A question we’re often asked is ‘how difficult is it to lay a new lawn?’. And you’d be absolutely right to be concerned – after all, if you’ve never done it before, it can seem pretty daunting. But here’s the truth, laying a lawn yourself at home is not only possible, but pretty easy as long as you follow all of the steps required.
STEP ONE: preparation
The first thing to do is to prepare the ground underneath the turf you are going to lay. This will involve removing any existing turf using a spade or, if your lawn is particularly large, a turf cutter (these can be hired from local builders merchants).
Next, turn over the soil to a depth of 15cm using a garden fork or spade. This needs to be done in order to remove debris, including stones, weeds and roots. Again, if you have a large lawn, consider hiring a powered rotavator to turn the soil (available from builders merchants).
Once this is done take a look at the condition of the soil in order to decide whether you need to put topsoil down. If in doubt, do it – it will give your lawn a wonderful base to grow from. Lightly rake in any topsoil you use.
Finally, firm down the soil by treading gently with your feet, and then level any dips and mounds with a garden rake. Keep repeating this final step of preparation until the ground is level.
STEP 2: Lay your turf
The exciting bit! Here’s where you’ll see your new lawn taking shape before your eyes. Get your first roll of turf and place it along a straight edge. Then, roll it away from you! It really is that easy – just use a board to kneel on as you do it. Keeping on this straight edge, continue laying turf, making sure the edges between adjoining rolls are tight.
Once you’ve laid one row, start your next roll slightly further along so that the turf resembles a brickwork pattern. Use a sharp knife or half moon edging iron to cut the end of each row.
AS you lay, you may become away of any dips that you missed while raking over the topsoil. If so, peel back the turf, fill the dip with topsoil and place the turf back down.
Exposed edges of turf can dry out, so do keep them moist as you roll.
STEP 3: Water!
You need to water the new lawn regularly. Depending on the time of year, how often you water it will change, so please refer to our turf laying guide (which you can download and print), which outlines water schedules for new lawns.
Our turf laying guide can be found here
That’s it! If the prep work sounds like it may be too much for you, consider hiring a local landscaper or handyman to do that for you. The rolling really is the fun part!