Tuesday, September 27, 2016

Advice from Owlie - Water-Saving Gardener

Advice from Owlie


Q: Dear Owlie, 
After reading your column on weather-based "smart" irrigation controllers, I have since installed one and noticed a decrease in my water use.  Now, I'm looking for more water-saving tips to use outdoors.  Do you have any tips I can use to continue saving water outdoors?
Sincerely, 
                                                     Water-Saving Gardener

A: Dear Water-Saving Gardener
I am glad to hear you've installed a weather-based "smart" irrigation controller.  The irrigation controller should help you reduce your monthly water use significantly.  But, if you are still looking for outdoor tips, I suggest avoiding over fertilizing your lawn, as it can increase your water consumption.  Also, aerate your lawn periodically, which allows water to better reach the roots and use a broom or blower to clean leaves from the driveway.  All of these tips can help you save water outdoors.  For more water-saving tips, visit www.ieua.org.

Best of luck in reducing your outdoor water use, 
Owlie