I was considering installing a new lawn with turf rolls and got to thinking about all the terms used for ground cover. You can almost use the terms lawn, lawn, and lawn interchangeably, and most people will know what you mean. But since I like to be somewhat correct in my choice of words, I investigated the difference between these terms. To achieve this, I decided to use a dictionary and in each case I opted for the first dictionary option. Here are the results. Turf: A top layer of soil that contains dense growth of grass and its tangled roots. Grass – A grassy section of shallow soil held together by tangled roots. Lawn – A patch of grass, usually manicured or cut, such as one around a residence or in a park or farm.

Of the three definitions, grass stands out as the most different from the other two. The lawn is more of the finished product, like what you would go around a house or park. To illustrate, the lawn would be like a tile floor in a house, not the individual tiles before it was installed.

Sod and Turf have a slightly closer definition, but they are not exactly the same. Both have a topsoil or soil layer, both have grass and tangled roots. The difference in the definitions I found is that Sod is a “section held together” by tangled roots. Turf rolls come in sections and must be held together by tangled roots. Even if they use fishnet to help hold the rolls together, they still need tangled roots.

Grass is not held together by tangled roots and does not necessarily come in sections. It is a superficial layer. When people claim an area as ‘Your lawn’, it is larger than a section of grass.

My conclusion is that the most correct term for grass rolls is Sod. Having a new lawn installed could include the use of turf rolls, but it could also by definition include having an area seeded with grass that will eventually become turf.

Once a turf farm cuts sections of grass and tangled roots, those sections become turf. They are then rolled up and shipped to the requested location. Once on site, the grass is laid on the ground one matted section at a time. Returning to the illustration, the grass is laid out like tiles on the ground. Once the sections are arranged and joined together, it turns into grass or turf.

Well, I am ready to install a new lawn. To do so, I will order my lawn rolls from a respected lawn farm.