It’s that time of year! The weather is warm and the sod is fresh for the picking. Fields across the country are enjoying makeovers with new sod for the very first time.
M&T Bank Stadium
Up until this month, M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore, Maryland had an artificial grass surface, but it was too old to continue serving its purpose for football players. Instead, the grounds crews opted for the installation of natural grass sod from a farm in North Carolina. The sod was quickly cut, shipping, and rolled out on the Baltimore field. Their sod of choice was Bermuda grass, a popular option for its thick, strong root systems that can help the sod withstand the impact of heavy football use.
Narbonne High School
Following in the pro league’s footsteps, Narbonne High School in Los Angeles, California is also installing a sod field. Narbonne’s team is a two-time defending City Section Division I champion, making the quality of their field all the more important to support practices and provide solid footing during games.
Dunkin Donuts Park
Dunkin Donuts isn’t just good for coffee and frosted treats. Dunkin Donuts Park is the home field for the Hartford Yard Goats in Connecticut. They placed 90,000 square feet of sod in total over the baseball field, which is completely new and just being constructed. More than 300 people were hired to help install the sod and complete other work so that the field could be open for baseball fans around the city to enjoy.
Why Sod?
Sod is such a popular choice in sports because it is grown offsite on a farm and delivered and installed to create “instant grass.” Though sod does require some time to attach its root system into its new ground, it’s much preferred in sports stadiums craving natural grass since the process is still significantly quicker than growing grass from seed.