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Levelling garden
shervon87
Posts: 2
Hi there newbie here and complete gardening novice.
i really hope someone can help me with my queries please.
Currently we have decking outside and some steps leading to a tiny patio area. As we have young children we'd like to make it all grass and all the same level as the patio which is the same level as our neighbours gardens.
How do we do this? obviously remove the decking but then what? How do we remove the patio and then go about putting grass down?
would you use real grass or artificial grass?
any advice would really be appreciated. Thank you for your time.
0
Posts
There's no easy answer to this because it entirely depends what you find under the patio and decking when you take them up.
If your patio is just flags laid on sand on a weed mat, and your decking much the same, you can saw up the decking, lift the slabs, shovel the sand into buckets, take up the weed mats, rotavate the soil underneath both areas, rake it all level, sprinkle some grass seed and wait a few weeks - hey presto, nice flat lawn
However, if your patio has been laid using cement mortar, or covers the footings or an old out house, or the decking was used to cover an older patio which has a load of rubble or stone or what have you, then the removal and levelling process could involve diggers, concrete breakers, skips and a LOT of sweat. The soil may be very compacted underneath so it may need work to get it to a state where grass will 'take'. The solution may be importing top soil, or laying artificial grass instead, impossible to say.
You need to make a start and see what you find
“It's still magic even if you know how it's done.”
If you remove the decking and make it all level with the grass you will need to build steps down from the house. Just an aside!
if the patio is tiny and children don't stay that small for long, you could lay rubber play mats down on the patio. That would give a soft surface for them to play on and when they have grown a bit, easily lifted. Just an alternative thought!