I realize the obvious response is going to be "get sprinklers". However, it is a fairly large lawn ( > 1 acre) so that is cost prohibitive for the time being. Thanks!

Plant more drought hardy trees and reduce the size of lawn. One acre of lawn is too much work. At least that's what I'd do.

I don't know where your water outlets are. I do know that 100' of hose and one sprinkler can cover a circular area in excess of 30 thousand square feet (close to 3/4 of an acre). The sprinkler would obviously need to be moved numerous times to cover the whole area, but could be done.

If you are concerned about the cost of a sprinkler system (in-ground timer controlled systems are very expensive), consider the hose/sprinkler/human control variation.

The sheer cost of the water is yet another consideration, as is the time and cost involved in maintaining a lawn. Finally, a whole lot of lawn takes a whole lot of lawnmower.

Analysis? Do what @lou_midlothian_tx recommended.

Best Wishes--Carl
Atlanta, GA
ITP

-Total lot size=1/2 acre
-Front and side lawn=2500 sq. ft.
-Back lawn=0 sq.ft.
-Time spent mowing=20 minutes/week
-Total $ spent for lawn treatment=$315/year (lawn service)
-Lawn Mower=21" Honda Self-propelled ($400 new) & really old Craftsman with B&S (used only in back to keep groundcovers in check)

This post was edited by ApprenticeGardener on Fri, Apr 5, 13 at 11:19

I have a one-acre lot at the edge of the Texas desert (Live Oak county if you're looking it up). I have about 10,000 square feet in grass. I have an in ground system but prefer to use hoses and oscillators to target where the water goes. I have four 75-foot hoses and four oscillating sprinklers. Cost is under $200. With my climate I could probably run those for 4 hours, 3 days a week, moving them around to get full coverage once every week. Doing that for a full acre would be tedious.

If you are not already mowing at your mower's highest setting, then make that adjustment immediately. I am doing an experiment on my lawn to see how tall grass affects the demand for water. I have one area under a tree that has not been watered since October of 2011. Here is a picture. Grass height is about 30 inches (St Augustine).

{{gwi:79606}}

That was taken a year ago after six months with only rainfall. There are other parts of the lawn, out in full sun, that must be watered weekly. The grass out in the full sun has not been able to grow up that tall. With that in mind, I would suggest mowing at the highest setting, mowing only every 3 weeks, and watching the grass for signs of wilting. Clearly from my experiment, tall St Aug can go longer without water than short St Aug. When it wilts, water it immediately and water deeply.

Note also that there are no weeds in the tall grass. There is far too much shade for anything else to get started.