The Brew Cabin

Posted: **Sun Apr 17, 2011 11:14 pm**

I shall be laying a lawn this weekend so I thought a soft landscape thread would help and my customer needs advise on the plants to buy for these raised beds?

Posted: **Sun Apr 17, 2011 11:41 pm**

Whats it's aspect full/half sun or shade. What time of day does the sun shine and what does the client want to achieve with regards colour and looks. What kind of mulch is that in them.

Posted: **Sun Apr 17, 2011 11:57 pm**

I would say south facing no shade for the lawn , planters will be mostly shaded due to the hight of the wall. It's about 8000x600 2 teird full of good soil then teram and Cotswold stone on top. evergreens? I only know daffs being welsh but it's something I would like to improve my knowledge on.

Posted: **Mon Apr 18, 2011 7:12 am**

obviously plants that prefer shade. I would take off the stone and mix some fertilizer in with the soil, get it ready to receive plants. You need to test soil to see if it's loamy, acidy etc: there are some good reference books on the market hag. i boight half a dozen at car boot sale and charity shops this w'kend ranging from ....lawns,shrubs, bedding plants etc: it is an whole new ball game and needs a lot of research. Read up m8 it is quite rewarding

Posted: **Mon Apr 18, 2011 1:26 pm**

Found a good tip online: it says to roll the turf out in opposite directions so you get the striped look straight away ready for photos and the instant effect for the customer !

Posted: **Mon Apr 18, 2011 2:07 pm**

If drainage isn't good then level the ground with washed sharp sand and lay the turf on that.

Posted: **Mon Apr 18, 2011 5:49 pm**

thatD.G.Hessayon seems to be a right know all about garden stuff
LLL :;):

Posted: **Mon Apr 18, 2011 7:03 pm**

our turfing lads who bless them despite being inbred deliverance country bumkins make a great turf job and supply and lay for Â£2/m theyve done 3/4 acres lawns for us before. they always lay on soft sand level/screedd and use boards and planks to walk on and straighten and cut it with old steak knives etc.

water well first few weeks, no feed and weed stuff. one client thoughts they were helping feeding and weeding it and killed 300m+

i need to know more about this side of things

Posted: **Mon Apr 18, 2011 7:21 pm**

i will be screeding it off to edges with a few bags of very sandy soil from buildbase i would gladly sub it out for Â£2m ..and i have a steak knife in my kit since the last one well serated kitchen knife

pointed and soiled up today i was too fecked to remember pics

Posted: **Tue Apr 19, 2011 10:39 am**

We use the end of old blunt jack saws, cut to length with a grinder, last ages and do the job well. tell the clients to keep off the lawn for 3 weeks, water well for the first 3 weeks, best in the evening as the sun doesn't evaporate it. If it's not watered well it'll shrink, leaving nasty gaps between rolls. After it's taken the first cut should be on longest setting and then take it down gradually, never set your blades to short and check for sharpness or you'll just rip not cut. No chemical treatments for at least 12 months after laying. If the soil your laying on is poor quality soil, even if it isn't, a bit of fertiliser works well to help establish roots. We always lay on a mix of Top sport top soil and grit sand for drainage.
The ground underneath turf shouldn't be to compacted either, loosen it with a fork or rotovator and firm with your heels, not a compactor like we've seen some "Landscapers" doing!!

Posted: **Tue Apr 19, 2011 3:48 pm**

GB_Groundworks wrote:our turfing lads who bless them despite being inbred deliverance country bumpkins

:laugh: :laugh: :laugh:

Blind with sharp, use planks to flatten edges and for walk ways, jack saws work really well with turf, keep it well watered.

hp

Posted: **Fri Apr 29, 2011 10:26 am**

Cheers boys any advise i should pass on to the customer on how to maintain the lawn

Posted: **Fri Apr 29, 2011 10:39 am**

looks really good hag. the client must be very happy.

Posted: **Fri Apr 29, 2011 11:06 am**

Keep it watered every 3-4 days for the first season and don't apply any feed. This is alleged to encourage the roots to search for essential minerals, and so they venture into the bedding, rather than just lurking around in the sod waiting for the next shower of fertiliser jollop.

Posted: **Fri Apr 29, 2011 11:38 am**

first 3 weeks it needs to be saturated daily or it'll shrink. Then as and when it's needed throughout the growing season. Don't cut it to short and don't let it grow to long. Never cut it by more than a third at a time. If it gets to long the shade kills the finer swards and if it's to short it promotes moss growth. Fertiliser should be applied to the soil to promote root growth and not to the turf. Give it an autumn feed only. I'd not have taken delivery of that turf it's very parched and patchy but it should come good eventually.

Edited By Pablo on 1304073598

The Brew Cabin

Lawn - The green green grass of home.