New Sod Care: Fertilizing and Watering Schedule for Kansas City

Fertilization Timeline

• Late spring, early fall, late fall – standard schedule.
• Do not fertilize in hot summer.
• New sod (laid Nov 26): Apply a single light early‑spring application at half rate. Wait until April.

Calculating Fertilizer Amount

Divide 100 by the first number on the bag (N%). Example: 28‑4‑4 → 100/28 = 3.57 lbs per 1,000 sq ft. Multiply by your lawn’s thousands of square feet.

For half‑rate on new sod: divide 50 by the first number, then multiply by lawn area in 1,000‑sq‑ft units.

Fertilizer Selection

• Choose lawn‑specific formulas with high first number (e.g., 28‑4‑4, 10‑2‑6).
• Avoid high middle numbers (e.g., 10‑15‑10).
• Apply to dry lawn; water in immediately or before rain.

Watering

• General rule: 1 inch per week in one deep soaking (2 hours) rather than daily light watering.
• During dry summer: Water manually to keep grass green.

Mowing

• Height: 2.5–3.5 inches after cutting.
• Frequency: 1–2 times/week in spring/fall; weekly in summer.
• Never remove more than 1/3 of blade length per mowing.

Key Takeaways

Water deeply but infrequently, fertilize three times a year (skip summer), mow high and often. Your new sod will establish strong roots and become a resilient lawn.