How to Cut & Lay Sod

Yard Preparation

• 1

  Once you've removed all the old grass and weeds, excavate around any hard-sided structures in your lawn, such as walkways or driveways, with a shovel. Sod comes with a layer of dirt on the bottom, so remove about 1 1/2 inches of dirt from the areas around these hard structures so the sod will not overlap the top of the pavement. Dig back to a distance of at least the width of your sod, creating a gentle slope toward the structure. Excavate only around the pavements and other hard structures, and not the entire work area.

• 2

  Fertilize the exposed topsoil by scattering phosphorous-rich fertilizer pellets and raking them into the dirt with an iron rake.

• 3

  Moisten the soil by spraying it with a garden hose or setting up a sprinkler. Make the dirt moist, but do not turn it into mud.

• 4

  Roll the yard with a lawn roller to tamp the broken, loose dirt on the surface down.

Cutting and Laying Sod

• 5

  Set the first roll of sod at a corner of your work area and unroll it. If the yard has a slope, position this sod so it rolls out perpendicular to the slope (across the slope rather than down it). Continue rolling out the sod in a straight line until you reach the end of that side of the work area.

• 6

  Cut the sod straight across by punching through and slicing it with a sharp hand trowel. Carry the remainder of the sod to another edge of the work area and roll it out, just as before. Finish that line of sod to define the outer edges of the work area.

• 7

  Continue laying sod in rows or columns (depending on the presence of a slope, if any, as established in Step 1), finishing each line in turn and using leftover sod from cuttings to start the next line of sod. By doing so, you ensure a staggered layout of sod. The ends of a roll of sod should never align with those of its neighbors. If necessary, make extra cuttings to maintain the staggered layout. You can alternate laying lines of sod from the first and last edges of the work area and work toward the center, or you can work entirely from one side to the other, meeting up with the last line of sod mentioned in Step 2.

• 8

  Lay any overlapping piece of sod, such as might happen in corners or with the last line of sod, over the sod beneath it. Trim away the excess sod from the upper layer with the hand trowel.

• 9

  Roll the sod with the lawn roller after all the sod is in place to compress it into the topsoil beneath.