Care & Feeding

BE KIND TO YOUR LAWN

Don’t forget to feed & fertilize your grass!

Care & Feeding of Your New Lawn

Beautiful, lush lawns don’t just happen.

A bit of maintenance will keep that healthy green grass thriving.

After you’ve installed your sod, it is important to take care of it properly to ensure that it thrives and your lawn remains beautiful for years to come. Everyone knows living plants need water. That’s the first crucial step to it’s survival. Once established in its new home, your lawn will reward you for years to come with a simple maintenance program.

Maintaining the health of your lawn and preventing problems is the best way to avoid weeds, pests or disease. And it’s easier than most people think.

How to care for your new lawn.

Please refer to the information & tips in the brochure accompanying your sod order regarding the care & maintenance of your new lawn.

Watering

For newly installed lawns see How to: Prep & Install page for more information.

Established lawns: Once your sod is established you can water it according to weather conditions.

Turf grass needs about an
1″ of water per week to maintain its green colour and healthy active growth.
Be sure to water your lawn thoroughly when needed, so that moisture soaks down to the roots.
Avoid light watering, as it promotes shallower root systems and weed problems.
Water early in the day if possible, so that the water is less likely to evaporate before it can get to the roots.
Make sure that sprinklers are reaching all areas of the lawn. Strong breezes can shorten the reach of a sprinkler.

Fertilizing

New Installs/Lawns:

A granular root starter fertilizer can be raked into the topsoil at the time of installation.
OR Apply a good granular root building fertilizer 2 weeks after installation, when you new sod is rooted.
Make sure the lawn is dry before you apply fertilizer to avoid burning the grass blades.

Established Lawns:

Mid-May is a good start date for first application. It’s a good idea to mark your calendar with target dates for fertilizer applications.
(ie: May 15, July 1, and August 15.)
Slow Release Granular Fertilizer. Choose a fertilizer with a blend that meets your lawns needs.
Avoid light watering, as it promotes shallower root systems and weed problems.
See below for what each nutrient promotes.

Mowing

When: Once your sod is firmly rooted and established approx. 10-14 days – you may begin mowing it.

Check to see if your sod is rooted before the first mowing. Try lifting or rolling back a piece of the sod, if the sod is rooted it will not easily roll back or lift from the top soil.
Set your mower at it’s highest mowing setting. Never remove more than 1/3 of the grass blade at any one mowing. Mow your lawn as needed. Kentucky Blue Grass does well at about 3 inches in height.
Make sure the mower blades are sharp, so the grass is cut rather than torn.

Fertilizing Your Lawn

What the letters N-P-K on the fertilizer bag mean:

Ingredient	What it does
N = Nitrogen	Promotes lush green growth.
P = Phosphorus	Encourages strong root growth.
K = Potassium/Potash	Assists in healthy root growth & disease resistance.

What the numbers on the Fertilizer bag mean:

The numbers on the fertilizer bag indicate the amount of nitrogen, phosphorus & potassium are contained in the fertilizer. N-P-K

Please feed your lawn. Regular fertilizing will keep your lawn healthy and yields a lawn that is far less susceptible to weeds or disease. Choose a method you are comfortable using and implement regular feeding. The worst thing you can do is expect your lawn to just care for itself.
It’s amazing what a bit of maintenance can do.

Prevention is better than trying to find a cure.

Liquid vs. Granular:

Liquid fertilizer needs to be applied more often. The major advantage is that results are quick.
Liquid fertilizer is applied with a hand-held sprayer, usually attached to your garden hose.
Granular types stay in the soil longer than liquids, so they need to be applied much less frequently.
All slow-release fertilizers are in granular form.
Granular fertilizer is applied with a hand held or with a push type spreader easily found at garden supply outlets.

How Much Fertilizer to use:

Fertilizer should be applied based on the square footage of the area & the specific nutrient needs of your lawn.

Granular: Please follow manufacturer’s instructions on bag or container.
Liquid: Follow manufacturer’s instructions on container.

NOTES of Caution:

More is not better. Excessive amounts of fertilizer can result in burnt spots on your lawn.
Always follow the directions on the package label.
Use care to avoid spilling fertilizers.
Never fertilize a wet or dew covered lawn. If a lawn is wet when fertilized, the result is usually burning of the grass due to the granules sticking to the blades and dissolving on them rather than dissolving into the soil.
To avoid dark streaks, and assure more even distribution, apply half of the needed fertilizer in one direction and the remaining amount in the opposite direction on your lawn.
EXAMPLE: Apply the first half in a north-to-south direction, and then apply the other half in an east-to-west direction.

** Important

Water your lawn for about an hour, immediately after applying granular fertilizer.

The granules will then dissolve and carry the nutrients to the roots of the grass where it is needed.

If you have any questions just give us a call (204) 269-3052 (Wpg)

Please Note: We ensure that our sod will arrive fresh cut and healthy at the job site. Once the sod has been delivered to your yard site or is installed by our crew, it becomes the responsibility of the customer to carry out all appropriate maintenance on the lawn including, but not limited to; adequate watering, fertilizing, weed control, insect and pest control, disease and fungus control, etc.

If any issues arise within the first few weeks after sod has been installed by the customer or by our crews contact our office to discuss any questions or issues.

Due to our extreme prairie climate we do not warranty or guarantee sod over winter.