Sod or Seed?

[regor66]

Here in SC they sprig coastal bermuda for "about" $100 per acre. Found that out from a neighbor a few days ago and I don't have much info on it yet. Understand they use some sort of implement to do the work. Might check your area for something similiar. Reason they do that here is sod is expensive and planting seed is hit and miss due to dependence on rain fall. With the size plot you are planting you could water no problem. I have about 10 acres ready to go and am going to put out rye and look into the coastal bermuda in the spring. Rye is supposed to be good for the soil.

 

[ALHILLDIRT]

Update to my original post. We have several sod farms locally that will sell the sod at $75 to $85 per pallet (550 sqft) delivered, depending on the variety and the farm. So depending on the spacing between the sod (tight vs gap), I could cover the 1/2 acre for about $2500.
As this plot tends to be dry in the summer, bermuda seems to offer the best choice for it's hardiness. It is not my prefrence due to it's growth rate and invasive nature. Zoysia would be preferred.
I know that I'm going to have to haul in topsoil no matter what. Here's a view during the excavation process.

 

[turbo36]

When I built my home last year I sodded part of the yard because it was on a slope and I was worried about rain washout, the rest of the yard I had Hydro-seeded. The difference I can see one year later is that the seeded part has very good root structure were as the sodded part has a very shallow root structure and a few of the pieces still haven't sent roots down into the soil, I can lift them when the mower goes over them. This is exactly what the landscaper told me would happen, he said the only way to get the sod to fully root was to soak it and roll it a number of times over the first year it is laid down. If I had to do it again I would just Hydro-seed the whole yard and fix the wash outs as they happen

 

[Doc_Bob]

If I had to do it again I would just Hydro-seed the whole yard and fix the wash outs as they happen

Seed works better in the long run.
Bob

 

[mjarrels]

Just remember that with sod, the brown side goes down.

mark

 

[ALHILLDIRT]

Ok, I'll biite what is "HYDRO SEEDING"?

 

[Dusty]

Hydro Seeding is where the truck comes to your home and sprays seed, fertilizer, a holding agent, like ground up paper, green dye, so they can see where they have sprayed, and all this is mixed with water. It is a good method if they don't skimp on the fertilizer or seed. I had a few acres hydro seeded and the next day it rained so hard that it washed away. They came back and redid the area, since I told them that rain was expected. Normally, you are on your own once they leave. You need to keep it watered and after about a week, you will see germination. Once it takes hold, you have a good lawn. Don't know if it is worth the cost, but it was quick. Now, it is growing well, but not any better than the areas that I seeded myself. Dusty

 

[Bird]

Dusty, I bought a new house and moved into it in July, 1977. At that time, instead of hydro seeding, they called it hydromulching. I was trying to decide between the slow seeding method I'd used before and the quicker, but more expenisve sod when a friend who was in the business of building new golf courses told me about hydromulching. So that's what I did and at that time it was about half the cost of sod (if you don't count your labor for anything in putting down the sod ).

The first thing that happened was what you had; a big rain washed seed, dirt, and all onto the sidewalk in the front and the paved alley in the back. I got my shovel and rake, put it back and raked it fairly smooth, but of course now the seed and green mulch don't show on top. So I called the company that had done the job, and had guaranteed it against such problems. The guy said they would prefer waiting two weeks to see which areas were growing and which needed additional treatment, but if I really wanted them to, they'd be out the next day. I agreed to wait, and sure enough it came up everywhere so thick that I never called them back.

Remember, this was July in Texas; it's hot. And we used common bermuda. The instructions were to water it 2 or 3 times a day, preferable keep it damp, but not enough to run off. At the time my wife was not working and school was out for the summer, so she and our daughters didn't use a sprinkler. They hand watered and kept the yard damp. The instructions said to mow and fertilize the 30th day. Hmm, it grew so fast and got so tall that I couldn't wait that long. I think it was about the 21st day when I mowed it. At least three neighbors who moved into that development after we did, came to ask how we got such a beautiful lawn so quick. Then they called the same company to do theirs. As far as I'm concerned, it's definitely the "best" way to go, but bermuda needs sun and heat, in addition to water. So I don't know about other grasses. One neighbor moved in in September and when he called, the company told it was too late for common bermuda, but they could do it in fescue, and did. I don't know which fescue they used, but that stuff spread into my yard, grew twice as fast as bermuda so it needed mowing more frequently, made a pretty lawn as long as it got plenty of water, but was just clumps when it didn't get enough; horrible stuff.

 

[turbo36]

Hydro Seeding is where the truck comes to your home and sprays seed, fertilizer, a holding agent, like ground up paper, green dye, so they can see where they have sprayed, and all this is mixed with water. It is a good method if they don't skimp on the fertilizer or seed. I had a few acres hydro seeded and the next day it rained so hard that it washed away. They came back and redid the area, since I told them that rain was expected. Normally, you are on your own once they leave. You need to keep it watered and after about a week, you will see germination. Once it takes hold, you have a good lawn. Don't know if it is worth the cost, but it was quick. Now, it is growing well, but not any better than the areas that I seeded myself. Dusty

Yup, that pretty much sums it up except some of the companies in my area will keep coming back anumber of times for re-sprays based on their guarantee, my landscaper said he would come back and spray as many times as it took but I had to pay for any topsoil replacement if needed. The cost was anywhere from 1/3 to 2/3 the cost of sod depending on the guarantee. When my next door neighbor had his done it was a 2-step process; first they sprayed down the seed then sprayed a very thick top layer of mulch (basically ground up newspaper) with a very high level of binder, during a heavy rain the water seems to just sheet over it and didn't washout any dirt.

 

[NewToy]

Thats a big area to sod, over 40 pallets at 500 squares each. It will be costly and lots of work. I would sow some winter rye to help with erosion and then seed it with the turf grass of your choice at the optimum time for growing your chosen grass. Much cheaper and easier.

John