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Lawn removal

nickgodfrey81nickgodfrey81 Posts: 4
in Problem solving
Hello and thanks for looking at my shout for help.

We are currently have a new extension built, once it's built we are putting a new shed base down and then a patio. After this I'm going to 're turf my whole garden. Being probably 20ft by 40ft. The old lawn is bumpy and uneven and the grass is not very good, has some weeds and bits in it. What is the best way to get rid of the old lawn? I don't want to use chemicals as we have dogs and chickens.

So can i just go over it with a rear tine tiller or do I need to cut the old lawn out? The ground underneath is not very good so I'm going to put fresh topsoil down before laying the turf. 

I've been offered a tiller for £100 so thought it would be better than hiring one. But unsure if this is the tool I really need.

Any help is much appreciated.
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Posts

  • wild edgeswild edges Posts: 10,497
    Will you have a digger available when the extenstion is built? It might be quicker to use a toothed bucket on that to give the soil a good rake over.
    If you can keep your head, while those around you are losing theirs, you may not have grasped the seriousness of the situation.
  • nickgodfrey81nickgodfrey81 Posts: 4
    wild edges said:
    Will you have a digger available when the extenstion is built? It might be quicker to use a toothed bucket on that to give the soil a good rake over.
    No digger is going back today, and currently the garden is covered with everything from around the area that the extension is being built 
  • AnniDAnniD Posts: 12,585
    Hi @nickgodfrey81 welcome to the forum . With regard to the tiller, it depends how much use you would make of it in the future.  If it's going to be sitting around cluttering up the place, probably best just to hire one. You can hire a machine to skim off the turf which you can then stack up to rot down (like a kind of compost heap). @glasgowdan maybe able to advise best action to take re preparation so l've tagged him in. 
  • glasgowdanglasgowdan Posts: 632
    Thanks for thinking of me AddiD! 

    Yes, I'd absolutely hire a turf cutter for a day. If you try and work with leaving the old turf in place, or rotovate it all over alive, you'll get a patchy lawn,l. As the turf underneath rots away you'll get lumps and bumps. 

    I'd cut the turf off, rotovate the lawn over thoroughly and start to level it. Tread over it, rake and repeat. 

    Then if you can, leave it a couple of weeks to settle before finishing. 

    You get a product called turf base/rootzone, which is a nice mixture of things good for new turf. 2 bags of root zone would be good for that area. Spread it out and get your final level surface with repeated treading and raking with a wide rake. Some people cobble together a wide (1 metre plus) lute, basically a plank of wood attached to a handle, to help get a nice flat finish.

    Plonk the turf on top and it should root within 3-4 weeks. General rule is if the turf supply is available it can be laid. Hard freeze weather stops them harvesting turf, but generally it can be laid all winter otherwise.
  • nickgodfrey81nickgodfrey81 Posts: 4
    glasgowdan said:
    Thanks for thinking of me AddiD! 

    Yes, I'd absolutely hire a turf cutter for a day. If you try and work with leaving the old turf in place, or rotovate it all over alive, you'll get a patchy lawn,l. As the turf underneath rots away you'll get lumps and bumps. 

    I'd cut the turf off, rotovate the lawn over thoroughly and start to level it. Tread over it, rake and repeat. 

    Then if you can, leave it a couple of weeks to settle before finishing. 

    You get a product called turf base/rootzone, which is a nice mixture of things good for new turf. 2 bags of root zone would be good for that area. Spread it out and get your final level surface with repeated treading and raking with a wide rake. Some people cobble together a wide (1 metre plus) lute, basically a plank of wood attached to a handle, to help get a nice flat finish.

    Plonk the turf on top and it should root within 3-4 weeks. General rule is if the turf supply is available it can be laid. Hard freeze weather stops them harvesting turf, but generally it can be laid all winter otherwise.
    That's great thank you. It's first time for me doing this.

    So hire a turf cutter and remove all the old. Are these adjustable height that you cut?

    Then rotovate stuff underneath and then flattern and then level off and 're rake it. Is that pretty much the steps? Or is there an easy to follow step by step guide anywhere.
  • glasgowdanglasgowdan Posts: 632
    You've got the idea!
  • JennyJJennyJ Posts: 10,576

    http://www.bbc.co.uk/gardening/basics/techniques/lawns_layingturf1.shtml

    It says fork over the soil, but rotavating should do the same job.



    Doncaster, South Yorkshire. Soil type: sandy, well-drained
  • AnniDAnniD Posts: 12,585
    I like the technical term "plonk the turf on top". Always good to go to an expert for this knowledge, @glasgowdan :)
  • nickgodfrey81nickgodfrey81 Posts: 4
    Is rotovating better than forking it over? Been offered a rear tine tiller.
  • AnniDAnniD Posts: 12,585
    edited January 2019
     To be honest, l wasn't sure what the difference was between a rotavator and a rear tine tiller,  but came across this (l know it's an American site but the principle is the sameI). Hopefully this will help with your decision.
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