Sod Solutions is known for many successful turfgrass varieties released over the years. Since our first release, Palmetto^® St. Augustine in 1994, we have added many other varieties over the course of time including zoysias, bermudagrasses, centipede and even Kentucky bluegrass. The release of a new cultivar does not come without many years of testing and evaluations. The breeding effort and intensive work are done primarily by land grant universities across the United States. Those institutions put a lot of time and diligence into crossing selected parent lines with the goal of selecting one of the resulting progenies coming from those crosses. The goal is to eventually release the final selection to the market. But the crossing and selections are just the first step of a long process. Then comes the evaluations and comparisons with the existing varieties to make sure that the newly selected line is in fact an improved grass, better than what already exists. This process can take eight or more years to complete.

It doesn’t happen often but as a unique coincidence, many universities released new varieties of grass in collaboration with Sod Solutions over the course of 2021 and 2022. These grasses are poised to add new and better options for home lawns, golf, sports and commercial settings.

North Carolina State University has been an outstanding partner in this process and have come to the release stage for two new varieties, Lobo^™ Zoysiagrass and Sola^™ St. Augustine. Lobo Zoysia, released in November 2021, is a low-input, fast-growing zoysia with less water and fertilizer requirements. It features a fine texture and a stunning look. Released in August 2022, Sola has rapid lateral growth and excellent disease resistance.

Lobo video

Sola video

Expect other future releases from the TRNC program.