Irrigation is one of the keys to having beautiful landscaping if you install and use the irrigation correctly. If you install it incorrectly or use it improperly, you could end up destroying part or all of the landscaping. Irrigation systems have to be set up to deliver the right amount of water to the right plants because those plants depend on having a certain amount of water at certain times. Ignore that need, and you could end up with an expensive landscaping repair bill instead.

Over- and Underwatering Plants

One of the more obvious landscaping problems that improper irrigation can lead to is plants receiving too much or not enough water. Underwatered plants can become discolored and dry out, eventually dying as leaves crumple and cannot complete photosynthesis. Overwatered plants can develop fungal problems and die from conditions like root rot. They can also simply drown in the soggy, boggy soil.

Irrigation that’s installed incorrectly can still be a problem even if the amounts of delivered water are correct. If water hits the leaves of a plant rather than the soil around the stem, that’s wasted water that won’t help the plant. The leaves could even develop fungal problems. If water hits the soil too far from the stem, then the roots might not be able to access as much of the water once it seeps down to root level.

Changes in Soil Salinity

Soil contains salt in varying amounts, and some plants do better with higher or lower salinity. When you add too much or too little water to soil, that can change the salinity. Sometimes this doesn’t have much of an effect. For example, crab apple trees can deal with more salinity, so one of those might not show much of an effect. But let’s say you’re trying to grow some edible plants like onions. An increase in salinity (say, from salts becoming concentrated in arid soil that you’re underwatering) could kill the plants.

Erosion

Too much water can lead to runoff, which can lead to erosion. If your irrigation system is delivering way too much water, you could find patches of soil that seem to be disappearing as water carries it away. That carries away minerals and fertilizer, too, so any plants nearby lose a nutrition source in the process.

Your Water Bills and Usage

Overwatering and re-watering after finding you’ve been watering incorrectly requires more and more water. That just leads to higher bills from the water company. It’s much better to install the irrigation system correctly from the start.

Do landscaping irrigation right by having an experienced company plan and install the system. Contact Global Land Solutions in Chattanooga, TN for all your irrigation and landscaping needs.