Did you know that the “cool season” grasses in your lawn are genetically structured to go dormant and brown in the summer, and revive in the fall? They need a lot more water to force them to stay green through the summer, but this is not necessary.
Knowing this, and following the Green Team’s desire to reduce our water consumption, we have been gradually reducing the quantity of water we use. This was achieved using our Rachio computerized sprinkler controller, which was installed in 2015. Our lawns still look good, and we should be proud of the fact that they are a little brownish in parts because we are saving lots of water!
According to the Rachio records, we are using about 25% less water than previously. As another check, we had Resource Central perform a free audit on our sprinklers. They found that we were using 37% less water than they recommended to keep our lawns green through the summer. Not only are we saving water, the mowers only need to mow every two weeks during the summer.
Water usage has also been reduced by installing pressure-flushing cisterns, which use about half the water compared to the old cisterns. These also give a better flush, need less adjusting, and are virtually vandal-proof.
Finally, Xcel installed free spray nozzles on most of our hand washing sinks.
These projects take time and effort, but they are helping to prepare for the effects of climate change.