The majority of Lake County is located in the St. Johns River Water Management District. As part of its charter, the District has established rules for lawn and landscape irrigation.
Here is a brief summary of those rules and exceptions:

• Irrigation is prohibited between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m.
• Irrigation is limited to no more than two days per week, per zone.
• Irrigation limitations apply to water withdrawn from private wells, surface water and water from public supply utilities.
• Water users choose their own irrigation days unless their local government adopts an ordinance and specifies their irrigation days.
• If a local government adopts an ordinance with specific irrigation days, those irrigation days will be as follows:
• Odd numbered addresses — Wednesdays and Saturdays
• Even numbered addresses or no address — Thursdays and Sundays
• For a list of local governments that have adopted ordinances consistent with the District’s rule and specify the two days a week irrigation can occur, log on to http://www.sjrwmd.com/irrigationrule/irrigationdays.html.
• Irrigation limitations apply to all lawn and landscape irrigation not currently regulated by a consumptive use permit. Typically, this includes residential, commercial and industrial establishments.
• Two-day-a-week irrigation limitations do not apply to golf course fairways, greens, tees and roughs, agricultural crops, nursery plants, or high-use recreational areas such as ball fields. Consumptive use permits typically regulate these types of irrigation.
• Persons irrigating with an automatic lawn irrigation system installed after May 1991 shall install, maintain and operate a rain sensor device or switch that overrides the system when adequate rainfall has occurred.

Exceptions to the rule

• Irrigation using a micro-irrigation (drip) system is allowed anytime.
• Irrigation of new landscape is allowed at any time of day on any day for the initial 30 days and every other day for the next 30 days for a total of one 60-day period, provided that the irrigation is limited to the minimum amount necessary for establishment.  This exception applies only to the new landscaping and does not extend to the entire landscaped area, yard, or irrigation zone.
• Watering in of chemicals, including insecticides, pesticides, fertilizers, fungicides and herbicides when required by law, the manufacturer, or best management practices, is allowed anytime within 24 hours of application.
• Irrigation systems can be operated anytime for maintenance and repair purposes, not to exceed 10 minutes per hour per zone.
• Irrigation using a hand-held hose equipped with a spray nozzle that can be adjusted so water flows only as needed is allowed anytime.
• Discharge of water from a water-to-air air-conditioning unit or other water-dependent cooling system is not limited.
• The use of water from a reclaimed water system is allowed anytime. A reclaimed water system includes systems in which the primary source is reclaimed water, which may or may not be supplemented from another source during peak demand periods.
• The use of recycled water from wet detention treatment ponds for irrigation is allowed anytime provided the ponds are not augmented from any ground or off-site surface water, or public supply sources.

If additional irrigation is required

• A standard general permit is required to irrigate three days a week. To obtain a permit, applicants must demonstrate the need to irrigate three days a week, and submit a $50 application fee.

Reporting violations

• To report violations of these rules please contact:
  
  Katherine Pordeli
  Department of Resource Management
  St. Johns River Water Management District
  7775 Baymeadows Way, Suite 102
  Jacksonville, FL 32256
  (904) 448-7922

Download a copy of the complete rule from St. Johns.

Rules for the area of Lake County under Southwest Florida Water Management District