Laying sod in September???

ChattanoogaMan – posted 23 September 2004 08:19

Hey folks,

I live in Chattanooga, TN and am wanting to put down some sod. Our house is new and has a gradual sloping yard. Unfortunately the dirt in our yard is “churt”, you know…dry and rocky soil. Anyway, I like the look of a fescue yard and would like to go ahead and put the sod down now, but I am worried about the timing. Is is safe to lay fescue sod this late in the season (late September)? I fugure we probably have another month or so of decently warm weather here in TN. Also, do I need to worry about soil quality with fescue? I was planning on prepping the yard with a fertilizer or something before laying the sod. Thanks in advance for your advice.

Jason

cking – posted 24 September 2004 11:53

Now is the perfect time for fescue sod. Are you planning on putting down any soil first? I battled poor soil for years -it’s much easier to get it right before you sod.

wpoveromo – posted 08 October 2004 15:02

yes, this is a great time to do it. It grows best at night when the temp. goes to around 50. I’m doing the same now (October)

Kathleen – posted 17 October 2004 10:32

I also live in TN, Knoxville…It’s mid-October and I am also wanting to lay some sod now. Is the timing still good and what types of sod are best for my area?

Cary, NC – posted 17 November 2004 23:11

Plantation or Confederate sod is best.Lowe’s Home Improvement sales Plantation Fescue sod, and sometimes they have Piedmont Gold blend (fescue/bluegrass) awesome dard green color!

Hope this helps.

Turf Specialist – posted 05 December 2004 17:57

You can set cool season sod, of which fescue is one variety, until the ground freezes. Make sure you do proper prep and put a starter fertilizer down BEFORE the sod at a rate of 0.5 lb N. Cool season grasses have 85%+ of their root growth in Nov-Feb time frame. Get it done, NOW

ted – posted 06 December 2004 08:14

the quality of the advice starts to wane as we go into the colder part of the year!! it’s too late for sodding in chattannooga.