Before enjoying your newly sodded lawn, you must ensure the roots have been fully established.
Before enjoying your newly sodded lawn, you must ensure the roots have full establishment. That can leave some property owners wondering just how long that will take and whether or not they need to avoid stepping on their fresh sod lawn for weeks on end. The good news is, that’s not usually the case, and it typically only requires two weeks for the sod to establish its roots. From there, grassroots only take a month to develop fully. There are, however, some steps along the way to get there, and it’s important to understand how your sod takes root.
Shallow Roots First
You can generally expect that your sod will form a set of initial roots within 14 days. However, those roots are quite shallow and need to be encouraged to grow through watering your grass immediately. Read on for more tips on how to water your sod and encourage proper growth.
This initial period can be very sensitive for your new sod, so avoid walking on it or mowing it. Aside from watering, you should mostly leave your new grass alone for those first two weeks, as any foot traffic will compact your grass and deprive it of nutrients.
Deeper Roots Next
Once you’re done with those first two weeks, you can slowly cut back on the amount of watering you’re doing. Switch from every other day instead of every day, which encourages lower roots to grow to reach into the soil and get the needed water. After a month or so of doing this, you will start to develop deep, long-lasting roots. You can also start mowing again after 14 days. Just ensure that the grass is dry and your lawnmower’s blades are sharp enough to cut straight through the grass instead of ripping it.
How to Encourage Faster Rooting
There are many ways to make sod root and grow quicker. First, try fertilizing. New lawns always thrive when you use a high-quality fertilizer. It helps your sod develop a sustainable root system that will last. Granular or liquid fertilizers both work.
Aerating your lawn six months to one year after laying sod can also help. You can repeat this process once or twice a year from there. Aerating your lawn will help water, fertilizer, and other nutrients to get into the sod’s roots, which helps everything grow much faster.
Get Your Yard Ready for Fall!
Since our inception from a humble 30-acre field to over 4,500 acres of turf grasses, Quantico Creek Sod Farm is now the LARGEST SOD FARM IN THE TRI-STATE AREA. Our service areas cover Pennsylvania, Maryland, DC Delaware, Virginia and Northern North Carolina. Order early and order often to ensure the best service possible. Contact us through our online page. Please find us at 27616 Little Lane, Salisbury, Maryland 21801. Our phone number is 410-726-6103, and our fax number is 410-742-6550. Speak to Jason Anderson for Turf Grass Sales. Reach him by email at jason@quanticocreeksod.com. Finally, follow us on social media on Facebook, LinkedIn, and our blog!