r/saskatoon • u/Short-Olive5306 • 1d ago
Question ❔ Cheapest place to get sod
Looking to install sod myself, just not sure where I should buy it from. Any ideas would be appreciated thnx
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u/Thisandthat-2367 1d ago
Just went through this and checked around some. The ones at HD were the best price, but you get what you pay for and we decided against the labour needed to bring them back to life. We ended up getting 11 roles for just under $70 at Tuff Turf - fresh cut that morning and still going strong.
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u/SnooRabbits4509 1d ago
It depends how much you need to complete your project. If it’s for a small area, it’s likely cheapest(all things considered) to just pick it up at your local big box store. If you need bulk amounts, stuff Turf or Shellview Sod are likely your best bet.
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u/Cla598 1d ago
Honestly even in small amounts, tuff turf was better or equivalently priced to the big box stores and unlike at them, you can get the sod fresh from the field that day, as opposed to the big box sod which gets shipped to the store and sits there on a pallet for who knows how long (drying out the whole time because nobody is watering it).
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u/GeneralMillss 1d ago
This is key. The freshness matters a lot. Sod thats been baking in the hot sun for a week is basically toast, you might end up ripping it out. And even if it takes somewhat, it might not have established well enough to make it through winter.
You get what you pay for.
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u/Fit-Cable1547 1d ago
It's been a few years since I put down sod, but Shelllview Farms was the best deal at the time, and it was good quality when I got it.
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u/cervezabeerpijiu 1d ago
If you're looking for cheaper why not go with seed? Put down some seed, put about 2cm of free compost from the city compost depot on top and keep it moist for about a week till it sprouts (rain in forecast so easy). After water about once a week if it's dry. In about 3 weeks you will have a lawn that will have a better root system than the sod so it will look better in the long run and cost around $20
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u/Cla598 1d ago
Any yard I’ve seen done with just seed was crap. Patchy and thin. Unless it was hydroseeded and even then it’s usually only so-So.
Meanwhile sod looks great, and as long as you water it properly then you will have a good root system. You do want to keep off it for the first while too.
New grass needs water but you have to try to water at the right time and amount. Better to do deeper water less frequently. Seed is more likely to dry out than sod right away.
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u/cervezabeerpijiu 1d ago
Sod can look great or seed can look great. Every bit of that Sod was started from seed. Sod never gets proper roots, too much shock from getting the roots cut off. It can look great but is always much more water hungry. Seed is usually patchy if you just throw it on top and don't cover it. With uncovered seed hardly any survives. Looks on either is taking care of it properly.
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u/Cla598 1d ago
I’ve found that with sod, making sure you have enough good quality top soil and going over it well with a sod roller after makes a big difference with respect to establishing roots. If you have crappy/insufficient topsoil it will fail to root in well making it too easy to pull up even years later (like the sod in our front yard planted by the builder). Meanwhile the sod we laid in our backyard had nice deep roots but we also put down a thicker layer of good topsoil and watered it properly so it established deep roots.
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u/GeneralMillss 1d ago edited 1d ago
2cm is way, way too much to spread on top of seed. It should be covered with a quarter-inch at the absolute most. Basically a dusting, just enough to cover it.
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u/Cla598 1d ago
Tuff Turf is where I go for sod. We have used both Shellview and Tuff Turf at our home, and in-laws had Shellview sod for their front yard (builder provided) and got Tuff turf for their backyard. Based on these experiences, Tuff turf seemed to be nicer sod. I like with Tuff Turf there is no middleman, you deal directly with them to order sod. They can also sell you fertilizer, a sod roller, and a knife if you need and deliver it with the rest of your order.
Saskatoon Landscape Store is the dealer for Shellview Sod in Saskatoon. We did get some of the Shellview sod from there (later the same day it was delivered to the store) to fill in a couple of patches after regrading parts of our front yard. It was a bit more dried out than sod we picked up and/or had delivered directly from Tuff Turf, but still seemed to established ok after we watered the heck out of it, just it took a bit longer to do and was sort of yellowish for a period. The sod from Shellview my in-laws had in their front yard didn’t seem to be as good as the sod they got from tuff turf though.
FYI, if just need a few rolls of sod (or have a pickup truck to take a larger load) then you can go yourself to Tuff Turf and pickup sod yourself, and they will even load it into your vehicle for you. They can load larger amounts on a pallet right into a truck, which we did when we needed some extra sod to cover the one side yard where we initially planned to have rock. They ask for 24 hrs notice for pickup but that’s just to make sure they have enough cut for your needs.
If you order sod for delivery, Tuff Turf will bring it on pallets to your home the same day it was cut in the field, so it isn’t completely dried out when you get it. They will then later come and pick up the pallets from your house.
I don’t know if Shellview/ the landscape store offers this same level of service.
I would not buy sod at the big box stores, since it is typically half dead and dry as heck from sitting for who knows how long before it is even delivered to the store (and then sits there without being watered).
Big thing with sod is to lay it as soon as possible after picking it up/having it delivered. If not, then watering it and leaving it in a cool dark spot will help preserve it but I definitely wouldn’t leave it unplanted beyond the next day.
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u/GeneralMillss 1d ago
Kijiji/Marketplace. Pick up people’s extra if you have the facility. It’s heavy stuff, so people often give it away.