|
How do I prepare my lawn for sod?
There is no better time to enhance a lawn's ultimate beauty and success than by
improving the soil before a planting takes place.
Benefits of Proper and Complete Soil Preparation:
- Improved Uniformity.
- Increased Density.
- Faster recovery from wear.
- Reduced use of water, fertilizer and chemicals.
- Reduced maintenance.
For optimum growth, turf grass needs sunlight, air, water, and nutrients. Reduction of
any of these, or providing too much, and the grass will die or unduly suffer. In the
correct proportions, the grass will flourish, providing not only beauty to the landscape,
but also a clean and safe place to play, and many benefits to the environment.
Grass obtains three of these four essentials from the soil, but many soils are less
than ideal for growing grass. Some soils contain too much clay and may be very
compacted; therefore, air and water aren't available to help the roots grow. Other
soils have too much sand; therefore, water and nutrients won't stay in the root zone
long enough for the plant to use. Another frequently observed problem is the acidity or
alkalinity is too high or too low for optimum grass growth.
What is the Best Soil for Turfgrass?
Loams and sandy loams with a pH of 6.0 to 7.0 are the very best soils for producing a
beautiful, low-maintenance lawn. Unfortunately, this ideal soil mixture is seldom found
on any property after construction.
How Deep Should the Soil Be for Turfgrass?
The absolute minimum quality soil depth for a carefree lawn is four inches; however,
for a deeper root penetration and the benefits that brings, the accepted standard is six
inches.
Can Soils Be Improved?
Most soils can be improved; in fact, they usually need to be improved to get the
maximum results.
The knowledge of what's necessary, the amount and availability of materials, and
the immediate costs of time and money are the factors that typically deter people from
taking the steps necessary to improve the soil. Failing to improve the soil before
planting is an invitation to a much greater and continual investment of both time and
money that will never return its value as fully as preparing the soil properly before
planting any grass.
Site Preparation Steps
The value of proper site preparation and soil improvement before planting takes place
is that it will be easier for the grass roots to penetrate deeply and evenly. Deep roots
will make the lawn more drought resistant, a more efficient water and nutrient user, and
more dense as new grass plant shoots emerge. A dense lawn crowds out weeds and better
resists insects and disease.
We recommend you follow these steps for a beautiful, trouble-free lawn:
- Clear the site of all building materials, as well as any buried stumps, rocks, other
debris that is larger than two to three inches in diameter.
- Rough grade the entire area to eliminate any drainage problems on the property. This
would include sloping the grade away from building foundations; eliminating or reducing
severe slopes and filling low-lying areas. A tractor-mounted blade and/or box blade are
most often used for rough grading, or a heavy-duty rake on smaller sites. The rough
grading will probably uncover more debris that should be removed.
- Initial tilling, to a depth of at least two inches, should be completed prior to
adding any topsoil or soil amendments. This will control most annual weeds, alleviate
subsoil compaction, and permit a bonding of the topsoil to the subsoil and improve root
penetration and water movement.
- Add topsoil to achieve a total topsoil depth of four to six inches, after firming.
The topsoil should be loamy sand, sandy loam, clay loam, loam, silt loam, sandy clay loam
or other suitable soil for the area. To the extent possible, humus could be incorporated
into the topsoil.
- Test the soil pH with a chemical soil test to determine if any pH correction
materials are required. Acidic soils can be improved with the addition of lime. The
type and total amount of applied lime will be determined by the level of acidity and
should be based on the recommendations of a reliable garden center or turf professional.
- Alkaline soils can be improved with the addition of sulfur or gypsum. As with acidic
soil correction materials, the type and total amount of materials will be determined by
the level of alkalinity and should be based on professional recommendations.
- Apply starter fertilizer that is high is phosphate (P, or the middle number on a bag
of fertilizer) at a rate recommended for the particular product. To prevent root injury
to new installed turfgrass sod, this fertilizer should be worked into the top three to
four inches.
- Finish grade the entire site, maintaining the rough grading contours and slopes, with
a tractor-mounted box blade on large areas or heavy-duty rake on smaller sites.
- Roll the area with a lawn roller one-third full of water to firm and settle the
surface and reveal any low spots that should be filled to match the surrounding grade
surface. If time permits, allow the area to settle further with rainfall or by applying
irrigation water.
The site is now ready for turfgrass sod. With this degree of careful and thoughtful
soil preparation, the resulting lawn will be very beautiful, and require less
maintenance, smaller quantities of applied water, fertilizer, and pesticides. It will
maintain a high degree of density and uniformity and recover much more rapidly from wear.
For years to come, your investment in soil preparation will yield a big return.
Evergreen Sod Farm
141 C.R.446
New Franklin, MO 65274
Phone: 1-660-848-2265 Or: 1-573-698-5111
Fax: 1-660-848-2285
|
