Turf Laying Guide
Laying a lawn with our Turfgrass Growers Association certified turf and careful ground preparation, will bring you near instant results. You could be sitting outside and enjoying your garden a lot sooner than you think. You can lay turf at any time of the year, except in frosty or snowy conditions.
Good preparation is essential for establishing a successful lawn.
- Remove any existing turf (either with a spade or, to make things easier, look at hiring a turf cutter, available from many tool hire companies).
- Dig over or rotovate the soil to a depth of 8-10”.
- Clear the entire area of all debris, roots, stones and weeds.
- Consider adding some well-rotted manure to hold moisture (especially on sandy soil). It has to be well-rotted as it will eliminate the risk of the soil sinking unevenly later on.
- Ideally you will now leave the ground to settle for at least several days (longer than that is better) so that new weeds have time to germinate and can then be removed. For best results, remove the newly germinated weeds by hand.
- Now, create a smooth and level surface by treading and raking over the area repeatedly.
- To help your new lawn establish itself, we recommend adding some general purpose fertiliser at this stage.
Measure the area to be turfed in square metres.
Carefully select and order the right grade of turf that suits your requirements. By using a turf which is TGA certified you will have the peace of mind that this turf has had to consistently meet a set of minimum standards. Go Turf only supply TGA certified turf.
Turf needs to be laid as soon as possible before it dries out, ideally within 24 hours of delivery. If laying is delayed, lay the rolls of turf out to reduce the likelihood of it becoming discoloured and weakened.
- You will need a sharp knife to cut the turf and some boards to work on (you must try to avoid walking on a newly laid lawn).
- Begin at one side of the area to be turfed and lay each roll with staggered joints and in a brickwork pattern. Each roll needs to be closely butted together. Ensure that the underside of the turf is level and in full contact with the soil below by adding or removing soil as necessary.
- Leave the more awkward corners until last and then you can use up the offcuts from larger pieces, making any cuts with a sharp knife.
- Leave the more awkward corners until last and then you can use up the offcuts from larger pieces, making any cuts with a sharp knife.
Water your newly laid lawn using a hosepipe or a sprinkler. The water needs to penetrate through the turf and soak into the soil below. To ensure that it is watered enough, check by lifting up the corner of a piece of turf to see that the soil is moist underneath.
Continue to water it regularly over the coming days and weeks to keep the turf moist. The level of watering will depend on the time of year and weather conditions. Do not over water as it can cause shallow rooting, boggy conditions and grass diseases. But do not let the turf dry out and go brown either.
Mow the lawn for the first time when it has had time to establish its roots. To check on the roots try lifting up a corner of the lawn to see for yourself. The progress of root growth will depend on the time of year and the weather conditions.
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