Your Villa - Desert Cities - July/Sep 2021

D E S I G N + B U I L D Better water-e ciency practices can keep water and maintenance costs down. You can meet your water budget or water-use goals by reducing water waste outside your home. The most obvious sign of overwatering is high water bills. This can also be a sign of a leak or irrigation problems. Plant Plant seeds in the last two weeks of July for beans, corn, Armenian cucumbers, melons, pumpkins, winter squash, and sunflowers. Prepare & Care • Tomato plants will not fruit (with non-viable pollen in high temperatures), but keep them shaded and nurture them until fall’s cooler temperatures give you early tomatoes again. • Take advantage of the midsummer’s intense heat to solarize a fall vegetable growing plot to kill soil-borne diseases and weed seeds. Use clear plastic over deeply wetted soil. Common Irrigation Issues Misting High water pressure usually causes sprinkler misting, which prevents proper irrigation on your lawn. Most spray heads should operate at 30 pounds per square inch, but the majority of irrigation systems in the valley operate under higher pressure. Regulate the pressure down at the emission device or at the valve or install pressure reducers or pressure-reducing sprinklers. This is typically easy and inexpensive to do and provides the quickest payback. See our Rotary Nozzle Rebate Program. Vocabulary Solarization Transparent polyethylene cover to trap solar energy. Soil solarization heats up the soil to the point that it weakens and kills fungi, bacteria, nematodes, insects, mites, and weeds in the soil. Visit cvwd.org/rebates to find conservation rebates and discounts. 12 | YourVilla Magazine CVWD Outdoor Water E ciency Rebates & Discounts Facebook “ f ” Logo CMYK / .eps Facebook “ f ” Logo CMYK / .eps Visit www.cvwd.org/rebates for program details and requirements. Or call us at (760) 398-2651. Programs require pre-approval. Smart Irrigation Controller Landscape Conversion Sprinkler Nozzle Replacement