Guest post from Heather Olsen
It was March 17. We had to leave the park earlier than the four-year-old wanted because the one-year-old needed a diaper change and a nap. Much whining ensued. I wouldn’t stop to buy an ice cream cone at the burger joint, the mile-long bike ride home was all uphill, and at 53 F was “too hot”. To top it all off, the water bottle was empty. Cue more whining. When we finally made it home, I got the baby down for a nap, and my daughter asked if she could run through the sprinkler. I paused for about 2.3 seconds to ask myself if our lawn (shown above) needed to be watered. It most definitely did not; it was the middle of March after all. But I figured this would still provide twenty minutes or so of easy entertainment. So we dug out the hose and the sprinkler, got the swimsuit on, and away she went.
Later that day, I saw on the news that the governor of Utah had issued an executive order declaring a state of emergency due to the state’s extreme drought. When my daughter asked me that night if we could run through the sprinkler again the next day, I explained the concept of a drought and told her that we wouldn’t be running through the sprinkler anymore until the grass really needed to be watered. The next morning, I overheard her explaining to her dad that “We can’t run through the sprinklers because then the farmers won’t have enough water and then we won’t have any food!” Perhaps a tad on the dramatic side, but at least she gets it!
Too bad the adults of the world are harder to convince.
Since our little escapade, I’ve seen multiple other lawns being watered. And without any four-year-olds running through the sprinklers to justify it!
In the mountain valley where I live, we’re still routinely dropping into the 20s at night. Gradually, the soil temperatures are warming, but the grass (predominantly Kentucky bluegrass in these parts) is just beginning to break dormancy. It’s not dead; it’s just not actively growing yet.
Droughts aren’t new here, so we should know the drill by now: wait as long as possible for that first irrigation; when you do start to water, do it less frequently but for longer stretches; mow higher and leave the clippings where they fall. Use drip irrigation for flower and vegetable beds. Mulch, mulch, mulch.
However, with 90% of the state in “extreme drought” and over half the state in an “exceptional drought” situation, perhaps “extreme” and “exceptional” measures are called for. Evaluate how you actually use your lawn area, and if you find that the only time you walk on it is to mow/maintain it, now is probably a good time to change it to something else.
At the very least, let me know when you turn your sprinklers on so I can send over my swimsuit-clad four-year-old to take advantage of it.
Heather Olsen is a horticulturalist and weed scientist by training. In practice, she is a part-time researcher, hobby gardener and writer, and full-time mom. She gardens in Utah.
Thx for the great rant with tips, too. Where are you located ?
Hi Susan, I’m glad you enjoyed it. I’m in the Heber Valley, Utah.
California here, and I am refusing to water my lawn. Yes, I am actively trying to kill it, but I wanted to replace it with no-mow options like thyme & Roman chamomile, and dichondra. We didn’t even get enough rain in the rainy season to sustain it. So I judiciously water my new fruit trees & ignore all else. Meanwhile The neighbors down the street are watering until the runoff fills the rain gutter (runoff alone is a no-no), planting new sod on slopes, or hosing down newly-built front yard patios. And all their runoff flows past my home to the storm drain on the other side.
Ugh. So frustrating! I’m renting right now so can’t replace the lawn like I would like to, but I’m only going to do the bare minimum to keep it alive.
I don’t understand why, especially in areas where water conservation is vital, that area governments don’t just impose watering restrictions. Responsibility is twofold, on the homeowner, and on good governance that passes bylaws – and enforces them.
I live in an area with no shortage of rainfall, and yet we have restrictions as a teaching mechanism to underscore that water is precious and not to be wasted. And the public has bought into this. It is a headscratcher to read of areas that suffer drought, that cannot suffer their residents to truly conserve.
Steve,
I think the key issue is the last part of your first paragraph: “– and enforces them.” For a lot of area governments, it’s one thing to impose the watering restrictions, but quite another entirely to enforce them.
I also think that in certain areas of the country where HOAs are the predominant housing policing mechanism, it’s 10 times harder to grow both responsibly and against the grain of a water-sucking lawn. For instance, over the years, I’ve seen lots so shaded, they should be growing anything except grass, and yet year after year, these folks pay lawn services to fight the unwinnable fight, partly because their HOA gives them the impression that they cannot do anything else.
Definitely, the answer is good governance, but also, consistent enforcement all the way down to the level of HOAs. It only takes a couple aggressive HOA Boards, with outdated ideas of what’s acceptable property maintenance, to upset the whole water conservation apple cart.