What to do after laying turf – Our aftercare tips

Laying turf is one of the biggest and most instant transformations that you can make to your green space – whether that be a back garden, a landscaped estate, bowling green or professional golf-course.

Before taking the leap and laying turf, you will have done your homework as to what is the best type of turf, when to lay it, how to prepare for it, what time of year to lay the turf and so on.

But the work doesn’t stop there. Indeed there is a lot of consider once your beautiful new lawn has been laid.

New turf requires a great degree of care and after-thought, otherwise, it may not perform at its optimum level and you won’t get the best possible results.

In this article we will cover watering, mowing and feeding, wear and tear and some top turf tips – but thought it might be useful to start with a quick lesson in what you shouldn’t do to new turf too.

 

What not to do after laying turf

There are a lot of things you can do after turf has been laid to make sure you get the best from it but there are a few simple rules which are a no-no.

Don’t walk on new turf and especially not when it has been raining as it can create dents and divots on the surface and disrupt the roots.

Do not skip the watering process, even though it can be time-consuming, as water is essential for the roots to take.

Watering new turf

The most important aftercare aspect of turf is to water it often. While new turf is settling and the roots are getting themselves established, they need plenty of water to keep them hydrated and healthy.

New turf will need watering at least twice a day for the first seven days after it is laid. After that, you can look at watering two to three times a week. When the turf has been down for six weeks, you can look at watering once a week.

Keep an eye on weather conditions though as extremely hot temperatures will mean you may need to water more often to prevent new turf from drying out. Likewise, if the weather is extremely wet for a prolonged period of time, you won’t have to worry about watering it yourself.

The amount of water you put on the new turf is important too as it needs to be sufficient to get beyond the surface and down to the roots which, the longer the turf has been down, will have grown longer.

A top tip from our gardening experts is that a sprinkler system is better than hand watering and one of the best ways to check that the soil has the correct levels of moisture is to cut a little hole in it and have a look.

If the soil is not soaking wet, but moist, dark and cool then you are on the right lines.

Mowing new turf

In addition to watering turf, cutting it is a crucial part of maintaining it to make sure it continues to establish itself and look its best.

After the turf has been down for around two to three weeks, this is a good time to consider mowing. You can check if it is ready to mow by pulling up a corner and trying to peel it back. If it comes away easily, you need to give it a little more time to bed in, but if it feels stuck, then the roots have started to take well and a cut will actually help it continue to develop.

This is because at this stage, all the energy is needed to develop roots, and not swards of the grass. Therefore a cut now will help make sure that moisture, nutrients and energy can be directed into developing the root system.

If you are ready to mow the turf for the first time, take care not to cut it too short as it may stress the grass and roots and affect how it grows back.

To be on the safe side, put the lawnmower on the highest setting for the blades, which should be sharp to make sure of a clean cut, and just taking the tops off the grass swards will be enough this time.

If you can use a grass box to collect the cuttings that will be easier but if not, rake them up and remove them so sunlight can get to the turf.

Depending upon how fast the grass grows back, you can look at cutting it again a week or so later.

How to avoid wear and tear of new turf?

Turfing your garden or green space makes for an instant transformation and understandably you will want to make use of it as soon as possible.

But, in order to get the best out of your garden in the long run, it is best to keep people and pets off it for the first couple of weeks.

Walking on the new turf before it has established itself can lead to soil compaction and this makes it harder for roots to form properly.

The knock-on effect of this is that the grass isn’t as healthy as it could be and becomes vulnerable to rips in the turf and possibly lawn diseases in the future.

You can walk on it to water it and cut it in the first few weeks of course, but avoid things such as games like football and over-use by pets.

Feeding new turf

Getting the correct amount of water and nutrients is vital to your new turf’s development and it being able to thrive.

To make sure the grass alone doesn’t take up natural nutrients, which can cause it to thin out and go pale, there are things you can do to give it a helping hand.

Here are Lindum, our turf and grass is grown with the help of a technique called Foliar feeding, which involves spraying water-dissolved fertilisers directly on the leaves, so the turf has been fertilised before it reaches you and you won’t need to add anything straight away.

After a month or so, depending on weather conditions, the turf may now need extra nutrients, especially if it has been cut for the first time too.

There are different options depending on the time of year and the time of year you laid the turf – a general rule of thumb is to look for one that has a good mix of nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), and potassium (K) content amongst its ingredients.

Summary

Laying turf can give you an instant transformation without the time and effort required by seeding. However, in order to get the best from it, some time and effort will be needed to ensure it develops well.

The importance of making sure the turf gets enough water cannot be underestimated and a top take away tip from this article – is to make sure your turf is watered regularly.

You should also take careful consideration of mowing turf by making sure it is established enough, and the grass has grown enough. By cutting the swards back, just a little, it means the nutrients are being directed and absorbed by the roots, which need it the most.

Turf may need a helping hand to thrive and an environmentally friendly fertilizer will be the best bet. While you may be worried about putting chemicals on the area, there are organic options out there now so we would recommend looking at those.

And finally, tempting as it is to use the beautiful space that you have created, too much too soon can be damaging in the long run so if you can avoid it being used for the first few weeks, it does actually mean you will get the most out of it in the long run.

Make it plastic free

Some turfs are grown using a plastic mesh to help it stay together when being harvested. Unfortunately, that plastic mesh is then buried in the soil once the turf is laid and over time will break down into microplastics to pollute the local environment and even get into watercourses.

At Lindum Turf, we believe this practice is outdated and should be stopped. That’s why all of our turf is plastic-free or grown on sandy loam soil. By choosing plastic free, you’ll be able to enjoy your fantastic new lawn guilt-free, knowing laying it has in no way harmed the environment. 

To view all of our plastic-free turfs, click here https://turf.co.uk/all-products.