Tuckahoe Turf

Category: Sod It!

Tuckahoe TurfTurf TalkSod It!
March 19, 2021 0 Comments
tuckturf Ask Tuckahoe Turf, Sod It!

To Sod or to Seed

To sod or to seed is a question that has been asked for many years. There are several factors that must be considered when making this decision for your home; initial budget, size and shape of the lawn, your timeline, and the effort you are willing to put into the job.
Time & Aesthetics
Seed may be initially much less expensive, but it is labor intensive. It often requires knowledge of the seed and soil, including the soil preparation, and has little guarantee of your desired result. It often takes 6 to 12 months for seed to grow into an established lawn and up to 2 years for a newly seeded lawn to grow and fill in to a beautiful, thick lawn. Seeds can blow away in the wind, dry out or be washed away, not to mention just fail to germinate. Weeds also mix well with new seed so weed prevention and maintenance are required.

Sod looks great immediately after it is installed. It requires less soil preparation and will mitigate significantly more potential soil erosion than waiting for seed to germinate. You will often have an established, healthy lawn in about 2 weeks after the sod is installed. Young grass shoots and blades are very delicate and require proper care to mature. Sod is harvested as mature grass that has strong, healthy roots that just need to grow into your existing soil. Lawns with significant slopes are prone to soil erosion and very difficult to seed and properly water.
Value

According to several real estate sources, a well landscaped lawn can add significant value to your home. Sod can add anywhere from an additional 50% over cost to as much as five times the cost depending on the current lawn condition.

Selling

If you are selling your home, your front landscaping is the first thing that is seen. For a lawn that needs considerable attention, sod will provide an instant upgrade to your curb appeal and has proven to gain a return upon sale.

Cost
Initially, Sod and professional sod installation can get expensive, especially if you have a large lawn that needs to be covered. Although sod costs up to about $1.00 – $1.50 per square foot more than seed. You must also consider the cost of the soil preparation, post seed care, special fertilizers, and the time before you have the lawn you desire if you choose to seed your lawn.
Sod Wins

The benefits of professionally installed Sod far outweigh that of seed. The cost of seeding is much less from the start. However, once you consider the additional fertilizer and maintenance required, cost over the next 12 to 24 months is negligible. An instant, lush lawn that requires much less effort is its own reward.

June 1, 2019 0 Comments
tuckturf Sod It!

Want a fantastic lawn, fast? Sod it! Here’s what you need to know to get the job done right.

Slowing down and watching the grass grow sounds good. In theory. But the reality is that if your lawn needs renewing, you’ll be looking at a big patch of dirt for weeks. And why wait, when summer can begin right now — with a lush green carpet underfoot?

When it comes to getting a thick, healthy lawn, nothing beats sod grass rolls for instant gratification. Sure, it costs a bit more: about $400 to cover a 1,000-square-foot backyard (double that installed). But if you follow our tips for laying sod, in a couple of weeks you’ll have a dense, well-established lawn that’s naturally resistant to weeds, diseases, and pest infestations.
“You’re basically buying time,” says This Old House landscape contractor Roger Cook. “You’re paying for turf that someone else has coddled for 14 to 18 months.”

You’re also buying convenience. Sod can be installed spring through fall (and even in winter in mild climates). In areas of the country that favor cool-season grasses, like the Northeast, it avoids the problem of sprouting a nice crop of weeds when seeding a lawn in spring. And in southern states, which favor warm-season grasses like Bermudagrass, zoysiagrass, and centipedegrass, sod is the best way to cover the yard at any time of year, since these turf types cannot be grown from seed.

“Sometimes sod gets a bad rap, but that’s usually because of mistakes people make while laying it,” says Roger. “Put down on properly prepared soil, it will thrive.” Turf likes a well-aerated base that’s slightly acidic (with a pH between 6 and 7.5) and nutrient-rich. And the only way to know what kind of soil you’ve got is to test it. For about $15, your local extension service will send a soil sample to a lab for analysis; results will come back within a week or two and indicate precisely what amendments you should add and in what quantity.

Then it’s time to buy your sod. Depending on where you live, you can order it from a garden center or directly from a sod farm. It will generally be a mix of two or three turf grasses, chosen for optimal color, texture, and heartiness (be sure to tell your supplier if your yard’s in partial or full shade). Ideally, sod should be delivered within 24 hours of being cut and be laid the same day. Measure your yard carefully so you can order the right amount, with some overage (about 5 percent) to account for cutting around curves.

Count on one weekend to prepare the soil for sod and another to lay the turf. If your yard is covered with patchy grass, you’ll need to remove it first. This is best done with a sod cutter (available from your local rental yard for about $70 per day), which slices it off below the roots. While you’re at it, you’ll want to rent a rototiller (about $55 per day). You’ll also need a sod-cutting knife with a 2-inch blade, a spreader, an iron rake, compost, and other soil amendments, including fertilizer and lime, depending on what your soil analysis dictates. Two people should be able to cover 1,000 square feet in a day; get extra hands if you plan to lay more than that.

Article and excerpts were shared from THIS OLD HOUSE