IDEAS OF OUTDOOUR WATER CONSERVATION

Catch the rain. Use it for watering your plants, lawn or garden.

Water the garden and lawn at night. Watering at night gives water more time to soak in without added evaporation from the day's heat.

.Water only the areas that need it. Use a trigger nozzle on your hose or a watering can.

.Water deeply but less often. This will encourage plants to grow deeper roots, so that they need water less frequently.

One way to water deeply with a minimum of water is to water slowly using drip irrigation or micro sprinklers. The simplest form is a soaker hose; other options include drip tape or hoses with emitters. These systems do not lose water to evaporation like overhead irrigation and keep plant foliage dry to help lessen disease. Buried tape applies the water to the root zone for even greater efficency. These systems may need to have acid added to the water to keep calcium or iron from plugging the tiny emiters.

.Watering deeply but less often goes for lawns, too. The roots of grass don't grow as deep as those of other plants, but they can still be encouraged by deeper, less-frequent watering.

Use furrows and basins. Dig low areas to water only the root zones of your plants, not unplanted areas around them.

Use mulch on your garden to retain moisture. Ideal mulch candidates include hay, manure, leaves, wood chips, bark, and newspaper. Many mulches are available for free or very low cost. The right organic mulch can also help improve your soil as it breaks down and keep weeds in check.

Grow the grass longer. Don't mow your lawn too short. Raise the height of your mower blade, or simply let it grow a bit longer between mowing.

Grow no grass or less grass. Plant something besides a lawn or reduce the size of your lawn. Lawns require much more water (and maintenance) to keep growing than many other plants and ground covers.

Plant small trees under big trees. This will help prevent evaporation and provides someshade for your plants. You can also plant a shade garden under trees.

Cover your swimming pool. This helps to prevent evaporation. In some places, emptying and refilling a pool is under severe restrictions, or even banned, so preserving this precious resource is crucial.

Time water usage. Put a timer on your sprinkler and outdoor faucets/taps. Look for inexpensive, automatic timers that screw between the hose and the hose bibb, or install a programmable timer on your sprinkler or drip system. An automatic timer can also help you water at times of day when the water can best be absorbed.

If you water something manually, set a kitchen timer before you turn the water on, or stay with the hose the whole time

Know how to adjust your sprinkler and irrigation timer settings for the seasons. Water less or not at all during wetter, cooler weather.

Maintain your sprinklers and irrigation. If you have irrigation on timers, watch it run. Fix broken sprinkler heads and pipes and make sure that spray patterns are directed where they are intended.

Don't over-water, and don't water any faster than the soil can absorb the water. If water is running off the lawn onto the sidewalk, cut the watering time or divide it into two smaller segments to allow time for the water to absorb.

Use environmentally friendly cleansers. This will enable you to reuse waste water from washing to water the lawn or garden.

Wash the car on the lawn. Use a trigger nozzle hose and/or bucket. There are even waterless spray-and-wipe car wash products, but they tend to be costly.

Wash the car less often. Everyday dust and dirt won't harm anything if it collects for a little while.

Wash the car at a car wash. Car washes may use less water than you can use at home. Car washes also collect and filter the wastewater appropriately.

Don't wash the driveway or sidewalk with a hose. Use a broom or rake to remove dry matter and let the rain do the rest.

Plant drought-resistant landscaping. If you have a garden, devote an area to hardy plants that need relatively little water. Also, learn about native plants that naturally thrive in your area.

Know how much water plants need to thrive, and don't apply more water than that.

Grow plants with like water needs together. Sometimes called "hydrozoning," this method simply means that plants are grouped together by water use, so that they can all be watered appropriately.