Simplified Landscape Irrigation Demand Estimation: SLIDE Rules for Water Budgets

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Simplified Landscape Irrigation
Demand Estimation: SLIDE Rules
for Landscape Water Budgets and
Allocations
Roger Kjelgren
Utah State University
Dept. Plants, Soils, & Climate
Urban Landscape Water is a “Hot” Topic
Collaborators
Trans-institutional colleagues
Dennis Pittenger, University California Cooperative Extension
Richard Beeson, University Florida Research & Extension Ctr.
Thayne Montague, Texas Tech University
Center for Water Efficient Landscaping, USU
Kelly Kopp, Professor
Larry Rupp, Professor
Paul Johnson, Professor
Joanna Endter-Wada, Professor
Diana Glenn, Research Associate
Adrea Wheaton, Research Associate
Background
Drought, climate change 
 
managing landscape water
is a major policy and program management challenge
for water agencies
California “social engineering” - how people relate to water via
urban, irrigated landscape
Per capita (people) water demand
Per parcel/lot
landscape water demand
 Plant Water Demand
 
When soil
water is not
limited, water
demand is a
function of
atmospheric
conditions
 
 
Water
use
Water
use
Water
use
Irrigate
to refill
root
zone
Root depth: irrigate before
plant performance is affected;
desiccation tolerance
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Urban Plant Water Demand
Demand = plant water use
in response to atmosphere
We can easily measure atmospheric
demand —solar radiation, humidity, wind,
temperature
But measuring plant response to
atmospheric demand is not easy
Instead
, we measure atmospheric
demand over standardized plant surface:
cool season turfgrass
Atmospheric demand measured over a
standardized surface = Reference
evapotranspiration, or ETo
ETo is information
about atmosphere,
not
 
about plant
response
Urban Plant Water Demand
ETo link to plant water demand: 
Plant Factor (PF)
, not
crop coefficient, that adjusts ETo downward
ETo x PF = estimated plant water
demand for a given plant type
Example, Salt Lake City
Yearly ETo =40 inches
PF cool season turf =0.8
Plant water demand = 40 inches
x 0.8 = 32 inches
Until now, 
no
 PF’s for non-turf landscape plants
ETo and potential
water demand for
different plant types
Non-
turf
Turf
Desert
But how much?
undefined
SLIDE – Simplified Landscape Irrigation Demand
Estimation, based on ASABE S623
ETo x PF = water demand
for different plant types
X 0.8 PF turf = 
32 inches
 
Salt Lake City Seasonal
ETo = 
40 inches
X 0.5 PF
non-turf =
20 inches
X 0.3 PF
desert
plants
= 
12
inches
WaterMAPS™ - tool for direct use by water agencies
Identify customers with high capacity to conserve: applying water to
landscapes in excess of plant water demand
Educate customers about their landscape irrigation practices
compared to actual plant water demand
Assess water conservation customer and program performance
Aid landscape design community to design low water
landscapes to meet specific water allocations/budgets
Provide minimum irrigation guidelines to keep high value
landscape elements (e.g., trees) alive during drought
SLIDE Rules – Three Applications
SLIDE Rules –Application #1
Integrates various databases to compare actual landscape
water use (derived from meter data) to estimated
demand (needs) based on ETo x PF
First studied in Wasatch Front suburbs (Layton, West
Jordan) then expanded to three other entities in
metropolitan region (Logan, Weber Basin, Salt Lake City)
Difference between actual landscape water use and
estimated demand (needs) = capacity to conserve
WaterMAPS™ automates calculation of capacity to
conserve for all parcels in a water providers’ service area
WaterMAPS™ 
Water Management Analysis and Planning Software
West Jordan, Utah Residential Potable Water Use,
2000; n=2,090 homes
19 inches trees
31 inches turf water demand (uniform irrigation)
12 inches desert plants
Weber Basin WCD, Utah, Residential Secondary
Water Use, 2012; n=859 homes
20 inches trees,
32 inches turf water demand
 (uniform irrigation)
12 inches desert plants
ETo = 40 inches
Landscape Irrigation Ratio
(LIR)
at the parcel scale
LIR less than 1        =    Efficient
Between 1 and 2   =    Acceptable
Between 2 and 3   =    Inefficient
Greater than 3       =    Excessive
(estimated from analysis of meter data)
________________________________________________
(estimated from classified airborne multispectral
imagery and localized ETo rates modified by relevant
landscape plant factors)
Landscape Water Use 
_________________
Landscape Water Need
LIR
 
=
(per unit of
landscaped
area)
Identifying Capacity to Conserve through “LIR”
Three neighborhoods with
secondary water in Weber
Basin WCD service district
Smart meters installed
winter 2011/2012
Received reports on
LIR/Capacity to Conserve
since 2012 – seen
significant water savings
Customer Education – Secondary Users
 Did people save water?
Logan City Residential
customers
Received free irrigation
system evaluation
(Water Check)
Calculated LIR/Capacity
to conserve before and
after the Water Check
Water Conservation Evaluation: 
Participants
How can the program
respond to customer
performance?
Free Water Checks only
worked with small
number of customers
Customers who
increased use, or had
high LIR and no change,
need different approach
Water Conservation Evaluation: 
Program
SLIDE Rules –Application #2
Tool for the
Landscape
Design
Community:
Hydrozones
based on
Water
Demand
Tool for Landscape Design Community
Landscape architects/designers key to creating low water
landscapes with identifiable water savings
SLIDE/ASABE S623 standardizes two key processes
Hydrozones as smallest landscape area managed by irrigation
zone
Plant cover <80%, water demand that of isolated plants
Water demand for isolated plants based on cross-section
crown area
To meet water allocation/budget, designers  now have two
standardized tools: species with lower PF, using fewer plants
(<80% cover)
Design Tools: Hydrozoning
Hydrozone controlled by a
     single irrigation valve
Plant species with highest Plant
Factor dictates the overall zone PF
(don’t mix turf and desert plants)
Low plant cover by widely spaced
plants, or
by creating
dense plant
oases within
larger non-
plant area
Design Tools:
Hydrozoning
Low density
planting water
demand of either
isolated plants or
plant cluster
Oasis incomplete
plant cover; high
density (>80%)
areas imbedded in
hardscape
Dense planting water
demand: area x 0.5 PF
Isolated plant
water demand:
Circle area x
0.5 PF
Design of Things to Come: CA Regulations
for New Landscapes
SLIDE Rules –Application #3
Keeping
High-Value
Landscapes
Alive During
Drought
During drought, turf can be sacrificed (or removed)
 
What happens to
trees important – 5-10 times
more valuable per ft
2
 than
turf
Special attention needed
for trees previously
imbedded in and irrigated
with turf
Again, estimate water
demand of isolated trees
Responding to Drought
Keeping Urban Trees Alive During Drought
During drought, customers will likely focus on keeping
trees alive
Estimate water demand of isolated tree based on 2-
dimensional shape (mostly circle, but also triangle and
rectangle)
Web site for calculating water demand of isolated tree
and irrigation schedule: 
http://files.radiantm.com/tree-
irrigation/
Summary
SLIDE simplifies how to estimate landscape water
demand for three general plant types: turf, non turf,
desert plants
SLIDE does not include species-specific drought tolerance
traits (root depth, leaf tolerance of desiccation)
Key tool in estimating potential water demand to:
Design landscapes within a targeted budget/allocation
Track customers’ performance relative to water demand of 
their
own landscape 
configuration
Keep high value plants alive during drought
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Simplified Landscape Irrigation Demand Estimation presents a comprehensive guide on managing urban landscape water use efficiently. Collaborators from various institutions contribute to addressing the challenges posed by drought and climate change. The document explores plant water demand, atmospheric conditions, water agency stakeholders, and the concept of Reference Evapotranspiration (ETo) to estimate plant water requirements. The content emphasizes the importance of understanding and measuring atmospheric demand to optimize water usage for different plant types in urban environments.

  • Landscape irrigation
  • Water budgets
  • Urban water management
  • Plant water demand
  • Drought management

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  1. Simplified Landscape Irrigation Demand Estimation: SLIDE Rules for Landscape Water Budgets and Allocations Roger Kjelgren Utah State University Dept. Plants, Soils, & Climate

  2. Urban Landscape Water is a Hot Topic

  3. Collaborators Trans-institutional colleagues Dennis Pittenger, University California Cooperative Extension Richard Beeson, University Florida Research & Extension Ctr. Thayne Montague, Texas Tech University Center for Water Efficient Landscaping, USU Kelly Kopp, Professor Larry Rupp, Professor Paul Johnson, Professor Joanna Endter-Wada, Professor Diana Glenn, Research Associate Adrea Wheaton, Research Associate

  4. Background Drought, climate change managing landscape water is a major policy and program management challenge for water agencies California social engineering - how people relate to water via urban, irrigated landscape Per parcel/lot landscape water demand Per capita (people) water demand

  5. Plant Water Demand transpiration When soil water is not limited, water demand is a function of atmospheric conditions

  6. Water agency stake: Water use Water use water supply Water use Irrigate to refill root zone Root depth: irrigate before plant performance is affected; desiccation tolerance

  7. Urban Plant Water Demand Demand = plant water use in response to atmosphere We can easily measure atmospheric demand solar radiation, humidity, wind, temperature But measuring plant response to atmospheric demand is not easy Instead, we measure atmospheric demand over standardized plant surface: cool season turfgrass ETo is information about atmosphere, not about plant response Atmospheric demand measured over a standardized surface = Reference evapotranspiration, or ETo

  8. Urban Plant Water Demand ETo link to plant water demand: Plant Factor (PF), not crop coefficient, that adjusts ETo downward ETo x PF = estimated plant water demand for a given plant type Example, Salt Lake City Yearly ETo =40 inches PF cool season turf =0.8 Plant water demand = 40 inches x 0.8 = 32 inches Until now, no PF s for non-turf landscape plants

  9. ETo and potential water demand for different plant types Non- turf Turf Desert But how much?

  10. SLIDE Simplified Landscape Irrigation Demand Estimation, based on ASABE S623 Fraction of ETo (Plant Factor) to estimate water use yet maintain acceptable appearance of established landscape plants Recommended Plant Factor Turf-Cool Season 0.8 Turf-Warm Season 0.6 Non-turf/woody plants-Humid 0.7 Non-turf/woody plants-Arid 0.5 Desert plants 0.3

  11. ETo x PF = water demand for different plant types X 0.5 PF non-turf = 20 inches X 0.8 PF turf = 32 inches X 0.3 PF desert plants = 12 inches Salt Lake City Seasonal ETo = 40 inches

  12. SLIDE Rules Three Applications WaterMAPS - tool for direct use by water agencies Identify customers with high capacity to conserve: applying water to landscapes in excess of plant water demand Educate customers about their landscape irrigation practices compared to actual plant water demand Assess water conservation customer and program performance Aid landscape design community to design low water landscapes to meet specific water allocations/budgets Provide minimum irrigation guidelines to keep high value landscape elements (e.g., trees) alive during drought

  13. SLIDE Rules Application #1

  14. WaterMAPS Water Management Analysis and Planning Software Integrates various databases to compare actual landscape water use (derived from meter data) to estimated demand (needs) based on ETo x PF First studied in Wasatch Front suburbs (Layton, West Jordan) then expanded to three other entities in metropolitan region (Logan, Weber Basin, Salt Lake City) Difference between actual landscape water use and estimated demand (needs) = capacity to conserve WaterMAPS automates calculation of capacity to conserve for all parcels in a water providers service area

  15. West Jordan, Utah Residential Potable Water Use, 2000; n=2,090 homes Seasonal Landscape Water Applied 140 120 ETo = 39 inches 100 (inches) 80 60 31 inches turf water demand (uniform irrigation) 40 19 inches trees 20 12 inches desert plants 0 0 10000 20000 30000 40000 50000 Landscape Area, ft2

  16. Weber Basin WCD, Utah, Residential Secondary Water Use, 2012; n=859 homes 200 Seasonal Landscape Water Applied 180 160 ETo = 40 inches 140 120 (inches) 100 80 60 32 inches turf water demand (uniform irrigation) 40 20 inches trees, 12 inches desert plants 20 0 2000 7000 12000 17000 22000 Landscaped Area, ft2

  17. Identifying Capacity to Conserve through LIR Landscape Irrigation Ratio (LIR) at the parcel scale LIR less than 1 = Efficient Between 1 and 2 = Acceptable Between 2 and 3 = Inefficient Greater than 3 = Excessive Landscape Water Use _________________ (estimated from analysis of meter data) LIR= ________________________________________________ (estimated from classified airborne multispectral imagery and localized ETo rates modified by relevant landscape plant factors) Landscape Water Need (per unit of landscaped area)

  18. Customer Education Secondary Users Three neighborhoods with secondary water in Weber Basin WCD service district Smart meters installed winter 2011/2012 Received reports on LIR/Capacity to Conserve since 2012 seen significant water savings

  19. Water Conservation Evaluation: Participants Did people save water? Logan City Residential customers Received free irrigation system evaluation (Water Check) Calculated LIR/Capacity to conserve before and after the Water Check

  20. Water Conservation Evaluation: Program How can the program respond to customer performance? Free Water Checks only worked with small number of customers Customers who increased use, or had high LIR and no change, need different approach

  21. SLIDE Rules Application #2 Tool for the Landscape Design Community: Hydrozones based on Water Demand

  22. Tool for Landscape Design Community Landscape architects/designers key to creating low water landscapes with identifiable water savings SLIDE/ASABE S623 standardizes two key processes Hydrozones as smallest landscape area managed by irrigation zone Plant cover <80%, water demand that of isolated plants Water demand for isolated plants based on cross-section crown area To meet water allocation/budget, designers now have two standardized tools: species with lower PF, using fewer plants (<80% cover)

  23. Design Tools: Hydrozoning Hydrozone controlled by a single irrigation valve Plant species with highest Plant Factor dictates the overall zone PF (don t mix turf and desert plants) Low plant cover by widely spaced plants, or by creating dense plant oases within larger non- plant area

  24. Design Tools: Hydrozoning Dense planting water demand: area x 0.5 PF Low density planting water demand of either isolated plants or plant cluster Oasis incomplete plant cover; high density (>80%) areas imbedded in hardscape Isolated plant water demand: Circle area x 0.5 PF

  25. Design of Things to Come: CA Regulations for New Landscapes

  26. SLIDE Rules Application #3 Keeping High-Value Landscapes Alive During Drought

  27. Responding to Drought During drought, turf can be sacrificed (or removed) What happens to trees important 5-10 times more valuable per ft2 than turf Special attention needed for trees previously imbedded in and irrigated with turf Again, estimate water demand of isolated trees

  28. Keeping Urban Trees Alive During Drought During drought, customers will likely focus on keeping trees alive Estimate water demand of isolated tree based on 2- dimensional shape (mostly circle, but also triangle and rectangle) Web site for calculating water demand of isolated tree and irrigation schedule: http://files.radiantm.com/tree- irrigation/

  29. Summary SLIDE simplifies how to estimate landscape water demand for three general plant types: turf, non turf, desert plants SLIDE does not include species-specific drought tolerance traits (root depth, leaf tolerance of desiccation) Key tool in estimating potential water demand to: Design landscapes within a targeted budget/allocation Track customers performance relative to water demand of their own landscape configuration Keep high value plants alive during drought

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