Watering Recommendations

Set your irrigation timer by season

Winter

Summer

Spring

Fall

Tips for your irrigation settings

Plan Now for a Xeriscape Conversion

Winter is the best time to rethink your high water use turfgrass and create a plan for a xeriscape yard of desert-friendly plants. A desert friendly xeriscape will help you save water, reduce maintenance, encourage pollinators, and beat the heat of the summer. ...

Irrigation Maintenance Checklist for the Greater Albuquerque Area

With drought conditions predicted to continue for the foreseeable future, we’re likely to water more often this spring and summer. Make every drop count – and keep us on track to meet our conservation goals – by performing routine maintenance to maximize your...

The Albuquerque Urban Forest

In an arid city like Albuquerque, trees and the urban forest are even more important than in places with more moisture. Trees provide shade and habitat, and help cool the urban landscape. To sustain a healthy canopy trees require special care given the arid climate,...

Yucca Baccata Compacta, Datil / Banana Yucca

Exposure: Full sun Water: Rain Water Height and Spread: H 4’ X W 5' Description: The Yucca Baccata Compacta originated in Mora in northeastern New Mexico. It is low maintenance and drought resistant. The huge fruit in the middle, which ripens in late summer and is...

Garden Gifts – Staff Picks

With so much time spent at home this year, many homeowners have taken up gardening. To encourage this trend and spread the joy that spending time in nature brings, we’ve pulled together a list of Water Authority Conservation staff’s favorite garden tools they can’t...

Colorado Blue Spruce Fat Albert, Picea pungens “Fat Albert”

Exposure: Full sun Water: Medium Height and Spread: H 50' X W 20' Blooming Season: NA Description: The Colorado Blue Spruce adjusts well to most Albuquerque soils and is a staple in numerous landscapes. It is resilient to flooding and drought as well. This tree...

What type of grass is that?

Karl Forester Grass plumes with pink Bush Muhly grass located behind it.

November is for Sheltering

Just as we take shelter when the weather turns colder, so do your plants. This time of year, plants store most of their nutrients in the roots and find shelter in the ground. We can support this transition to help plants thrive during the entire winter season. Also,...

Pink Flamingo Muhly, Muhlenbergia x Pink Flamingo

Exposure: Full Sun Water: Medium Height and Spread: H 4' X W 2' Blooming Season: Fall Description: Pink Flamingo is a native grass that is heat, cold, and drought resistant. During late summer into mid-fall, wonderful soft pink airy flower spikes appear. This desert...

Don’t Jump to Conclusions when Diagnosing Tree Problems

We love our trees. Trees have a cooling effect in our yards by providing shade and they increase property value. When our trees do not “look good,” we try to help them, but when that one “magic” application does not solve the issue, we are often discouraged. A proper...

The Balancing Act of Watering Trees in the Fall and Winter

The balancing act of watering your trees in the fall and winter is important. Established trees should be watered two to three times a month in the fall season and once a month in the winter season. If not watered properly, trees that get too dry during this time can...

Reduce your watering this autumn

September days can have widely varying temperatures, with some days getting into the 90s, but we can count on nights being longer and cooler. This means that plants do not need to be watered as often. Ramping down how often you water your yard is a great way to save...

Greek Germander, Teucrium cossonii majoricum

Exposure: Full Sun Water: Medium Height and Spread: H 6” X W 18” Blooming Season: Summer Description: This drought-tolerant groundcover enjoys the heat from adjacent boulders and is wide spreading along walkways. The silver evergreen foliage is a welcome addition in...

New Rebate: WaterSense Spray Sprinkler Bodies

You probably don't pay a lot of attention to sprinkler bodies, those plastic devices that house the sprinkler's spray nozzle. Well, not until one breaks and your yard suddenly looks like the fountain at the Bellagio. But selecting the right sprinkler body can have a...

New Rebate: SWAT Pressure Regulator

Pressure regulators are another essential technology for improving the efficiency of your irrigation system. They are an integral part of keeping your system running in peak condition. Pressure regulators come in two basic styles: inline or valve fitted. An inline...

New Rebate: SWAT Flow Sensors

Irrigation systems have grown more efficient by leaps and bounds in recent years to maximize water savings. Now, many systems can even communicate with you via your smart phone or computer. There are some tried and true, if under-used, pieces of equipment you can add...

WA Customers list the “Top Reasons to Convert a Lawn to a Desert Friendly Xeriscape”

Water Authority customers have been inspired to convert their turf to sustainable, resilient xeriscapes that save water, time and money and provide habitat for wildlife and pollinators for many reasons. Below are some of our favorites: “We just didn’t see the...

New Rebate: WaterSense Smart Irrigation Controllers

Smart technology has become popular at homes and businesses because it makes some aspects of daily life easier and more efficient. WaterSense Smart Irrigation Controllers are the Water Authority conservation group’s favorite smart technology. These types of...

Irrigation Service Tip and Watering Recommendations for the Summer Season:

Service: Direction is Everything! Your irrigation system is only as good as its aim. Adjust sprinklers and emitters to make sure they are delivering water to the landscape and not onto rocks, bare earth or pavement.June is a great time to check and replace any...

Tips to Keep Mature Trees Healthy

Our urban forest (yes, the trees in your landscape are part of a forest) provides so many benefits too us – cooling, increased home values, beauty, and better mental health just to name a few. Here’s what you can do to help keep your members of our urban forest as...

How should I adjust my irrigation as my woody plants get larger?

The amount of water needed and where that water should be applied changes as woody plants (such as trees, shrubs and vines) get larger. Woody plant material has two types of roots, stabilizing roots and feeder roots. Both types of roots do just what their...

Irrigation Service Tip and Watering Recommendations for the Spring Season:

Service: April’s freeze may have damaged your irrigation system, so make sure to inspect it for leaks, or broken sprinkler heads and emitters! Watering Recommendations: Spring rains are benefitting established landscapes! Follow these watering recommendations to keep...

Three Ways to Water Established Trees

Trees are incredibly valuable and provide a wide array of benefits, from increasing home values to improving mental health. Unfortunately, Albuquerque has suffered large losses of trees in the past decade. It’s more important now than ever to take care of your...

Spring Lawn Best Practices

Do you want to walk barefoot across cool, soft grass? Especially on those hot summer days? We’d love for you to do that! We also want you to take care of your lawn in a healthy way that saves the most water. One might assume that proper lawn care begins in the spring...

Avoid water waste! Follow Time-of-Day Watering Restrictions from April 1 to Oct 31

A lot of things have changed since last spring, but at least one thing is the same: April 1 is still the date on which time-of-day watering rules go into effect for Water Authority customers in Albuquerque and Bernalillo County. That means sprinkler and spray...

Irrigation Service Tip and Watering Recommendations for the Spring Season:

As the landscape irrigation season gets under way, inspect your irrigation system for leaks and clogged, broken or missing sprinkler heads and emitters. Use a pressure gauge to verify that sprinkler heads are operating at recommended pressures, and check and clean all...

Soil Searching: To Amend or Not to Amend?

Shredded woodchip mulch helps soil hold moisture and insulates plant roots on a frosty November morning. Photo credit M. Thompson. One of the most frequent questions we get at NMSU Extension is, “Should I add fertilizer or amendments to the soil when planting?” The...

New Water Authority Rebates: Easy Ways to Boost Your Landscape Irrigation Efficiency

Having a healthy and functional (and desert friendly) landscape is about making smart horticultural and irrigation decisions. Burqueños know that water conservation is a way of life -- and an important responsibility in this beautiful high-desert region. By working...

Local educational resources are one click away

We scoured the internet, met with local experts, and pulled together a great educational resource list for you. When you’re ready to dig into all there is to know about landscaping in New Mexico, these resources are ready for you. Plants: Native Plant Society of New...

February 2020 Monthly Service Tip and Watering Recommendations

Watering Recommendations: When warmer days set in, you may be inclined to water your landscape, but this winter continues to bring much needed precipitation to meet the needs of your landscape. No need to water this month! Per our Winter Watering Recommendations, your...