Turf can be laid at any time of the year. Thorough preparation is very important for best results. Don't arrange delivery of your turf before you have fully prepared the soil bed.

Preparation

When replacing an old lawn, you may need to first spray the old turf with a herbicide which kills the entire plant, including the root, and ensures that weeds cannot re-grow and infest your new lawn. When the old lawn is dead it should be removed, don't throw the old turf away though! Stack it up in a corner of the garden and in two years time you'll have some lovely compost to use on the borders.

A depth of at least 150 mm (6") of good topsoil is recommended for lawns. At this stage it's well worth thinking about digging compost into your soil. For example, if you have very sandy soils, compost will add structure to the soil, and improve its ability to retain moisture and nutrients, it will also improve the drainage.

Dig over soil, removing any weeds and stones then rake to a rough level and then walk over all the area on your heels,  this consolidates the soil, making sure that you are not left with soft spots. It's worth taking your time to avoid uneven settling of the soil later on. Apply fertiliser and mix thoroughly into the soil, rake over to obtain the final level this ensures good contact between the soil and the turf.

As a general rule, lay the turf as soon as possible after delivery. The sooner you lay it, the better the results will be. When ordering turf make sure you order enough turf for your needs. Remember that wastage due to cutting and shaping is higher for irregularly shaped lawn. Click here to read how to measure your lawn correctly.

Laying

Lay the turf along a straight side, butting the ends closely together. On the other rows, stagger the joints like brickwork, making sure that there are no gaps.

If you need to adjust the position of the turf after unrolling, always push the turf rather than pulling it, this will avoid stretching. Work off a plank laid on the soil to avoid making any footprints. To make sure the turf has contact with the underside topsoil, stamp or roll the turf lightly as you go along.  If any gaps appear, just fill in with top soil.

Watering

Water the turf as soon as you have laid it, this will stop the grass drying out, we recommend you do this for the first 2-3 weeks, or until the roots have gone well down into the soil. Make sure when watering, not to over water or flood the turf. You can check this by lifting one corner of turf and if the top soil is just damp that’s fine.

For more information on any of our products or to place an order for lawn turf
Please feel to contact us either by email or by calling 01509 881 098