I have never been a natural gardener. For years, I struggled to keep basic houseplants alive, only to kill them at the first opportunity. It was difficult and stressful to buy a home with a yard, but I knew that I might be able to learn what I was doing wrong and correct the problem. To start off, I focused heavily on the lawn, and tried hard to keep it trimmed and well-maintained. Next, I cleaned up the flowerbeds. It was a lot of work, but I knew that it would pay off in the end. When I was done, my front yard was gorgeous, and guess what--it even stayed alive. This blog is all about loving your little landscape.
Dead spots, weedy areas, and sparse growth can make a lawn look patchy and unhealthy. Overseeding is one way to thicken up bare spots in the lawn, but it can take time and success can be variable. Laying down sod patches provides a nearly instant repair that will establish quickly so your lawn is once again lush and full throughout.
1. Clear Turf
Turf, whether it's made up of lawn grasses or weeds, interferes with the establishment of new roots for freshly laid sod. Use a sod cutter to cut through the turf and pull it up -- roots and all -- for composting or disposal. Clearing any old turf, even if thin, increases the chances of successful sod rooting and reduces the chances of weeds reinvading the newly sodded areas.
2. Clean Up Edges
Sod comes in neatly cut strips. When patching with sod, it's easier to fit the strips into areas with straight edges. Clean up the bare spot so that a sod strip can be laid over the ground without overlapping any neighboring grass. This may mean cutting out turf over a slightly larger area than needed so that a strip can be shortened to patch the spot without overlap.
3. Prepare Soil
It's easier to get the soil ready before putting down the sod. For patching an existing lawn, preparation is pretty simple. Typically you need to do little more than loosen the soil once the turf is removed, then level it out with a rake. If the area is compacted or out of level, you can add some fresh compost and dig it in to improve the soil and level it out before laying the sod.
4. Lay and Stagger
When putting down a sod patch, keep the sod strips lined up properly. The edges of the sod should sit snugly against the edges of the lawn without any overlap. If you must use multiple sod pieces to patch the area, stagger the joints between pieces so they don't line up. This ensures the sod establishes and fills any gaps quickly, while reducing the chances of the sod pulling up.
5. Establish Successfully
Once installed, sod care is relatively easy. The new sod should be rolled over with a lawn drum to ensure the roots have good contact with the soil, which speeds up establishment. Water the sod once or twice a day, and avoid mowing for a couple of weeks. Mowing too soon can destroy sod that has yet to root.
Contact a sod installation service if you need to patch a damaged lawn with new sod.
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