Tree-specific irrigation services

Your trees need different water than your lawn.

A 60-year-old oak does not drink from sprinklers. Its feeder roots are spread out under the canopy edge, in soil that is rarely watered deeply enough to reach them. We design and install irrigation that does — drip lines, deep root injection, and smart controllers calibrated to your specific trees.

See four services Book a water audit

Four service codes

What we install, inject, and program.

Deep Root Injection

DR-INJ

High-pressure soil injection · 150 psi · 12–18 inch depth

Mature trees in compacted urban soil rarely get water past the first inch. Our HydraJet probe delivers a charged solution of water, kelp extract, mycorrhizae, and a balanced fertilizer blend directly to the active feeder root zone — bypassing the lawn that is stealing your tree's moisture. Recommended every spring for any tree over 12-inch DBH.

When: March – May, again in October for stressed specimens
Best for: Mature oaks · Liquidambar · Sycamore · Magnolia · Maple
Pricing: From $185 per tree

Subsurface Drip Lines

DRP-LIN

Netafim Techline · 0.9 GPH emitters · 18 inches on center

Installed below grade in concentric rings out to the dripline (the soil under the canopy edge, where the feeder roots live). Pressure-compensating emitters deliver exactly the same volume per zone regardless of slope or run length. No evaporation. No overspray on the trunk. No interference with mowing or aesthetics.

When: Year-round install · best ordered Feb–Apr for first-summer benefit
Best for: Heritage trees · Specimen ornamentals · Orchard installs
Pricing: From $4.20 per linear foot installed

Smart Tree Controllers

CTRL-SM

Hunter Hydrawise or Rachio 3 · ET-based · weather-aware

A tree zone needs to water differently than a lawn zone — deeper, less often, dialed to evapotranspiration data from the nearest local weather station. We program a tree-only schedule that auto-adjusts to the actual ET in your zip code and emails you a monthly water log. Most clients see a 30–45% reduction in tree-zone water in Year 1.

When: Install any time · paired with new drip lines or as a controller-only upgrade
Best for: Any property with dedicated tree zones
Pricing: From $640 installed (2-zone)

Water Audit & Stress Diagnosis

AUD-WTR

TDR soil-moisture probe · stem-flow gauge · canopy assessment

A two-hour visit by a certified arborist. We probe the soil at six points per tree, read trunk stress, measure canopy density, and check your current controller schedule against actual conditions. You receive a written report and a 12-month watering plan — including which zones to cut, which to add, and whether to install drip.

When: Most useful June through September during peak demand
Best for: Anyone with brown canopies, dieback, or sudden bill increases
Pricing: $340 flat rate · all SD County

Field diagnosis

If your tree looks like this, do this.

A quick visual reference. None of this replaces a real arborist on site — but it tells you whether to call us this week or this season.

What you see	Likely cause	Recommended action
Sparse, thin canopy with extra blue sky visible through it	Chronic underwatering or compacted soil	Deep root injection + water audit
Yellow leaves between green veins (interveinal chlorosis)	Iron lockout from alkaline urban irrigation	Soil acidification + chelated iron injection
Crispy leaf margins curling inward (leaf scorch)	Drought stress; salt buildup from poor drainage	Subsurface drip + flushing irrigation
Early autumn color in summer; premature leaf drop	Severe water stress	Immediate hand-water + emergency deep-root program
Mushrooms or honey-colored conks at trunk base	Overwatering · root rot fungus	Stop watering · soil drainage assessment · hazard inspection

Annual irrigation calendar

When to schedule what.

Light season

Winter (Dec–Feb)

Rain-fed dormancy. Service controllers, check rain sensors, replace bad emitters before the spring push.

Peak season

Spring (Mar–May)

Deep root injections, drip installs, fertilizer charge. The single best six weeks to invest in mature trees.

Heavy season

Summer (Jun–Aug)

Active water management. Audits, schedule adjustments, emergency response for stressed canopies.

Medium season

Autumn (Sep–Nov)

Second deep-root round for stressed specimens. Pre-winter system audits. Heritage tree assessments before storm season.

Start with an audit

A real diagnosis costs $340 — and saves trees that cost a hundred times that.

A certified arborist comes to your property for two hours, probes the soil, reads the trees, and writes a 12-month plan. If we install anything off the report, the audit fee is credited 1-to-1 against the install.

Schedule a water audit →