1) Is your landscape shady or sunny most of the day?
2) How much watering and maintenance do you want to do?
3) What kind of traffic will your landscape have? Sports activities, foot traffic, etc.
4) Natural wet conditions.
If you have a moderate shady landscape, you might want to consider Seville St. Augustine or Palmetto St. Augustine. They both provide a beautiful lush green look and grow well in moderate shady areas. Like other St Augustine varieties, they will need a consistent watering schedule and can be susceptible to fungal diseases and harmful bugs. All St. Augustine varieties would be your best choice for natural wet conditions.
If you have a sunny landscape most grasses that thrive in the heat of the Orlando area will do, so you should consider the amount of traffic your sod will take or maintenance you are willing to do.
For high foot traffic or if sports will be played on your sod you should consider Empire Zoysia, Celebration, or Tifway 419 Bermuda sod. Empire Zoysia is a great choice for the active home and is a popular choice for Golf courses, theme parks, and office complexes. Empire Zoysia is a beautiful, soft grass and very durable that requires less maintenance than St. Augustine grasses. Both of the Bermuda varieties are excellent choices of sod for the Orlando Area. Both the Celebration and Tifway 419 varieties are commonly used on sports fields, golf courses, and homes throughout the southern part of the United States and are drought resistant. The Celebration Bermuda is moderate shade tolerant but does better in full sun.
Here is a chart to help you select the best type of sod for your Orlando area landscape
| Empire Zoysia | Celebration | Tifway 419 | Palmetto | Seville | Floratam | Bahia | |
| Shade Tolerant | X | X | x | ||||
| Traffic Tolerant | X | X | X | ||||
| Lower Maintenance | X | X | X | X | |||
| Wet Conditions | X | X | X |