When creating a garden, some things take time. Attention to detail builds a quality garden, after all you’re going to have to live with it for a long time.
There are however two things that guarantee you near instant gratification when gardening, and that’s mulching, and laying turf.
How to lay turf
First of all, you need to get the area cleared and levelled. Use a hard rake to get rid of little twigs and rocks, then flip the rake over and use the back of it to bring the soil to a rough level.
You can lay your turf straight on top of that, or you could so what the tradies do and lay turf underlay mix, otherwise known as 80:20. It’s 80% sand and 20% organic matter, which ensures that your turf has excellent drainage and the nutrition it needs to get going. Lay this before yoyu put your turn down at about 20mm thick to bring everything to a nice level.
When you bring in the underlay soil with a wheelbarrow, drop it in piles around your work area. A square shovel is great for spreading your soil around. Next roughly level the soil with a hoe or a rake.
To ensure the lawn is as flat as a billiard table, use a screed, just like when levelling sand for paving. Slide the screed backwards and forwards across the soil and remove any excess until it’s flat.
Once the turf bed is completely flat, evenly spread a starter fertiliser across the surface before laying the turf. This will help the lawn get established really quickly.
Now it’s time to roll out the new turf. We’ve used a soft leaf buffalo from Sir Walter, which is a fantastic family lawn. Rolling out the turf is very easy and the kids might even enjoy it. Trim in the edges with a sharp spade, and water it well once it’s all down.
TIP Add Seasol to the lawn to give it an extra boost to get started.