# How soon can I level new sod



## bryanr (Apr 23, 2019)

I laid new Bermuda sod on 6/1/19. I had to till before we laid it to fix some drainage issues and now of course the sod is very lumpy. I have a new Greensmaster 1600 I am really ready to try out but I'm sure I need to level some first. It is greening up nicely now. So, how long do I have to wait to level? Any pitfalls I need to be aware of? This site has been a great wealth of information and I am excited about this new hobby!!


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## krevo81 (May 29, 2019)

I dont know the specifics on how soon but I can share my experience.

I put down new tif419 sod in late March of 2018 and spent the few weeks after making sure it was watered in and staying off it. After about 2-3 weeks I checked it in areas around the yard to see if the roots had made it into the topsoil which they had in most cases. I rolled it a few times, then aerated and leveled in July 2018 and then sanded it immediately after. It was still kind of lumpy but the subsoil and loam beneath the sod was still settling and stuff.

If I had to do it over again - I'd give the lawn at minimum a full growing season and do it the following year only because I spent a good amount of money renting the aerator and an entire weekend throwing sand only to have settling and eventual runoff issues after some heavy summer and fall downpours. One note - my lawn has a lot of slope graded around the slab to direct water out of the back left corner of my lot. You might not have the same experience with settling and stuff that I did.


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## TN Hawkeye (May 7, 2018)

bryanr said:


> I laid new Bermuda sod on 6/1/19. I had to till before we laid it to fix some drainage issues and now of course the sod is very lumpy. I have a new Greensmaster 1600 I am really ready to try out but I'm sure I need to level some first. It is greening up nicely now. So, how long do I have to wait to level? Any pitfalls I need to be aware of? This site has been a great wealth of information and I am excited about this new hobby!!


I believe most would recommend waiting till it is well rooted and mowed a few times. Right now it is putting a lot of energy into getting its roots into the ground. Putting sand on it will cause it to divert its resources to growing up through the sand. You may want to mow the first few times with a rotary to prevent scalping. After that scalp it a little and level it.

Edit- much better advice from @krevo81


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## krevo81 (May 29, 2019)

I was also going to say - definitely rotary mow it a little higher (2") after you confirm its rooting well in the soil. You can also rent a sod roller to work on flattening out lumps after a good watering.


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## erdons (Apr 3, 2018)

I would wait till for sure it's all rooted, usually that could be about 2-3 weeks after laying sod for the roots to take strong hold, once you mow and see it actively growing then sand leveling should be ok. The fact that you tilled likely means you have a lot more leveling in your future.


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## ThomasPI (May 18, 2019)

erdons said:


> I would wait till for sure it's all rooted, usually that could be about 2-3 weeks after laying sod for the roots to take strong hold, once you mow and see it actively growing then sand leveling should be ok. The fact that you tilled likely means you have a lot more leveling in your future.


Agreed based on reading, tilling it will give you a lot more work. Let it settle for a couple of months.


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## SCGrassMan (Dec 17, 2017)

Did you roll it with a sod roller? If not start there.


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## Austinite (Oct 4, 2018)

I started leveling 4 months after it was layed down. No issues at all. I've seen folks do the 'checkerboard' layout and level after 2 weeks without issues.


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## JTCJC (May 31, 2019)

My Tif 419 was laid July 3rd 2018. I gave it 1 month of heavy water (of course we had no rain for a month after it was laid, was not happy with the $550 water bill...) and cut it 3 or 4 times at around 2". I top dressed in August and started lowering the height using my reel mower to around 1". In September I aerated (not the official time to aerate but the neighbor had it for his fescue) and top dressed again. Lowered reel mover to 3/4". Tif 419 took it no problem. Looked good this year after the winter too.

I did not add any "harsh" chemicals or fertilizer during the first summer. Just kept to starter fertilizer and iron.

Hope this helps and good luck!


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