Your Vero Beach sprinklers drop to one day a week on Nov. 1. Here is your new watering day.

Most of us set the sprinkler timer once and forget about it. But in Vero Beach, the rules change twice a year, right along with the clocks.

Daylight saving time ends at 2 a.m. on Sunday, Nov. 1, 2026. From that day until the second Sunday in March, lawn watering in Vero Beach drops from two days a week to one. Here is how to find your day, and what you can still do any time.

Your winter watering day, by address

The City of Vero Beach's landscape irrigation ordinance sets the days. It matches the schedule the St. Johns River Water Management District uses across its area. Your day depends on the last character of your street address.

• Odd address: ends in 1, 3, 5, 7 or 9, or in the letters N through Z. Your winter day is Saturday.
• Even address: ends in 0, 2, 4, 6 or 8, or in the letters A through M. Your winter day is Sunday.
• No address: you follow the odd schedule, so Saturday.
• Nonresidential properties: Tuesday.
• A P.O. box number does not count. In a mobile home park, the lot number counts if the Postal Service uses it to deliver mail.

In summer, under daylight saving time, the same homes get two days. Odd addresses water Wednesday and Saturday. Even addresses water Thursday and Sunday. That two-day schedule comes back on the second Sunday in March.

The hours and limits that apply all year

• No watering between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. on any day.
• No more than three-quarters of an inch of water per zone on your watering day.
• No more than one hour per zone per watering day.
• Water only as much as the landscape needs. The district says the "as needed" rule applies year-round.

Your yard may need even less than the rules allow. The city's water conservation page says lawns need watering every 10 to 14 days in winter, compared with every 5 to 7 days in summer. After a heavy rain, you may be able to skip watering for up to two weeks.

What you can water any time

The one-day rule is about sprinkler systems watering the lawn. The city ordinance lists several things that are not limited to your day:

• Drip, bubbler, micro-spray and micro-jet systems, such as in flower beds.
• Hand watering with a hose that has an automatic shut-off nozzle.
• New landscaping: any time of day for the first 30 days, then every other day for the next 30 days, using only what the new plants need.
• Watering in fertilizer or other chemicals within 24 hours of putting them down, generally up to a quarter inch.
• Testing or repairing the system, up to 20 minutes per hour per zone.
• Reclaimed water, any time.

What happens if you water on the wrong day

Under the city ordinance, the first violation gets a written warning. The second is a $50 fine. After that, fines can reach $100. Each day in violation counts as a separate offense, and you only get one warning.

There is a practical reason behind the rules too. The city's water comes from 35 wells. Twenty-eight of them draw from the shallow Surficial Aquifer, which is recharged by rain. Less lawn watering in the dry months leaves more water in the ground for everyone's tap.

What to do this week

1. Look at the last digit or letter of your street address and write down your winter day: Saturday for odd, Sunday for even.
2. Reset your irrigation timer the same weekend you change the clocks, Nov. 1. Set it to run before 10 a.m. or after 4 p.m.
3. Check each zone's run time. Keep every zone at one hour or less.
4. Make sure your rain shut-off device works. The water management district says your system should not run while it is raining.
5. Walk the yard while the system runs. Fix broken heads and turn any head that sprays the driveway or street.
6. Not sure which rules apply to your property? Call City of Vero Beach City Hall at 772-978-5151, or the St. Johns River Water Management District at 386-329-4500.

Put a reminder on your phone for the second Sunday in March. That is when the two-day schedule returns, and when it is time to change the timer again.