A common question people interested in getting their lawns to look the best their best often ask is which is best for a lawn, sodding or seeding. There are several factors to consider to answer this question accurately. You can grow healthy, strong, beautiful
lawns using both seeds or sod. However, sod will establish your lawn quicker. But it costs much more than grass seeds. Plus, you have more grass varieties to choose from if
you grow a lawn using grass seed. Want an instant lawn and are willing to pay more for
it? Use sod. But if you want more lawn grass choices and lower cost, use grass seeds.
Is It Cheaper To Buy Sod Or Seed?
Grass seeds are much cheaper than sod. However, a lawn grown from grass seeds can take
two years before it's as lush and green as most people want. Plus, lawns grown using grass seeds are much more susceptible to weeds, pests and disease. When you use sod to establish a lawn, it can take as little as 2 to 3 weeks to become established have the
healthy beautiful green grass people love. Plus, using sod helps prevent soil erosion,
improve the quality of the air and water in the surrounding community and keep local temperature significantly cooler faster.
How Much More Is Sod Than Seed?
To have sod installed in your lawn costs between $0.30 and $0.80 per square foot. Grass
seed costs $0.05 per square foot. There is also a high installation cost when you use
sod because it's installation is labor intensive. Plus, once the sod has been cut to the homeowner's specifications, it must installed in 24 hours or less. And the sod must
be watered thoroughly daily until it's established or it can die. However, sod can be installed any time of year as long as the temperature is lower than 90°F and the ground
isn't frozen.
Does Sod Grow Like Grass?
The growth process for sod and grass isn't the same. Sod is mature grass with a layer of soil held together with the grass by netting or the severed grass roots. New sod is
established within 2 to 3 weeks and can then handle normal lawn traffic. There are few
if any weeds in quality, state-certified sod and it can outcompete those weeds. For the
best results sod must be installed by a trained professional and put in an area with full sun and good soil.
Growing Grass From Seeds
When growing grass from seeds, the homeowner has to rake the yard to break up the dirt
clumps, sprinkle the grass seed liberally, cover them with straw and soak thoroughly and water regularly. The grass seeds will germinate, root and become established. Left
undisturbed, grass seeds grow a deep, healthy, root system and becomes lush and green in about 2 years. If not sown at the peak growth times, their growth can be marred by insects and disease. Grass seeds can't tolerate any foot traffic for 10 to 12 weeks. Weeds can dominate the available water, light and nutrients and kill the young grass..
What Is The Best Type Of Grass To Grow?
To determine the best grass for your lawn, you must know if you will use sod or seeds
to grow it and what type of grass grows best in your area. One of the most common types
of grass used in lawns is tall fescue. This popular cool-season grass can stand up to dry, hot weather, heavy foot traffic, as well as mechanized lawn equipment. The most popular cool-season grass is Kentucky bluegrass. It has a robust root system, tolerates
sun and shade, is resilient enough for foot traffic is 'self-repairing and can quickly regrows damaged areas. Kentucky bluegrass is a common choice of northern sod farms.
Sod Vs Seed For Patching
Want to fill in large dead, damaged or otherwise missing patches of your lawn and get a
better looking lawn instantly? Sod is the better option. With sod you can put mature grass in the bald spots in your lawn. But sod comes in long rolls with straight edges.
If your lawn is patchy, getting the right shaped pieces of sod to fill the gaps can be hard. If the damaged spot isn't square or rectangular shaped or there are several spots
that need patching, spreading grass seed may be your best option. The grass seeds can
easily fill bald patches lawn that do not have angular shapes.
Sod Seeding
Sod seeding is a no-till or direct method of adding seed into an established perennial grass stand. It is often used for renovating pasture or hayland to convert it into a cropping system or preparing new seed beds. This helps reduce the risk of wind or water
erosion, better manages soil moisture, plus it saves time and money. It can streamline
the process of rotating perennial forage crops. When sod is seeded directly it doesn't
need time consuming, labor intensive tillage done to the soil to make grass grow.
How To Seed A Lawn
To seed a lawn, you must make sure the grass seeds can make direct contact with soil that's bare. First, till and rake the area for the lawn to remove all rocks, weeds and
debris and ensure the soil is loose. Add nutrients and thoroughly work them into the ground. Spread the grass seed using a seed spreader in a crisscross pattern and cover them by lightly raking the surface and mulching with weed-free straw. Water frequently to keep the seeds moist. Once the grass is 3 inches tall, mow it and water it once a week.
Growing Sod From Seed
To grow sod from seed, till and rake your soil and test it to ensure it has the proper nutrients and a pH level of between 6.0 and 7.5. Pick the right grass species for your
climate and plant the seeds when the daytime temperature is ideal in spring or fall and
there are optimal growing conditions. Spread the recommended quantity of high quality grass seeds and cover them with a 1/4 inch of soil and a thin layer of straw. For the first 30 day, water lightly and frequently to keep the soil moist until grass emerges.
Then water deeply once a week. This enhances root growth and prevents weeds. When the
grass is over 3.5 inches tall, mow it and keep it at least 2 inches long to create sod.
Sod Vs Seed With Dogs
It doesn't matter if you live in Nassau County, Suffolk County, Brooklyn or Manhattan,
if you have dogs and you want to keep your lawn looking good, using sod is your best option. The three challenges dogs pose for lawns is their urine can cause patches of grass in your lawn to die, their playing on new lawns can damage them and dogs often
wear down favorite paths and places on your lawn. Using sod can help you be better able
to handle all the challenges. Sod establishes itself quickly, so you only have to keep
the dogs off the lawn for a few weeks. Plus, it's easy to put in a strip of sod to keep
areas damaged by dogs looking green, healthy and attractive.
How To Lay Sod
If you do not want to hire a lawn company to do your lawn care for you and you want to
use sod to create a lawn that's instantly attractive, you can lay the sod yourself. It
takes a few steps to lay sod properly. First, you have to remove the old grass. Next,
you have to till, fertilize, remove rocks and debris and prepare the soil. Step three is dampening the soil. Next, lay the first strip of sod against the part of the area
surrounding where you want to install the lawn that is longest. Make sure the entire
roll of sod is in contact with the soil below. Lay each successive roll next to it in a brick wall pattern. Do not overlap the edges. Stagger the cuts and do not leave any
gaps. Do not walk on the sod while laying it. Cut off the excess sod, neaten the edges
and water twice a day for 2 to 6 weeks until the sod takes root in the soil below it.
Sodding A Popular Choice
Sodding is a popular choice for people who want a New York lawn because it looks great
instantly. Whether you live in Nassau County, Suffolk County or anywhere else in New
York, Lawn Brothers Landscaping can install the beautiful New York lawn you want. Don't
just say I wish there was a good lawn company near me. Call Lawn Brothers Landscaping.
They are a lawn company with the team, tools, expertise and the experience to make your
New York lawn look great. You don't have to say I wish there was a good lawn company near me. With one call you can get the quality lawn care you need.