Sod sob story

[Pilot]

Part of lawn was rutted from repeated mowing in same pattern and moles mounds & I decided to redo the area. Couple guys who should know (farm supply owner & farmer) suggested using Roundup, wait 2 weeks & till. I sprayed, waited about 4 weeks. Ground is very dry and to insure the tiller would penetrate, I cultivated before tilling. That may have been a mistake.

Made a pass with the tiller this morning and all it seemed to do was stir things up. Still have big lumps of sod; it seemed like the tiller just moved the lumps around.

Any suggestions on how to break up the sod?

Should I go slower, first gear low range? Plan on a dozen passes or more? Wet the area down, then till?

 

[Fawken]

Go slower and tilt the tiller forward with the top link.

 

[Will_C]

Make sure the flap on the tiller is closed, and go slow. It may take several passes. Another thought, if you have a drag, go over it several times with that. I had to do that to get my food plot broken up.

Will

 

[Pilot]

Well, apparently I cried for help too soon. Tried again in first gear low range & it worked better, but still not what I had hoped for. But I found a BIG difference when worked an area that got watered when I watered the lawn. One pass was as good or better than 5 or 6 passes on the dry ground.

I'll tilt the tiller forward as Fawken suggested. Will_C, the flap is closed. I don't have a drag.

I've got the sprinklers going now!

 

[Ed of all trades]

You are talking about a rotor tiller, and not a field cultivator, correct? I can make two passes with my KK and it would be ready to plant.

 

[Fossil Farm]

If you get this situation again, and it is not too big of an area of the lawn, it is best to remove the sod first if you want as smooth a lawn as possible. Depending on the type of grass killed, it will still clump up during tilling and not be a perfectly smooth seedbed. If the dead grass is mostly decayed, it may smooth out, but many times it will not. Good luck.