We are a society that likes convenience. Instant gratification. Quick fixes. There is little, in the gardening world, as instantly gratifying as laying sod.

The people across the street had half their front lawn dug up by the city last year, due to water main issues. It sat that way for over a year, a big patch of gravelly soil. Finally, a few weeks ago, the city returned to finish the project. In ten minutes flat (with crew of five) a beautiful lawn appeared. Like magic!

There is still time, here on the Canadian Prairies, to seed a lawn or lay sod. Seeded lawn can take two weeks to a month to sprout. Then it’s patchy for a few weeks, then it starts to look like lawn. Sod? Instant! The preparation is the same for the two applications. Clean the area of rocks, clumps of weeds or soil, smooth the surface with a rake, improve the soil with a layer of compost, seed or sod.

Your local landscape supply or garden center will offer seed or sod appropriate to your area. Seeding is more cost effective, a bag of seed to cover an average front lawn would be around $20. Sod in this area is selling for $5-7 for a piece 2′ by 5′ (.61m by 1.5m). Laying sod can be a DIY project; it’s a great arm workout because healthy pieces can be a little heavy. The sod pieces are fitted like laying hardwood flooring and tamped down for a good fit to the soil. They are easy to cut with a box cutter or small saw so they can easily be worked around curved sidewalks or shrub borders. Then water, water, water. For more detailed instructions check out this post from The Spruce.

Sod is a perishable product so most often you must pre-order so that the supplier can bring in just what is needed. You would have a couple of days to get it installed while it is fresh. There are no returns. Occasionally you can get a deal if a landscape supplier has a bit too much on a Friday or Saturday as their own installation crews will not be working on a weekend.

Are you ready to re-fresh your lawn?