New Build, New (Turved) Lawn Advice Please.

Jk_welsh · May 2020

Hi Folks,

First time posting, and first time I’ve had a new turved lawn installed.
Been in the house about 18 months, and like most people currently working from home, so finally decided to do something about the rear garden. You can see the before and after pictures below for reference

New lawn has been down 10 days now, and the majority of it is looking pretty healthy. Old top soil and weeds were removed, remainder was rotovated and a couple of inches of new topsoil put on top, heeled down, raked and fertilised with “Growmore” fertiliser and raked again. Turves were laid by a general landscaper on the day they were delivered, onto a well watered bed (just at the start of the current decent weather) They were then watered that evening for an hour.

Watering has been twice a day (AM & PM) since laid, usually for about 30-40 minutes at a time using an impact sprinkler, followed by hand hose in the corners where the sprinkler doesn’t reach.

Anyway, 10 days on I have a few questions/observations which I would love some comments/advice on

1. 95% of the lawn is looking green and healthy, and when walked on (to reach sprinkler) it’s gone from being very soft and spongey, to quite firm, so does this mean it’s rooting ok?

2. There are a few yellowing patches (almost dead looking - see pictures) which despite being well watered are looking rather sickly. Is this saveable, am I over watering, or should I put some fertiliser down? Or just continue as it (We are currently having a heat wave here in the South East, so daily temps sitting around 26-28 degrees)

3. In the main the turves have been well butted together, however there are some areas where I’m seeing gaps of around 1-1.5cm. Should I fill these now with a compost & seed mix, or leave until the lawn is well established, perhaps after the first mowing (which I expect to be at least another 6 weeks away)

Pictures below.

Many Thanks,
John.

Fairygirl · May 2020

30 to 40 minutes isn't long enough. Couple of hours would be better. The gaps have opened up because it's been dry.
Best done at night when it's less likely to evaporate too, if you can manage.

Jk_welsh · May 2020

Thanks FG

So I’ll change the watering routine to once a day, in the evening for two hours.

Any thoughts on the yellowing areas? Just increase the watering there, otherwise leave alone?

Thanks,
John.

Fairygirl · May 2020

Pretty much. I think the people laying it have been a bit lax, to be honest, but it's grass - it'll survive

If you consider how much water falls out the sky in an hour of steady rain, it's a lot more than these sprinklers produce. You can address the gaps in a month or so if they're still not great. A bit of reseeding will sort it, assuming the soil underneath is fine. If you need to do that, make sure to broadcast some seed over the whole area though, so that it all blends in.

It's not a great time of year to be turfing, and it does need a bit more attention, especially as so many areas have had very hot, dry weather. Nothing that can't be sorted fairly easily though

Jk_welsh · May 2020

The new lawn has been in place now for 15 days, and is well watered. The majority of the turf is green and now well established. (Haven’t cut yet, height is 2-3”)

The yellow patches have not improved, and on lifting a few corners to see if any roots have established there are none, despite some concentrated watering over the past 5 days. No green shoots on top, no roots below. Completely ruins the look of an otherwise healthy lawn.

Some pics below.

So my question now is what to do next?

Leave as is and continue to water?
Spread topsoil and seed on top?
Remove dead patches and re-turf?

Thanks as always for any advice

KT53 · May 2020

As the problem all seems to be along one edge I wonder if the soil is poorer in that area. My sister-in-law has a similar problem, but that is unfortunately slap bang in the middle of the lawn. They are planning to raise the entire area by 6" so aren't too concerned.

I wouldn't worry too much about the gaps as they will fill in eventually. After our lawn was laid, I discovered an area where gaps had been left between the turfs for no obvious reason. They had some left over so weren't running short. The gaps had disappeared within a few months.

Jk_welsh · May 2020

KT53 said:

As the problem all seems to be along one edge I wonder if the soil is poorer in that area. My sister-in-law has a similar problem, but that is unfortunately slap bang in the middle of the lawn. They are planning to raise the entire area by 6" so aren't too concerned.
I wouldn't worry too much about the gaps as they will fill in eventually. After our lawn was laid, I discovered an area where gaps had been left between the turfs for no obvious reason. They had some left over so weren't running short. The gaps had disappeared within a few months.

Yes poorer soil in that area is a possibility (new build, typical rubbish soil left behind). We did rotovate and add a couple of cm Of topsoil and fertiliser before having the turves put down. Some of the poor areas have strong growth within the sod, and dead/yellowing in patches which is quite strange.
The gaps are definitely filling in areas of strong growth.

Fairygirl · May 2020

I'd agree with @KT53 - that section is probably a bit rubbish underneath.
Not a huge amount you can do, but if you keep the grass a little longer when you cut, it might improve the look. A really good spell of rain would probably help enormously - nothing is ever as good as the stuff that falls out the sky

You could probably add a little topsoil later to the area, and repeat every so often. If it still isn't great , you might have to re seed now and again.

Glad the gaps look a bit better too.

New Build, New (Turved) Lawn Advice Please.

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