As Utah endures another stretch of triple-digit temperatures, many homeowners are trying to keep their lawns green while using less water. But one turfgrass expert is encouraging people to rethink what a healthy lawn looks like.
Brown patches on lawns can make homeowners nervous.
But Utah State University turfgrass specialist Paul Johnson said a little summer dormancy is perfectly normal.
"Allow it to go a little bit brown," he said, "which is what the plants were kind of evolved to do. They evolved in fairly dry environments."
Johnson recommended watering deeply and less often to encourage deeper roots. He also suggested watering in the early morning, and said it may take some trial and error to find the best watering schedule for each particular lawn.
“So it's really kind of allowing it to go a little bit dry, seeing how far you can push it," Johnson said.
He also said newer research found that extra evaporation from midday watering is partly offset by the water cooling the turf.
“If you have to irrigate midday, it's really not a huge problem,” he said.
Johnson also says homeowners should occasionally watch their sprinkler systems to make sure everything is working properly.
"I repeatedly see irrigation heads broken and going off the wrong way," he said. "Simply watching it occasionally to check for breaks or misadjusted heads is one good recommendation."
And he says every gallon homeowners save can help ease pressure on Utah's limited water supplies.
"Most of our lawns aren't something we rely on for food," Johnson said. "Let's allow it to go a little bit brown when we don’t have the rainfall — it'll come back as strong in the fall."
Johnson is listening to his own advice this summer. He says his lawn has gone a little brown — and he's perfectly fine with that.
