Planning the New Lawn
Keep It Simple Shapes
If you get this bit right not only will the lawn look and grow better it will also be easier to maintain and cause fewer problems.
Lawn Design
I’m not a garden designer but I know what makes for an easy to maintain lawn:
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Keep it simple shape – K.I.S.S.
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Narrow entry points (steps and paths) to the lawn concentrate foot traffic in those areas. Keep access points as wide and numerous as possible
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Straight edges and gentle curves are easiest to mow and maintain
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Limit the number of islands or obstacles in the lawn. Bird baths, lawn centred shrubberies, trees, ponds etc make mowing slower and harder and increase edging chores
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Keep narrow areas to a minimum. An optimum width is one where mowing can be done in either direction – east to west or north to south
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If you intend striping the lawn with the mower simple shapes are best – K.I.S.S.
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If you are planning an ornamental lawn consideration must be given to making scarifying and aeration as easy as possible – K.I.S.S.
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Will the lawn get sufficient light? Choose your seed or turf accordingly and make changes to design if light is expected to be very low
Lawn Levels
If you are happy with the depth or levels of the area then maintaining it as you prepare the ground is all that is important. However, if changes need to be made or you are adding volume with additional soil you will need to mark out with pegs and string the new levels you wish to achieve. These should only be removed once final levels are achieved in the surface preparation stage.
Project timing
For seeding a lawn consider April onwards when temperatures start getting to 100C and are consistently above 50C. Summer months are great if you can be diligent with watering if there is little or no rain. Late August and September are also ideal when the rains start but before the autumn gets chilly.
Turfing can be done at pretty much anytime though summer will require considerable watering. Therefore, turfing is best done in cooler wetter conditions and makes a perfect winter job with November to March being the traditional turfing period.
Finally, don’t rush; the more time you can give the project the better. This is particularly true when you come to preparing the soil and a clean seed bed.
