded — similar to how rainfall sensor-based systems work. Thethreshold between “wet” and “dry” can be adjusted on bypass SMScontrollers depending on the type of plant, soil and otherconditions to meet plant requirements. Multiple sensors may beused to regulate different areas in the landscape.

An on-demand SMS controller initiates irrigation when the sensordetects a pre-programmed low soil moisture threshold and stopsirrigiation when the sensor determines adequate moisture has

been received. On-demand SMS systems often utilize multiplesensors placed throughout the landscape to detect varyingconditions in the landscape. For example, one sensor may monitorconditions for areas of turf that require more water, another sensormay regulate areas with low water use plants, and still anothermay be used for bright sunny areas.

The University of Florida is currently conducting research on smartirrigation controllers. More information is available online atirrigation.ifas.ufl.edu.

Be a Watchdog for Water ConservationWhether irrigating a home lot or a large commercial property,everyone needs to closely monitor outdoor water use. Wateringless frequently but thoroughly will help lighten the load on bothpocketbooks and the shared regional pool of water. Whendeveloping landscape designs, keep water conservation in mind.Only constant water awareness will help maintain a constant watersupply!

For more resources on efficient outdoor irrigation, please visitwww.savewaterfl.com.

Typical wet seasonrainfall from June toOctober is oftenmore than enoughto keep SouthFlorida landscapeshealthy and green.Additional waterfrom irrigation ismore necessary tofulfill plant needsduring the dryseason, particularlyfrom March to May.