How to Set Water Timers in the Garden

Landscape water timers come in many sizes, styles and prices. If you live in an area where supplementary irrigation is necessary, it is important to learn to set water timers in your garden to save water, lower your water bills and help your plants grow stronger and healthier. Whether you have a simple hose timer run by battery, an electronic box for different watering stations or a digital-display timer with adjusting capabilities depending on weather, you first need to read the instructions on how to change watering settings.

Things You'll Need

• Low emission sprinkler heads, drippers or soaker hoses

Instructions

1. Water timers work differently, but there is usually a place to set the current time, a place to set the time you want the watering to begin, and opportunities to program on what days and for how long your want each watering station to work. You can always manually override the programmed settings, and you can turn the water off during cold or rainy periods or during repairs.

2. The basic rule is to water gardens and lawns early in the morning. This practice allows the water to sink in before sunshine and heat cause it to evaporate away. Avoid watering later in the day since you will lose much of your water to evaporation and, if it gets really hot, beaded water can work like a magnifying glass and burn holes into delicate plant tissues. Although night is often thought to be a good time to water as there is no problem with sunshine or evaporation, darkness and moisture are a perfect combination to encourage the growth of fungal diseases. Snails and slugs also thrive in this environment.

3. Most plants need to be watered deeply so the water gets to the bottom roots. The best way to water is to use low emission sprinkler heads, drippers, soaker hoses or other slow delivery systems, over a longer period of time. Set your timers accordingly. If you have stony, clay or other hard soils, you may want to set your timers for bursts of slow watering, allowing a break between each watering period to let water sink in. These multiple waterings can still be set in succession for the early morning hours.

4. Make sure you turn off your water timer system when there is rain and water less on cloudy, cool days. If your water timer does not have sensor controls to adjust automatically to weather changes, you have to do it manually.

References

• University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources Agriculture and Natural Resources: 5 Easy Steps to Setting Your Irrigation Controller
• Clemson Cooperative Extension; Landscape Irrigation Equipment Part 6: Timers & Controllers Prepared; W. Bryan Smith; April 2008