Laying Sod Correctly - Tips & Tricks

Sod offers many advantages. It's quickly laid and relatively easy to maintain. For your sod to last a long time, you shouldn't just lay it properly, but also prepare the ground it will lie on well.

However, what sounds like a lot of work is actually done quickly. If you have the right equipment on hand, your new sod lawn can be laid within a single day.

If you want to lay sod in your garden, you should make sure its beauty is perfectly showcased. Uneven ground is the biggest problem here. So, grab a roller and get started, right? Wrong. Before the soil under your new sod is completely flattened, it needs to be properly prepared.

After the ground has been cleared of old lawn and any other vegetation, it needs to be loosened to prevent waterlogging later on. You'll need to thoroughly loosen the soil with a rotary tiller or similar equipment. If stones or roots are uncovered during this process, they should be roughly removed.

Now, use a rake to level the loose soil. Then, the lawn roller comes into play: to prevent sinkholes from forming under the lawn later, the soil needs to be re-compacted.

For the best results, you should lay your sod immediately after delivery. At this point, the grass is still fresh and in optimal condition. If you plan to lay it the following day, you should remove the rolls from the pallet and store them side-by-side in a shady spot to prevent unnecessary pressure marks and to keep the sod from drying out. It's also not advisable to water the sod while it's still rolled up, as this could cause the rolls to loosen too much, making installation more difficult.

Once all preparations are complete, you can finally lay the sod. It's best to start in one corner and then work your way row by row to the other end of the green space. Make sure not to kneel or stand directly on the new sod. Instead, use a long board to walk on the rolled-out grass to prevent footprints.

To avoid visible seams, you can lay the rolls in an offset pattern. You can trim the edges of the sod to fit garden beds or patios using a kitchen knife. Now, carefully go over the entire area once more with a lawn roller to ensure the new grass grows and thrives properly.

Crucially, the newly laid sod must be thoroughly watered daily for at least the first 14 days. After this initial period, you can continue with normal lawn care.