Pro edition

Water Plan

Name: Ashgrove Land & Garden
Price range: $$

In a high-desert valley the difference between a working irrigation schedule and the factory default is most of a summer water bill.

The schedule

Irrigation runs per week by month
Period	Runs	Note
April	Start-up only	Charge the system, walk every head, fix winter breaks. Cool nights mean the lawn does not need it yet.
May	1–2 per week	Deep and infrequent from the first run. Short daily cycles now train shallow roots that fail in July.
June	2 per week	About an inch a week total, split across two runs. Measure with a tuna tin, not a guess.
July – August	2–3 per week, or none	Either commit to the inch, or let it go dormant and stop. Half-watering is the worst of both — it costs money and keeps the crown alive without greening the blade.
September	2 per week	The recovery month. This is when the water actually buys you something.
October	1 per week, then stop	Taper. Last run mid-month in most years.
November	Blow-out	Before the first hard freeze. Non-negotiable in this valley.

Water between 4am and 8am — evening runs invite fungus, midday runs evaporate
Cycle and soak: three short runs ten minutes apart beat one long run on any slope or clay
Turn OFF the seasonal-adjust "smart" percentage until you know the baseline it is adjusting from
Rain sensor tested every spring — most failures are the sensor, not the controller
Write the programme on a label inside the controller door, because you will not remember it in March

Is dormancy the same as death?: No. Cool-season grass shuts down above roughly 85°F and resumes when it cools. The crown survives on very little; it is the blade that browns.
How little water keeps it alive?: Roughly half an inch every two to three weeks is enough to keep the crown viable through a dormant August. That is far less than keeping it green.
What does it cost to stay green instead?: Broadly double the water across July and August, on the two months when restrictions are tightest and rates are highest.
Will it come back?: In a normal September, yes, within two to three weeks of cooler nights. Overseeding at the same time makes the recovery faster and thicker.

Shut the main irrigation valve and open a drain or the lowest head
Compressor at no more than 50 psi for rigid pipe, 80 psi for poly — higher will split fittings
One zone at a time, never all at once, and never run a zone dry for more than about two minutes
Backflow preventer drained and its test cocks left at 45 degrees
Insulate the exposed backflow assembly
Note the date. Two years running is how systems quietly get destroyed