Hi,

I have an 8 zone system with three zones that are turf (rotors) and 5 that are a mixture of shrubs, trees, and flower beds (sprays and drips). I just installed the rainmachine mini 8 and I'm trying to determine the best schedule that will also work work well with the weather features and the hot, humid weather in Washington, DC.

Are there any best practices in determining an irrigation schedule?

My schedule right now was set by the company that maintained the sprinkler with the old control system is three times a week (M/W/F) at 5am with zones:

1. (turf, mostly shade): 20 minutes
2. (turf, mostly shade): 15 minutes
3. (turf, mostly sun): 20 minutes
4. (plant bed, shrubs) 6 minutes
5. (plant bed, shrubs) 6 minutes
6. (plant bed, shrubs) 6 minutes
7. (plant bed, shrubs) 6 minutes
8. (plant bed, shrubs) 6 minutes

The rainmachine program suggestions 18:50 for each zone, based I assume on our area.

So, I'm wondering if I should increase the number of days, rethink running the system once a day and break it up into cycles, etc. I really just have no idea of the best schedule.  By the middle of the summer on the schedule above I do see some dry dead grass areas in the turf, but I'm not sure how best to increase watering.

Any suggestions or ways to determine an optimal watering schedule would be much appreciated.

I'm also wondering if there is anyway to set the rainmachine to add days to the frequency if the weather is hot and dry (rather than just adding to the duration).

Finally, is there any good rule of thumb for how much rain to set the rain restriction at?  I have it at 1/4" but I have no idea if this is reasonable.

Apologies for so many questions, and many thanks for any advice.