Our home is still under construction, and the company plans to lay the sod in mid dec.Atlantic Canada weather!

Question

Newfoundland weather is very unpredictable this time of year. Worried lawn won't take!

Answer 1

make sure your contract stipulates replacement due to weather. No good landscaper will place sod if it is below freezing or considered below freezing.

Answer 2

I will not pretend to know of the NewFoundland weather. I will tell you that the company building your new home has contracted the Landscape to a firm aside from themselves.
They are responsible for the final result and can/will take any action against said Landscape firm.
That said, with proper soil preperation, proper handling, there is no reason not to lay sod in the dead of winter. I design for builder's that require that such work be done. As one person wrote the dead of summer is much worse than the dead of winter!
Sod farms will not be able to and will refuse to cut sod if the conditions are unfavorable for survival. They offer a limited warranty on the product. Legit contractors will not lay sod unless the soil is correct and the sod is certified. If the sod farm and contractor are in agreement there is no reason for concern.

Answer 3

Check with a local nursery and ask them.
I always check with the nearest university extension with questions of this kind. That however is what we call them in the US. I'm not sure what
they would be called in Newfoundland.
If the company is licensed and reputable they probably know what they are doing. Quite frankly if the other option is a muddy yard all year until spring, I'd keep the sod just to avoid loosing part of the topsoil because it had no grass.

You might get answere from below
Government of Newfoundland and Labrador
Agriculture
Through this site, the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador seeks to improve service to the public by increasing awareness of provincial government programs and services, business opportunities, and tourism potential.
http://www.gov.nf.ca/Services/agriculture.stm

General Inquiries:
E-Mail : [e-mail]
Regular Mail:
Communications Branch
10th. Floor, East Block
Confederation Building
St. John's, NL
A1B 4J6
http://www.gov.nl.ca/nfgov_ml.htm

Answer 4

When your home is still under construction it means it isn't finished yet? So if they lay the sod now, it might be damaged by the building workers. And then you would have to change or repair it again. Isn't it possible to agree with the sod company to lay the sods when the house is ready, or just wait untill springtime?

Answer 5

Our lawn was laid in the middle of summer and it was dead within weeks, as we were not on site to keep it watered. Luckily you won't have problems with drying out!

Although it sounds harsh laying it down in the middle of winter, it should be fairly safe as long as the ground is not frozen when it is laid. Even though the grass will be fairly dormant it will put down small roots. Since it isn't growing much, this shouldn't be a problem. Once warmer weather comes it will settle in properly.

Answer 6

Find out what kind of guarantee they provide. It may also be in the contract that they have to do that before they can sign off on their punchlist.