How is Sod Harvested?

When you receive a pallet of sod, it arrives looking lush, green, and ready to transform your lawn almost instantly. But, the process that gets sod to this point is far from instant—behind that is a long journey of planning, persistence, patience, and expertise to grow and harvest a lush, healthy sod.

At Bethel Farms, with several locations across Central Florida, we grow a select range of warm-season grass varieties cultivated to thrive in various soil conditions. Our commitment to innovation in farming practices allows us to produce high-quality turfgrass that meets the highest standards.

In this article, we'll take you behind the scenes to explore the intricate process that goes into growing, maintaining, and harvesting sod to bring you the perfect lawn.

Key Takeaways

• Growing sod takes careful planning and patience. The process begins with soil preparation and planting, followed by consistent maintenance, including watering, fertilizing, and weed and pest control. Continuous monitoring ensures healthy growth until the sod is mature and ready for harvest. This process results in resilient, dense turf that will thrive in your yard.
• Our commitment to quality ensures the sod you receive is meticulously grown, maintained, and harvested to meet the highest standards. High-quality sod provides instant lawn coverage, reduces risks of pests and diseases, and helps prevent soil erosion. Choosing a reputable sod farm gives you a reliable, long-lasting solution for a lush, green lawn.
• Innovation plays a vital role in our success as one of the trusted sod farms in Central Florida. We use advanced technologies to optimize efficiency in farming while maintaining high standards. Additionally, the use of telemetry systems, reservoirs, and underground water tiles demonstrates commitment to conserving resources and reducing our environmental footprint while ensuring top-quality sod.

Growing, Maintaining, and Harvesting Sod in Florida

Florida's temperate climate makes it an ideal location for sod farming. The warm temperatures and occasional rains create conditions conducive to plant growth, allowing sod to develop strong roots and dense grass nearly year-round. This environment supports various grass types, allowing us to cultivate varieties like Bermuda, Zoysia, and St. Augustine grasses that meet various landscape requirements. We focus on nurturing the grass to grow into a healthy, resilient turf that will withstand the rigors of everyday use.

Planting

Work in a sod farm begins long before the sod is ready to harvest. It starts with extensive soil preparation to set a healthy foundation for grass to thrive. Different planting methods may be used depending on the grass being grown. Some grass varieties are started from seed, while others, like improved or hybrid species, are established vegetatively. Regardless of the method, every step is carefully managed to ensure the grass takes root and develops into high-quality sod.

Maintenance and Care

Watering: Once the grass is planted, a rigorous maintenance routine ensues to support its healthy development. Consistent watering is crucial, particularly in the early stages, to help the grass build the resilience it needs to survive in the field and your yard after installation.

Fertilizing: Fertilization is also a key aspect of maintaining healthy sod. We time our fertilizer applications to align with the plant's growth cycles. The type of fertilizer we use is tailored to the specific needs of the grass, contributing to solid growth and improved turf density.

Weed, Disease, and Pest Control: Weeds, pests, and diseases are persistent concerns in sod farming. Keeping the sod from invasive weeds, damaging diseases, and harmful pests requires proactive monitoring and integrated pest management techniques. By maintaining a healthy, balanced ecosystem, we can reduce the reliance on chemical interventions while protecting the grass from potential threats and providing you with high-quality sod free from these issues.

Continuous Monitoring: Regular inspections allow us to adjust our maintenance practices based on weather conditions, ensuring the grass grows evenly and healthily. This attention to detail is essential to cultivating uniform, high-quality sod for your lawn.

Harvesting and Delivery

Harvesting sod is a delicate process that requires timing and precision. Whether the sod is ready for harvest depends on factors such as maturity and turf density. Once the grass has developed a strong root system and dense coverage, it's ready for harvest—a process that varies, depending on the grass type.

At Bethel Farms, we deliver sod in 400-square-foot pallets. Because sod is a living product, timing is critical to ensure it stays fresh and healthy during transport. We harvest it on the day of or day before the scheduled delivery, with each pallet carefully handled and transported so it arrives in the best possible condition for immediate sod installation.

Innovation at Bethel Farms

Growing sod—from planting to harvesting and delivery—comes with its challenges. Variability in soil conditions, fluctuating weather patterns, and the need to maintain turf integrity during cutting and transport present obstacles that require expertise and experience to navigate successfully.

We're committed to overcoming these challenges through continuous innovation and adherence to best practices, ensuring the sod is delivered to you in perfect condition. We rely on advanced technologies to improve efficiency while conserving resources, ensuring that each sod piece we deliver meets the highest standards of quality. These include the FireFly Automatix ProSlab harvester, which we use to cut the sod with superb precision to maintain its consistency and integrity during harvest. Additionally, the Steward by Sabanto autonomous mower increases mowing efficiency, reducing human oversight while optimizing field maintenance.

Our efforts to innovate extend beyond mowing and harvesting. We also use a telemetry system that allows us to measure the specific needs of our fields in real time. This technology helps us conserve natural resources by providing precisely what is needed in the right amount at the right time.

We have also implemented a reservoir system that boosts our water supply for irrigation and serves as a flood control measure. Additionally, we employ an underground water tile irrigation system. Unlike open irrigation systems, which can lose up to 40% of water through evaporation and runoff, this underground system delivers water directly to the roots to maximize water use and ensure healthier sod growth.

The Importance of Buying High-Quality Sod

In terms of achieving a healthy, long-lasting lawn, sod quality is crucial. High-quality sod offers several advantages, with its ability to provide an almost instant lawn being a key benefit. It solves problems like soil erosion and weed growth. Being mature grass, sod is also less susceptible to pests and diseases, giving you a healthier, more resilient lawn from the start.

To maximize these benefits, it's important to buy grass from a reliable sod supplier like Bethel Farms. Our commitment to quality ensures that each piece is grown, maintained, and harvested with care. We follow strict standards to ensure that our sod meets the highest criteria for health, density, and root strength, giving you the best possible start to your lawn.

We take pride in the journey that each piece of sod takes from our fields to your home. By choosing high-quality sod from a trusted source and following proper installation and post-care practices, you can enjoy a green, resilient lawn that adds beauty and value to your property in the long term.

Ready to get started? Discover lawn maintenance tips and explore a range of high-quality grass sod for sale on our website today.