Pistonheads- Turfing matters!
Discussion
Morning all.
I am currently engaging on renovation project of the century on OH's flat, in order to sell it next year. Currently on the garden...
There is a small lawn, 5x1.5m which was in fairly bad shape. Started to pick out the weeds with a view to reseeding, but quickly realised the weeds were in fact the lawn. I have taken all the "turf" off now, lightly dug over the area and broken the soil up into a reasonably flat, raked area.
I've looked into turf and it's not going to be expensive for the area, however need some pointers-
What is the best turf for a shaded area? (Very overshadowed by trees)
Apart from removing obvious weeds in the patch and applying a weed/moss killer, what other preparation do I need to do before laying the turf? The soil appears to be in good condition, there are plenty of worms and it looks quite fertile.
I'm not going for a bowling green finish, but is there any other physical preparation needed?
I have got a couple of bags of partially rotted leaves- I have seen on a few sites that these improve drainage- Is it worth digging them in?
Thaks in advance!
I am currently engaging on renovation project of the century on OH's flat, in order to sell it next year. Currently on the garden...
There is a small lawn, 5x1.5m which was in fairly bad shape. Started to pick out the weeds with a view to reseeding, but quickly realised the weeds were in fact the lawn. I have taken all the "turf" off now, lightly dug over the area and broken the soil up into a reasonably flat, raked area.
I've looked into turf and it's not going to be expensive for the area, however need some pointers-
What is the best turf for a shaded area? (Very overshadowed by trees)
Apart from removing obvious weeds in the patch and applying a weed/moss killer, what other preparation do I need to do before laying the turf? The soil appears to be in good condition, there are plenty of worms and it looks quite fertile.
I'm not going for a bowling green finish, but is there any other physical preparation needed?
I have got a couple of bags of partially rotted leaves- I have seen on a few sites that these improve drainage- Is it worth digging them in?
Thaks in advance!
I am also interested in a similar situation, to grow grass on an area previously covered by leylandii...
Any extra nutrients you can get into the soil will help keep weeds down - grass likes to be well fed in order to cope with the weeds - I expect the area you are looking to turf will probably benefit from a bit of leaf mould, as this will help the grass grow strongly.
Any extra nutrients you can get into the soil will help keep weeds down - grass likes to be well fed in order to cope with the weeds - I expect the area you are looking to turf will probably benefit from a bit of leaf mould, as this will help the grass grow strongly.
A heavily shaded area will never grow very good turf. I would consider seeding using a shade tolerant mix as the best option if you really want grass. Some of the turf specialists may be able to supply a specific turf for shade, but most turf is produced in open field situations and grown using grass species that prefer good light levels, therefore seed is a better option as the species can be selected for tolerance to lower sunlight levels.
In summer, the ground is likely to get quite dry too if the nearby tree roots spread out beneath the grassed area, so some organic matter dug in will help water retention. Leaf mould will open up the soil and help the air/water balance, but also provide nutrient to the grass roots.
Other alternatives are artificial turf - more costly, but there are some extremely convincing products available now, which look nothing like the traditional 'Astro-turf' or you could consider a permeable weed membrane covered with decorative aggregate or ornamental bark nuggets and planted through with shade loving plants/ferns etc here and there to break up the expanse.
Maintenence with either of these options is vastly reduced and may well appeal to the prospective purchaser more than the idea of looking after a lawn throughout the year.
In summer, the ground is likely to get quite dry too if the nearby tree roots spread out beneath the grassed area, so some organic matter dug in will help water retention. Leaf mould will open up the soil and help the air/water balance, but also provide nutrient to the grass roots.
Other alternatives are artificial turf - more costly, but there are some extremely convincing products available now, which look nothing like the traditional 'Astro-turf' or you could consider a permeable weed membrane covered with decorative aggregate or ornamental bark nuggets and planted through with shade loving plants/ferns etc here and there to break up the expanse.
Maintenence with either of these options is vastly reduced and may well appeal to the prospective purchaser more than the idea of looking after a lawn throughout the year.
Edited by 58warren on Sunday 7th March 12:45
Thanks for the suggestions, I had half considered artificial turf but the OH is not keen at all. I have seen some local turf suppliers who do a specialist one for shade.
Just finished in the garden now- Digging in 2 black bags of leaves/leafmould and trying to extract all the weeds. Flipping hard work! Have now laid down a weedkiller so will leave it to settle and probably turf it later in the week/next week!
Just finished in the garden now- Digging in 2 black bags of leaves/leafmould and trying to extract all the weeds. Flipping hard work! Have now laid down a weedkiller so will leave it to settle and probably turf it later in the week/next week!
Dogwatch said:
Lidle are currently flogging some 'shady grass seed'. I assume the 'shady' refers to the use to which the product can be put rather than its origins. 
Ta, I actually bought some from the garden centre before I realised that a- It'll take fecking ages to grow, b- it needs more preparation and c- it's actually a really small lawn so turfing it won't be much more than £50."Shady grass"- Mmmm, nice!
Gassing Station | Homes, Gardens and DIY | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff