Wednesday, June 25, 2025
Lawn and tree watering tips to survive the Salt Lake summer heat wave.
Urban Living
Posted By Babs De Lay on June 25, 2025, 4:00 AM
Naaa, there's no global warming—right? Bah! Our planet is warming and from all predictions, this is going to be a summer of record-breaking heat in the state. Make yourself a checklist to prepare for summer:
—Reduce your air conditioning costs by keeping curtains/blinds closed during the day. Seal around windows with weather stripping where there are gaps and replace furnace filters.
—Work on installing eco-friendly landscaping with drought-resistant and native plants that don't use as much water to keep your bill down. Lawns here generally need to be watered 2 to 3 times a week in summer, and it's best to water deeply and less frequently rather than shallow and often. About 1 inch per session, and don't water between 1 p.m. an 4 p.m.
—Use a smart thermostat to automate your cooling inside. Try to keep AC at 78 degrees to 80 degrees when you aren't home.
—Before we all feel like we're melting, schedule a tune-up to keep your AC running all summer to both avoid breakdowns and lower bills. One of the most common calls to AC contractors goes like this: "My AC stopped working and there is ice all over my furnace!"
That ice is there because you neglected to regularly change your furnace filter! It's cheap to do the replacement and will save you money on an emergency call to get your furnace back up and running.
Salt Lake City has a lawn watering guide at slc.gov, which suggests that residents water lawns one-half-inch in a single interval every 3 to 4 days during the summer. But we all may need to water less or more, depending on whether Mother Nature is giving us more or less rain.
Trees need water and to properly hydrate them it's best to focus on slow, deep watering at the base of the tree. New trees need more frequent watering and it's good to put mulch around the base to help retain soil moisture. You can dig down with a trowel a few inches to see if the ground is dry (time to water!) and avoid midday watering for any outside plants to avoid evaporation and waste.
I heard on NPR recently that trees in drought conditions actually make a "crying out" noise that's not heard by human ears. When trees face drought the water tension in the tubes that transport water increases. This can cause air bubbles to form, break and collapse in a process called cavitation. The breaking of water columns within the xylem (tissue) generates vibrations that can be detected as sounds.
According to utah.gov, severe drought covers 45% of the state, with 3% in extreme drought. About 75% of our water goes to agricultural use, yet we have extremely cheap water bills ($38 a month for the average household). We definitely need more water, for so many reasons. Let's hope our plants, grasses and trees survive the predicted heat wave this summer!
About The Author
Babs De Lay
A full-time broker/owner of Urban Utah Homes and Estates, Babs De Lay serves on the Salt Lake City Historic Landmark Commission. A writer and golfer, you'll find them working as a staff guardian at the Temple at Burning Man each year.
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