You must choose between sod and grass seed if you want to create a new lawn around a house you are building or if you need to replace a small area of grass in your own yard. Even though each grass solution has its benefits and drawbacks, sod is a preferred choice for many households.
The article discusses the top 4 advantages of planting sod over grass seed.
Establish Your Lawn More Quickly
Grass seed is not the best choice if you need a new lawn soon. Instead, choose sod. Your yard looks to be covered in grass as soon as the sod is laid, which may immediately increase the curb appeal. While you can’t walk on your new lawn right away after installing sod, it can withstand foot activity after it takes root, which may happen in only two to three weeks.
In contrast, grass seed takes a lot longer to take root than sod. Most grass seeds take around 10 to 12 weeks to form a root system, even under optimal growth circumstances. You cannot walk on the earth you place them on during this time. Additionally, it may take up to a year for some grass seed varieties, such as warm-season grasses, to develop into a thick, lush lawn.
Worry Less About Weeds
High-quality sod often grows a deep root system fast and outcompetes weed seeds for soil resources. Weed seeds, on the other hand, have a harder time surviving when the soil’s nutrients are largely absorbed by grass roots.
You won’t have to worry as much about weed growth when you install sod rather than sow grass seeds. Most soil contains weed seeds, which can easily germinate when brought to the soil’s surface during tilling, prior to the sowing of grass seed or the installation of sod.
In addition, weed seeds can compete with grass seeds, making it possible for weeds to emerge right alongside newly planted grass seed. Even while you can pull or destroy weeds, completely clearing the lawn of weeds might be difficult.
Plant New Grass Year-Round
There is a perfect growth season for each kind of grass seed. For instance, warm-season grasses like Bermudagrass and Zoysia must be planted in the spring or early summer, but other cool-season grasses like tall fescue and Kentucky bluegrass must be planted in the fall. Changing external temperatures might hinder the germination of grass seeds, destroy newly sprouted grass, or produce weak, disease-prone grass if you plant your lawn at the incorrect time.
While warm-season sod can only be installed year-round in the Southern United States, cool-season sod can be installed there without compromising the country’s health.
Surprisingly, even when the ground is frozen, mid-winter is an excellent time to put sod in colder parts of the nation. Since water you offer your new grass is less likely to evaporate in the harsh winter months, maintaining optimum sod hydration may be simpler.
Pick Up the Process Easier as a Novice Gardener
Many novice gardeners make the error of scattering or planting grass seed carelessly over the top of their lawns, watering the seed, and then patiently waiting for grass to sprout. However, planting and caring for grass seed properly is a difficult procedure for many novice gardeners.
For instance, the optimum combination of sunshine, heat, moisture, and oxygen is required for grass seed to germinate. The seeds may not grow and may not even sprout if they receive too much or too little of any of these components.
Contrarily, sod has previously been properly seeded under optimal growth circumstances. Even the most unskilled gardener may easily take adequate care of grass seed that has passed the germination stage and is currently flourishing in sod form.