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Lawns, Sod Business Wilting

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By LAURA FRAZIER lfrazier@tampatrib.com

The Tampa Tribune

Published: April 1, 2009

BRANDON Unless the skies open up soon and often, lawn lovers with a penchant for pampering their yards might soon see their pride and investments dry up.

As of Friday, Tampa residents must shut off their sprinklers and water only by hand, one day a week. And today, the county commission will review and possibly revise restrictions for unincorporated parts of the county - all areas but incorporated Tampa, Plant City and Temple Terrace.

The prospect of more stringent watering rules - or an outright ban on irrigation - is already starting to soak local sod farmers and the companies who purchase, deliver and install turf.

The existing rules in unincorporated Hillsborough allow automated watering one day a week between 6 p.m. and 8 a.m., depending on your address.

New restrictions in effect Friday for the city of Tampa allow residents to hand-water new sod every day for 30 days after installation - no sprinklers allowed.

After that, it's up to the homeowner and his or her hose to keep the lawn alive under the same rules for established lawns - hand-watering only between 6 p.m. and 8 a.m. once a week on Tuesday or Sunday.

Norman Davis, director of Water Resource Services for Hillsborough County, said the county never before limited irrigation to hand-watering only.

"However, we did ban watering of established landscaping for most of the summer of 2002 in our South-Central Service Area," Davis said.

Robert Bruner, owner of Dirt Cheap Sod in Tampa, said the hand-watering rule in Tampa likely will ruin lawns, and his livelihood.

"This guy in Tampa Palms called me and said to hold up" on a new sod installation scheduled for the day after the new rule was announced, Bruner said. "He can't stand there and hand water 4,000 square feet of grass."

Manny Herrera, owner of Campo Sod in Tampa, said "unreasonable" restrictions are making it impossible for his industry to survive the recession. He's doing 85 percent fewer sod installations than he was three years ago, and he doesn't blame the dry season.

"Every year, it's the same thing, ain't nothing new about it," Herrera said. "I don't think the rain is the problem, it's the growth. The people running this city only react to what's happening. They don't prepare for what's coming."

The new rules, he said, could herald the demise of his 30-year-old business.

"This will wipe out the last 15 percent of my business that I have left," he said. "If you work and you get home at 5:30, are you gonna stand there with a hose for three hours?"

The most popular turf here is Floratam St. Augustine, billed as the most drought-tolerant of the St. Augustine grasses and preferred by homeowners for its lush, green potential and resistance to chinch bugs, weeds and fire ants. It costs up to $140 a pallet, enough to cover 400 square feet.

But it does need water - experts say at least an inch, preferably twice a week.

And Bruner said even diligent homeowners determined to hand-water their lawns through the drought may find it difficult to achieve the even, consistent coverage of a sprinkler system.

"It's not that easy, and let's face it, it's time-consuming," Bruner said. "Let's all pray for some rain."

RULES REVIEW

The Hillsborough County Commission will discuss possible revisions to water restrictions for unincorporated areas today at its 9 a.m. meeting at County Center, 601 E. Kennedy Blvd., Tampa. For updates, go to TBO.com.

Reporter Laura Frazier can be reached at (813) 657-4523.

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