Grass seed vs. sod: what’s better?

As winter snow gives way to spring growth, your newly exposed landscaping may look a little worse for wear. Whether you need to repair your existing grass cover or establish a new one, you may wonder whether planting grass seed or laying sod is the better option. Here’s a look at the pros and cons of each.

Benefits of grass seed

Lawn seeding involves planting grass seeds directly into the soil. Here are some of the advantages of seeding over sodding:

• You have more choice. There are more grass varieties available for seeding than for sodding. You can choose a high-performing variety that will thrive in your climate zone.

• It’s easier on the budget. It’s a lot cheaper to plant grass seed than to lay sod. Sod costs 10 to 20 times more than grass seed.

• It’s less labour-intensive. Sprinkling grass seed over your lawn is much easier than rolling out sod and placing each piece by hand.

• It requires less maintenance. Grass seed grows deeper roots than pre-grown sod. Once the grass is established, it won’t need as much water and care.

Benefits of sod

Sodding involves laying down pre-grown strips of grass held together by soil. Here’s a look at some of the reasons to choose this method over seeding:

• You get a near-instant lawn. Once you lay down sod, your lawn appears fully grown almost immediately. Unlike seeding, you don’t have to wait for the lawn to grow and mature.

• It can be placed at virtually any time of the year. Unlike grass seed that must be established at certain times of the year, you can lay sod at any point during the growing season, as long as it can be watered regularly and has adequate time to root before winter.

• It has few or no weeds. Grass seeds are vulnerable to competition from weed seeds. However, high-quality sod doesn’t contain weeds and outcompetes weed seeds, so you don’t have to treat your lawn with herbicides.

Whatever approach you choose to establish your lawn, protect your investment by applying high-quality fertilizer and using proper watering and mowing techniques.

Lawn maintenance equipment

Whether you choose seeding or sodding, Hitch City can help you maintain your lawn with our innovative and high-quality turf equipment, including trimmers, lawn mowers, edgers, bush cutters and leaf blowers. Our staff repairs and maintains any make and model of outdoor power equipment.

In addition to lawn equipment, we offer top-quality towing hitches and truck caps. Contact us today to learn more about our products and services. We have locations in Barrie, Mississauga and Scarborough.