TURFING OR SEEDING – A GUIDE TO HELP YOU DECIDE

PREPARATION.

The basic preparation of the soil is the same whether for seeding or turfing. The difference is that for seeding the final  preparation involves removal of all stones down to a maximum diameter of no more than a centimetre or so, but when turfing, stones up to three to four centimetres can be left.

A substantial amount of extra work is needed to produce the seed bed through extra raking. The essential tool required for both operations is a landscaper rake. Find it here.

For either turfing or seeding it is essential to have the surface firm enough that a footprint will not leave a depression, before commencing the final operation.

SKILL REQUIRED.

Both seeding and turfing require a good level of care and attention to produce a decent lawn, with the finished product very much reflecting how much effort is put in.

Turfing is certainly the best option for most, as the turf will hide a multitude of sins committed in the preparation stages. A good level and firm surface is always advisable, and is very easy to lay as it comes in rolls all of the same thickness. It can also be cut to any shape round the edges. There will be good roots within two weeks, and the lawn can be cut and used within three weeks. This is a good example of available turf rolls.

Growing a lawn from seed is much more difficult. As I have said earlier the preparation is more time consuming, but the hardest part is in spreading the seed evenly, then in growing it on to be a successful lawn.

From laying the seed to being a usable lawn, even in ideal conditions, will take three to four months, and often longer. You can find good quality grass seed on our lawnsforyou.com shop, or further examples can be found here. The quality of lawn mower is also even more important when growing in from seed.

If turfing I would recommend applying seaweed meal, lightly raked into the surface, find here, and if seeding I would recommend both seaweed meal and pre seeding fertiliser, find here.

SUMMARY.

There is no doubt that, in my experience, a better quality of lawn can be produced by seeding, but the knowledge and skills required to achieve this are considerable.

Turfing is fairly straight forward, and there a wide variety of turf grass varieties suitable for all uses available, so although it is more expensive in the short term to turf, it would be the best option for most new lawn creation projects.

The other big advantage in turfing is that you can turf all year round. In fact Autumn or Winter is the best time as little or no watering is required. Also, grass grows roots rather than top growth in the Autumn/Winter, aiding in establishment.

In writing this article I am assuming that the reader has already decided on creating a natural grass lawn. I will explain the pros and cons of creating the lawn by growing the grass from seed, or by laying purpose grown turf.

All the detailed instruction on lawn construction and grass varieties are on this site elsewhere, so this article is purely a quick guide to help you decide what method you should use to create a new lawn.

COST.

There is no doubt that seeding is cheaper as a little grass seed will cover a lot of ground. The typical application rates for a new lawn would take around six kilos of seed to cover 100 square metres.

The price varies a lot depending on the desired quality of the finished lawn, but at an average price of £5 per kilo that equates to £30 per 100 square metres.

Buying turf is the quickest method of laying a new lawn, but to cover 100 square metres the cost will be from £350 upwards, depending on

the quality of turf required.

One final thought is that is very important to do some pre planning to ensure that the finished lawn fits in well with the rest of the garden, and to ensure that right quantities of seed/turf are ordered.