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Zoysia Sod Installation

By Ben Mester

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Published: 23Nov2010
Word count: 642
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Zoysia sod is a very interesting species of lawn that, when well taken care of, really enhances an outdoor space. In another article, I talked all about the steps on how to prepare your ground for sod and how to lay it step by step. But I didn't go over the different types of sod you could buy or which one to go with for your outdoor space. This article will focus on zoysia sod and its applications, and why it's sometimes a good option for sod installation.

So what is zoysia grass? Chances are you've seen it. It's that thick turf found on places like golf courses that's rich and green when properly maintained. Zoysia is actually a genus of 8 different species of "creeping" grasses that are native to Asia. By creeping, I mean grass that propagates itself by creeping outward from the crown of the plant. But unlike other creeping grasses, zoysia grows very slowly, which is why it's almost always installed as sod and not seeded. Where is zoysia grass used. Zoysia sod is mostly used on places like golf courses and areas that get a lot of high traffic. Even though this form of grass is beautiful and thick, it has its limits, which you'll read about in the next section.

The first limit of zoysia sod is that it really shouldn't be installed in the northern states, or anywhere that gets an actual winter. Since I live in San Diego, I can install pretty much anything. But if you live above Kansas, you probably shouldn't be installing zoysia sod. If you do, your lawn will start to turn yellow and worse when the weather starts getting colder. It most likely won't die, but your yard will definitely not look so nice for half of the year in cold states. Zoysia sod also does best in areas of high sunlight. Most grasses don't like shade, but this is especially true with zoysia. If you want it to thrive, keep it in the sunlight.

Since I ran a landscaping business for a few years, I can tell you that there are two types of lawn owners out there. Those who like long, thick grass, and those who like short, well-trimmed grass. Most lawns are made up of fescue, which is the standard blade of grass you see on many lawns. It's a very decent type of grass and grows very quickly in both cold as well as relatively warm climates.

Zoysia grass on the other hand, loves to be short. When mowing it, you should keep it between half an inch and an inch. It loves warm and tropical climates and does very well in the heat of summer. Zoysia will turn yellow and brown pretty quickly if the temperature dips down below 55 degrees. If you're living in an areas that stays warm all year round, like Arizona, Southern California, Texas, Florida, etc, and you like grass that's short and well kept, you may want to think about installing zoysia sod instead of fescue.

Zoysia sod is nice because as long as you start off with the right soil conditions, it pretty well maintains itself. In order to know the best soil conditions for the particular brand of zoysia sod you'll install, ask the sod distributor themselves. They should be able to give you the specifics. Generally though, zoysia grass likes slightly acidic soil with partial sand and good drainage. Many of the states where zoysia sod grows well unfortunately have poor soil conditions -- things like lots of clay making for poor drainage. If you're going to install zoysia sod and want it to do well, make sure you get the soil conditions to where they need to be. After that you can enjoy your very nice, low maintenance, beautiful lawn. I hope it works out for you!

Thanks for checking out this article on zoysia sod. For more on grass and sod, check out my other article on fescue sod.

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