A Mountain of Sod

I am removing about half of the sod of our newly purchased home for gardens. I already have a mountain of sod and am no-where close to finishing. I don't really want to discard all of the good topsoil that is attached to the roots. Does sod compost well (the pile is about half soil)? How long does it take, and what is the best technique to use?

Your comments are greatly appreciated.

I lay sod upside down, making 1 layer.Then I shovel finished, almost finished and new compost over that. I keep layering. It takes me over a year in zone 5a weather. I also water the layers if they're dry. Seems like I always need some sod to fill in bare spots, so I lay the best grass down in the garden and keep it wet. One year, like you, I stripped a 26' x 16' area for a rosebed. I asked the neighbors if they needed any, and it all disappeared. Most of us lost trees in a straightline wind and had bare spots to cover. Felt good to help my neighbors.

Willmetge, last year I removed a good deal of sod to make some rather large planting beds. The sod had about 1/2- 3/4" soil layer with it. I piled it in layers in a corner of my yard and had a pile about 3 feet high by about 3 to 4 feet in diameter. Temps were warming up in late spring and the pile was in full sun. I had forgotten about it until I went back about 2 months later to get soil for another project. When I dug into the pile, I couldn't believe it- most of the interior was rich, black compost! Maybe the conditions were perfect for me, but if you don't need the sod, try stacking it and perhaps getting some black gold out of it!

Edit- I piled the strips green against green

This message was edited Mar 28, 2006 10:48 PM

Same happened here. About the only quick compost I've ever made, and it happened accidentally.

One method would be to compost it in place. After removal turn it upside down, cover with wet cardboard, then compost, then plant directly in place. It will compost where it is.

Or the easiest way: lasagna garden or interbay mulch. You wouldn't even have to lift the sod. Simply leave the grass in place, cover with several sheets of wet newspaper or cardboard, greens and browns in layers. You can plant in it immediately, just push the ingredients aside so they are not in direct contact with the plant. (It would burn the plant). I took my first stab at interbay mulch last fall; I can't tell you how impressed I am with the results. My beds are covered with rich, crumbly compost over soft earth loaded with worms.

If you google lasagna garden, sheet composting, interbay mulch you'll find a wealth of information. And you'll save the work of removing all that sod!

Karen