To Sod or Not to Sod my backyard..that is the question

Yeah, it looks like crap. I had a friend wait, and all it did was mess up his carpet, b/c all that stuff just gets dragged in the house. If you just leave it, you will never fully even use it. Just a waste. All of your guests will figure Mr. Cheapskate took the low road again. Just a fun fact.

 

You could just Xeriscape. That's what we ended up doing, since our backyard was really too small for a grassy lawn. Nothing but pea gravel, limestone and native plants.

 

http://www.ondecksports.com/index.php?fuseaction=products.artificialturf_used

 

This ain't no joke (though I wouldn't buy from those guys). Think of having a green yard year around that you never have to cut and never have to water.

Though, if $1500 is too much for you, don't consider turf. To do it right would be about $7-9/ft² for the whole thing (turf, installation, sand infill, & labor)...unless you know how to cut and seam turf (it's a lot like carpet).

 

If my dog poops on that....what is the after effect? Daily of course.

 

You just wash it away.

I work for a synthetic turf manufacturer in Austin. If you're serious, email me through the board. We have remnant turf here that can be sold pretty cheap.

 

that synthetic turf looks horrible,

one of my brothers neighbors put it in their front yard, didn't last long, the hoa made them take it out. Besides it looked hideous.

sod your yard yourself.

(might want to add some soil first since the builder doesn't put much down. after you put it down, water it every day a lot for about a month. don't put it down if you currently have watering restrictions)

 

Not trying to be a salesman about this, but it really depends on what you got. The technology today had put out some pretty amazing looking grass. There is certainly some cheap looking s*** out there that I wouldn't put in a landfill. The installation has a lot to do with it as well. That, and if you were stupid enough to put it in your front yard w/o checking with your HOA first, you are a moran.

 

Yes Sod it.

DD

 

sod parts of it
seed and water,
in about a year the whole yard should grow in
maybe year and a half

 

Sod it yourself.

 

Another lawn question...my lawn has some bare patches in it. Should I buy a certain type of soil or just use sand? Also, should I wait for it to cool down before i do it?

 

I would sod. You'll be happier in the long run.

http://www.ktrh.com/pages/gardenline-sod.html

TILL — If you have a small area, use a steel-tined rake; if you are replacing an entire yard, you'll need a motorized tiller. In either case you will work the dead grass and weeds into and out of the soil ... plus you'll be beneficially loosening the soil at the same time. After tilling, it is normally an easy task to rake the dead grasses and weeds from the loosened soil. This leads us to the next step.

FILL — Even though you have loosened the soil somewhat, a re-sodding project will have a better chance of succeeding if there is a fresh layer of soil on which the roots can set up shop. Topsoil is good for this situation, as well as specially designed soils from soil yards. I am an advocate of one in particular known as Fortified Top Soil from Living Earth Technology. In any case, you should till or rake the new topsoil in with the slightly loosened soil. Finally, you need to make sure there are no low areas and that there is a camber (or ever-so-slight drainage curve) so rain will go to the sides and drain toward the street.

SOD — This is the back-breaking part, but it is the easiest in the sense that there is little to do but lay the sod where you want it. You must water it in and keep it well-watered for two to three weeks after transplanting. The continual water helps break down the muddy clay in which the grass was grown. Once it melts away, the roots will set up shop much quicker. It is not always necessary to fertilize immediately following a re-sod, but putting down granular iron a week after the consistent watering will help keep it green.

Good luck with your project!!

 

email sent

 

When I built my house 6 years ago, I didn't want to pay to sod. Instead, I bought bermuda grass seed. It looked terrible for awhile and we got a lot of dirt on our tile from the dog going in and out. But, after a while the grass grew in. Later, St Augustine crept in on certain parts of the lawn. Now, it looks fine (except the big brown patches from the 100+ degree days without water when I was on vacation).

 

If you have a pick up and can work with the sod distributer directly, you can really save money by the pallet.

 

I wouldn't want to stare at a backyard with no sod, but to each their own. If you do sod, be prepared to water the heck out of it - at least initially. I don't know what else is back there right now, but if all you have is mostly just dirt, one of your biggest problems may end up being erosion. Other than that, it'll just look like crap with 9 foot weeds, sunflowers, and crazy looking plants growing in your backyard.

 

How much would did you spend on your beautiful new home? And you are worried about the cost of sod? I would imagine it would be a very low cost of the home ownership, not to mention, once its in, it doesn't have to be purchased again.

 

I think you should kneel before sod.