Sod Installation In Forest Heights, Kitchener
A dried-out front lawn in Forest Heights, west Kitchener, photographed on 23 August 2026 and replaced with farm-fresh Kentucky bluegrass sod on 25 August, from the sod cutter at dawn to the sprinkler running on the rolled lawn that afternoon.
The Job at a Glance
This is one of the landscaping projects across Waterloo Region we have photographed: a front lawn between the driveway and an armour-stone garden bed at a two-storey home in Forest Heights, replaced by our crew and photographed from the first morning of the job to the first watering. The service itself is described on our Forest Heights sod installation page.
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Before
What we saw: Straw-coloured, dried-out grass across the front lawn, thin and weedy along the sidewalk and around the armour-stone bed, with worn patches by the driveway. Most of the lawn had gone brown, and weeds were filling the greener spots.
If this looks like your lawn: For this lawn the fix was a full tear-out rather than patching or overseeding. Frame 1 in the gallery below shows this lawn on the evening of 23 August 2026, two days before the crew arrived.
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The Quote
The estimate covered: A full tear-out of the old turf with a sod cutter rather than patching, the bed graded level to the driveway and the sidewalk, and farm-fresh Kentucky bluegrass sod across the whole front lawn, rolled in after laying.
Also included: Watering-in guidance for the first weeks and our 100% sod warranty: any piece that arrives unhealthy is replaced free of charge. Estimate requests get a reply within 24 hours.
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The Solution
The work: On the morning of 25 August the crew ran the sod cutter across the old lawn first thing, stripped the whole front to bare soil from the driveway to the sidewalk, and cleared the cuttings by wheelbarrow.
The result: By early afternoon the Kentucky bluegrass rolls were down across the whole lawn and being pressed in with the roller, with the sprinkler already running. The last frames show the finished lawn being watered in with the Right On Sod sign up.
Why Kentucky Bluegrass Was the Right Sod for This Forest Heights Lawn
Right On Sod installs 100% farm-fresh Kentucky bluegrass, the same turf described on our Kitchener sod installation page. Three reasons it suits a lawn like this one.
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Cold-Hardy for Ontario Winters
The challenge: This lawn had dried out and browned over the summer, and a Kitchener lawn then sits frozen for months and goes through repeated freeze-thaw cycles every spring.
Why bluegrass: Kentucky bluegrass is a cool-season grass that is cold-hardy, so it comes through Ontario winters and greens up again in spring. Laid in late August, it has the cooler weeks of September to root before the ground cools.
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Knits Together and Self-Repairs
The challenge: The old lawn had thinned along the sidewalk and by the driveway, and thin turf gives weeds room to move in, which is exactly what frame 1 shows.
Why bluegrass: Kentucky bluegrass spreads by underground rhizomes, so the rolls knit together at the seams and the turf fills small gaps on its own. Rolling the sod right after laying, as frame 5 shows, presses the roots into the soil so that knitting starts sooner.
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Thrives on Sun and a Simple Routine
The challenge: This is an open front lawn in full sun at midday with no tree over it, and new sod is only as good as its first weeks: rolls that dry out before they root stay loose on the soil.
Why bluegrass: Kentucky bluegrass wants four to six or more hours of sun a day and daily watering for the first two weeks or so, then roots in two to three weeks, which is why the sprinkler was running here while the crew was still rolling.
Right On Sod
How We Replaced This Lawn, Step by Step
Assess the Lawn and Quote the Job
What we photographed on 23 August: a front lawn that had gone brown and thin from the sidewalk to the garden bed, with weeds filling the greener spots. Rather than patch or overseed it, the estimate covered a full tear-out, a level bed, and farm-fresh Kentucky bluegrass sod.
Cut Out and Haul Away the Old Turf
First thing on 25 August the sod cutter was on the lawn, with the roller waiting at the sidewalk. Half an hour later the whole front was stripped to bare soil and a crew member was clearing it by wheelbarrow. Stripping the old turf rather than tilling it in means the dead grass and its thatch leave the property instead of being buried under the new sod.
Grade the Bed Level Before the Rolls Go Down
Once the old turf is out, the bed is raked level and firmed, with fresh topsoil where it is needed, so the rolls sit flush with the driveway and the sidewalk instead of proud of them. No frame caught that stage on this job: the photos jump from the bare, clumpy soil at quarter to eight to the sod already down and being rolled after one o’clock.
Lay the Kentucky Bluegrass Sod and Roll It In
By early afternoon on 25 August the rolls were down across the whole lawn, fitted to the driveway edge and the sidewalk. Frame 5 shows the crew running a lawn roller over the fresh sod, which presses the roots into the soil, closes the seams and takes out air pockets so the rolls knit into one lawn.
Water In and Hand Over Care Instructions
The sprinkler was already running while the sod was being rolled and was still going on the finished lawn in the last frames, taken before two o’clock. New sod needs daily watering for the first two weeks or so and roots in two to three weeks, and the homeowner got watering-in guidance to see it through. Every install carries our 100% sod warranty.
Photographed by the Right On Sod crew
Start To Finish: Eight Frames From the Job
Eight photographs taken by the crew, in the order they were taken: the dried-out lawn on the evening of 23 August, the sod cutter and the stripped soil first thing on 25 August, and the new Kentucky bluegrass sod being rolled and watered in that afternoon.
Forest Heights, Kitchener, 23 and 25 August 2026
Tap any frame to open it full size.
What Our Local Clients Say
Ready for a Lawn Like This One? Get Your Free Forest Heights Sod Quote.
Do not spend another season watering a lawn that has already given up. Right On Sod replies to estimate requests within 24 hours, installs farm-fresh Kentucky bluegrass sod and backs every install with a 100% sod warranty. Send us a few details about your Forest Heights lawn and we will take it from there.