Turf War

WHO’S SIDE ARE YOU ON?

When thinking about turf type, the first general question we must ask is “What grass will grow at all in the area I live?”  Living in the upstate of South Carolina, we are afforded the opportunity to have both warm and cool season turfgrasses because our climate is a transition zone. Unfortunately, our temperature swings can cause problems for both. Cool season grasses (Fescues and some ryes) struggle with our sometimes dry, hot summers and all our warm season options (Bermuda, Zoysia, Centipede) go into a state of dormancy and do not like our winters.

We are often asked, “Is sod better to install than seed?” This is a complex question with many things to consider.  First, is it the proper time of the year to install seed for this turf type?  We will discuss that more in the next section.  Do I have the time to wait on seed to germinate and grow? Do I have the patience to care for seed and newly planted grass?  Is cost my greatest factor?

WELCOME!

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IN THE TRENCHES

No bones about it, developing a lush lawn from seed will take more time and energy than sod.  In today’s “fast food” world where most of us want our dream lawn right now, we typically always lean toward sod.  The one caveat to that is when cost is the major deciding factor.  It really boils down to this…do I want to invest more time or money in my lawn install.

When you install your sod or plant your grass seed depends greatly on the type of turf you have chosen.  Generally speaking, the best time to do this is when that variety is actively growing.  By their categories, you could assume that warm season varieties are best started in warm weather and cool season in cool weather.  If you made that assumption, you would be correct!  If you plan to install sod over seed, the window to do that opens up.  You can, with some care, install both cool and warm season sod outside of it’s ideal growing season.

 

LET’S WIN THIS THING TOGETHER

We would love to help walk you through this process.  CLICK HERE or call us today at 864-423-3844 for a free analysis and estimate for your lawn demands.  Come back to see us over the next couple of weeks as we will address proper turf management and fertilization/weed control.

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