When irrigation is available, warm season species can be seeded June through August. Maintaining a moist upper 2 inches in the soil profile is critical for germination and establishment success. If irrigation is available, seeding in mid-September can result in enhanced establishment. Irrigation should be used to keep the seeds moist for approximately seven days and every 5 days or so after that to enable the small seedlings to persist. Cool season species should be seeded in mid-October. Although irrigation can be helpful for getting desired species established, supplemental watering should be ceased at least when natives go dormant (generally in November) in order to avoid enhancing weed cover. The use of buried clay pots, which provide controlled irrigation to plants planted near it, has been used as a low cost, simple approach to irrigation in arid landscapes. Pots should be unglazed and poros and installed in the ground (with 2 cm of the top of the pot above the soil surface) prior to seeding or planting [1].
Resources
- How to Irrigate Efficiently | USU
- Efficient Irrigation of Trees and Shrubs | USU
- How Much Water Do Landscape Trees Require in Utah? An Irrigation Calculator | USU
- Wasatch Community Gardens | Salt Lake City, Utah - Drip Irrigation
- Landscape Watering by the Numbers
- Drip Irrigation: The Basics
- Watering Trees and Shrubs
- Utah Water Savers
- Utah Division of Water Rights
References
[1] Bainbridge DA. Buried clay pot irrigation: a little known but very efficient traditional method of irrigation. Agricultural Water Management. 2001 [accessed 2022 Dec 23];48(2):79–88. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0378377400001190. doi:10.1016/S0378-3774(00)00119-0