New Sod Care and Maintenance 

Mowing

  • After about 7 days your new sod should be rooted down enough so that it won’t move on you.
  • At this point, the grass should be about 3" tall and it is time to mow it down to 2". Let the ground dry moderately beforehand so you won't make any indentations.
  •  Never cut more than one-third (1/3) of the blade off or you will "scalp" the turf, which will set it back quite a bit.
  • From then on, maintain a 2" height of cut to achieve a uniform, healthy lawn.

Fertilization

  • About 3 weeks after installation we recommend that you reapply a light layer of the starter fertilizer you put down before installing your sod.
  • Once your lawn is established, set up a regular fertilization and watering program and stay on it.  
  • For a very health lawn fertilize up to 4 times a year.  Use the standard fertilizer recommended for that specific time of year.

Insects:

  

  • Apply insecticide during the last two weeks of April. Repeat application in middle May.
  • We use endophyte enhanced turf blends, however Turpin Farms is 100% INSECTICIDE FREE and comes to you that way

Watering:

  • When you water your established lawn, apply 1/2 " of water, then allow the lawn to dry out.
    • By watering like this, your lawn will become less dependent on you for water.
  • Never water your lawn at night as this promotes diseases.
  • TIP: Place a cup in your lawn to keep track of exactly how much water your grass is getting.

 

Turfgrass Producers International has some great tips for the proper watering of new and established lawns:

  • Tip #1:  Pull back a corner of the turf and push a screwdriver or other sharp tool into the soil. It should push in easily and have moisture along the first 7 to 10 cm. (3 or 4 inches), or you need to apply more water. 
  • Tip #2: Make absolutely certain that water is getting to all areas of your new lawn, regardless of the type of sprinkling system you use. Corners and edges are easily missed by many sprinklers and are particularly vulnerable to drying out faster than the center portion of your lawn. Also, areas near buildings dry-out faster because of reflected heat and may require more water. 
  • Tip #3: Runoff may occur on some soils and sloped areas before the soil is adequately moist. To conserve water and ensure adequate soak-in, turn off the water when runoff begins, wait 30-minutes to an hour and restart the watering on the same area, repeating this start and stop process, until proper soil moisture is achieved. 
  • Tip #4: As the turf starts to knit its new roots into the soil, it will be difficult, impossible and/or harmful to pull back a corner to check beneath the turf (Watering Tip #1), but you can still use a sharp tool to check moisture depth by pushing it through the turf and into the soil. 
  • Tip #5: Water as early in the morning as possible to take advantage of the daily start of the grass's normal growing cycle, usually lower wind speeds and considerably less loss of water because of high temperature evaporation. 
  • Tip #6: If the temperature approaches 100( F), or high winds are constant for more than half of the day, reduce the temperature of the turf surface by lightly sprinkling (syringe) the area. This sprinkling does not replace the need for longer, deeper watering, which will become even more critical to continue during adverse weather conditions. 
  • Tip #7: Infrequent and deep watering is preferred to frequent and shallow watering because the roots will only grow as deeply as its most frequently available water supply. Deeply rooted grass has a larger "soil-water bank" to draw moisture from and this will help the grass survive drought and hot weather that rapidly dries out the upper soil layer 

Visit the Turfgrass Producers International website at www.turfgrasssod.org for more information and helpful tips