Question
Hello LIG! I live in the Midwest in the suburbs. I have a very small front yard facing north and measures about 25 foot by 15 foot.  Last month, my husband pulled up the grass with an idea that he had about putting in a ground cover, he is not a gardener and he really screwed up the lawn. So now I want to start all over again and put down sod. We have never done this before.  What do you recommend we do with this project?  Should we wait until the weather cools off and we get some rain before starting this project? Second, how do I prepare the soil for the sod? I know that once the sod is down it has to be watered constantly. Or do you think it would be better to plant the ground cover instead, as my husband tried to do? The area in question gets very little sunlight due to tall trees surrounding the front of the house.  I appreciate any advise you can give on this. Thanks.

Answer
No matter where you live, July is NOT the best time of the year to be putting in sod, or anything else for that matter.

Autumn is planting time.  On Long Island, for grass, that's around the first day of fall.  You can start planting groundcovers a little earlier.

Depending on your Zone, you may find some grass is better than others.  If it's grass you want, check the Seedland website to figure out your favorites (www.seedland.com) and pick a grass for your climate. A northern exposure may be too dark to grow a lot of happy grass there.  Sod will not make a difference.  

If you have a lot of trees and too much shade, get in touch with a local certified arborist and see what s/he says about opening up some of the branches to more light and air.  You'll need a decent amount of sun to grow anything under a tree.  Remove the lower branches.

If the soil is depleted, as sometimes happens to soil under trees, try amending it with organics to get the soil up to par before you plant anything.  Mix in good amounts of peat moss, humus, manure (all the manure you can get your hands on), some Starbucks coffee grounds (which are free), dead leaves, mowed grass and anything else that comes along.  Rake and wait for your groundcovers.

I have ordered many plants from Bluestone Perennials (www.bluestoneperennials.com), including groundcovers.  Pick a maximum of 3 and group them in large numbers so that you have masses of each.  

Under the trees, you may find you can only put Hosta or Pachysandra down.  But a little further you can put in Ferns, Lady's Mantle, or other more delicate groundcovers that light up your real estate.

If you decide on sod, and you think there is enough light to support it, make sure it is cut the same day as it is laid.  This is an expensive measure to take and you don't want to do it twice.  You're right about the watering requirements -- babysit it 24/7 until you are certain the roots are off and running.  Don't use any chemicals or you will be staring a lawn fungus epidemic in the face and then you'll be asking me how to get rid of that.  Much easier, as the old saying goes, An ounce of Prevention...

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Summer afternoon - summer afternoon; to me those have always been the two most beautiful words in the English language.
?Henry James