If you are certain it is centipede and not St Augustine, then caring for the new sod should kill out the centipede. If it is St Aug, the St Aug will try to take over, and the lawn will look weedy.

Why did you pick zoysia over St Aug? Doesn't everyone nearby have St Aug?

Most people have centipede, i think it's because it is the cheaper of options. Though I'm not entirely sure.

I've chosen Zoysia over St. Augustine only because of what I've read and have heard. In no ways am I an expert and i am very much a newbie, so maybe it's bad advice?

But anyhow, I've chosen Zoysia because I've heard it'll do well in shade as well as the later summer months when we do not get much rain. I've read Zoysia is easier to treat for weeds than St. Augustine and too will easily spread and take over the rest of my yard.

In the end, my goal is have a yard that is simple to maintain (just basic treatments 4 times a year) and one that won't die or go "weedy" on me if i neglect it for 1 month.

I've decided to sod the area because i want quick results. It's beginning to be summer and nothing will make me more happy than to be able to let my girl outside and run around on the grass. LET THAT ENERGY OUT!'

Thank you for the reply and for the questions, please (anyone and everyone) keep them coming!

My goal is to start sodding this weekend and I want my lawn and me to be as prepared as we can be.

If you're not going to water in the summer, then anything but St Aug will be better than St Aug. It will die if not watered once a month or so. If the zoysia does not do well in the shade, then St Aug is the only option.

So then, in prep for sod, no need to rototill or aerate. Just rake or scrape off the surface dead growth. Then lay the sod. Make sure they leave no gaps between sod pieces. The sod pieces should be staggered meaning that it should not look like a checkerboard. They should roll the sod down to ensure good contact between the roots and the soil. Then start watering briefly (5-10 minutes), 3x per day (breakfast, lunch, and dinner times), for the next 2 weeks. Then check a few pieces to see if they have knit to the soil. Try lifting a corner. By then the roots should be biting into the soil. Then you can back off on watering until you are watering deeply (1 inch) and infrequently (once per week max during the hottest heat of summer). That watering schedule may be much different from what your neighbors say and all your local advice, but their daily watering schedule does not develop a great root system. Daily watering also encourages every weed seed to sprout, and you don't want that. So as soon as the sod knits down, start backing off on the watering frequency.

Are you interested in an inexpensive organic fertilizing routine. Here is a picture of a zoysia lawn with a handful of alfalfa pellets (rabbit chow) applied a month earlier...

Thank you for the advice, I'll definitely look into the Alfalfa pellets for future use.

I was sold a "new lawn starter" fertilizer to throw onto the ground right before I lay the sod down. I'm certain it is not organic, but i do want the most effective product to get the roots growing.

For freshly laid sod, you absolutely recommend watering for short period at 3 times a day?

I had a piece of my backyard sodded last year with centipede and the gentleman told me "you can't water it enough". This was done in the dead heat of August. But i did water it morning and late afternoon for about a hour+ each time. Right now that large patch of centipede is the best piece of grass on my property. Absolutely zero imperfections in it! But again, i watered that sod twice a day for easily an hour each watering.

August is a different story.
Centipede is a different story.

For my watering system 2 hours would deliver 1/4 inch. That's not very much for a new lawn. Your system will be different, but here's the thing...all you need is enough water to keep the roots from drying out and enough to just moisten the surface of the underlying soil. The roots will grow into the new soil if it is just barely moist. You don't need to do deep watering because there are no roots there. The biology in the deeper soil will survive for the few weeks it takes to get going on deeper watering. Plus the sod acts as a mulch to moderate the underlying soil moisture.

If you want the most effective product, you might look at this forum for the soil test readings that morpheuspa does. For the cost of a $25 soil test from Logan Labs, morph will give you $250 worth of advice on how to interpret the test results. You might not need any starter fertilizer...or you might need a triple dose. There's no way to know without that soil test. He will also give you recommendations for altering your pH, micro nutrients, and major salts.

dchall, i GREATLY appreciate your advice!

Anyone else have anything to help me?

For my advice-

Everyone seems to think you can just roll out sod. Frankly, you can actually grow sod on top of cement if you are willing to constantly water and fertilize it. Clearly, that is going to cause far too much work.

Do good soil preparation and you will have a fine lawn with a minimum of work and expense-long term. If, your soil is like mine it is sandy clay. If it is better than mine you are lucky but, in any case you want to add organic mater and rototill it in to a depth of 8-10 inches.

I would have a soil test done. The EMPIRE ZOYSIA does well over a fairly wide PH range BUT, it does like IRON which locks up at anything above 7.

I would apply about two inches of organic matter on top of your soil. For organic matter you can use compost, manure (not fresh-you want composted manure), coffee grinds (you can get them for free at starbucks or most places that sell coffee). Since you obviously need quite a bit, it is far cheaper to buy a truck load than in 50 pound bags.

The old expression always applies-if you don't have the time to do it right the first time you will need to have the time to do it again.