Sod installation cost

Sod costs $1.00 to $2.50 a square foot installed, typically around $1.60. A 3,000 square foot lawn is therefore $3,000 to $7,500. Seeding the same area costs $0.10 to $0.30 a square foot, so $300 to $900.

Sod is an instant lawn at ten times the price. Whether that is worth it depends entirely on erosion, timing and how much you mind looking at bare soil for six weeks.

What it costs

Steep slopes, small awkward areas and premium grass varieties all push toward the top of the range.

Sod or seed

Sod gives a usable lawn in two to three weeks, prevents erosion immediately, blocks weeds from establishing, and can be laid across a wider window of the year. It costs ten times as much and the variety choice is limited to what the farm grows.

Seed costs a tenth as much, offers any variety including drought-tolerant and shade mixes, and roots deeper because the plant develops in place rather than being cut off a farm. It takes six to twelve weeks to look like a lawn and a full season to be robust, and it must be watered constantly through germination.

Choose sod on a slope, where erosion is a risk, where children or dogs need the space soon, when selling, or when the season is wrong for seeding.

Choose seed for a large area, a tight budget, a specific grass variety, or when you can give it a season.

The honest middle: sod the front and the visible areas, seed the back.

The soil under it is the whole job

Sod laid on compacted builder's clay dies. It has an inch of soil attached and roots that need somewhere to go.

Proper preparation is:

• Remove the old lawn or weeds entirely, by stripping or by killing and raking off
• Test the soil, $15 to $60, and amend the pH if needed
• Break up compaction to 4 to 6 inches
• Add 2 to 4 inches of topsoil or compost if the existing soil is poor
• Grade away from the house, at about a quarter inch per foot, and level out the hollows
• Roll lightly to firm it without recompacting
• Starter fertilizer raked in

This is $0.30 to $1.50 a square foot and it is the difference between a lawn and an expensive disappointment. A quote that goes straight from removal to laying is missing the part that matters.

The first month decides it

Water immediately. Sod laid and not watered within half an hour starts dying at the edges.

Daily, deeply, for two weeks. The soil beneath must stay moist to about an inch down. That is roughly a half inch of water a day in warm weather.

Then every other day for two weeks, then taper to a normal deep-and-infrequent schedule.

Stay off it for two weeks, and keep dogs off for three.

First mow at three to four weeks, when it resists a gentle tug, and take only a third of the height.

Most sod failures are watering failures in the first two weeks, and they are not recoverable. If you are going away, delay the installation.

Frequently asked questions

When is the best time to lay sod?

Spring and early fall in most of the country. Sod can be laid whenever the ground is not frozen, and summer heat makes the watering demands severe. Fall is generally the easiest.

Can I lay it myself?

Yes, and the physical work is real: a pallet weighs 2,000 to 3,000 pounds and it must go down within 24 hours of delivery. Preparation is the majority of the work and the part worth doing properly. Many people prepare themselves and pay for delivery and laying.

How long until I can use the lawn?

Light foot traffic at two weeks, normal use at four to six, and full durability after a season once the roots are deep.

Why is my new sod turning yellow or gray?

Almost always under-watering, and occasionally the opposite. Lift a corner: if the soil beneath is dry, water more. If it is soggy and smells sour, water less. Gray-blue patches that do not spring back underfoot are drought stress.

Is hydroseeding worth it over plain seed?

It holds seed and moisture in place, which helps on slopes and large areas, and it costs little more than seeding. It is a reasonable middle option and it still takes a season.