Preparation for laying turf?

[Deleted]

Hello everybody.

My lawn is very uneven and more dandelion and clover than grass so I want to clear it and lay new turf. As I have never done this before I would love some advice. Thanks.

[veggardener]

Hi

I did this last year, not because of unevenness or weeds but because over many years the ground had become so compacted the grass virtually died from lack of moisture.

It all depends how fit you are (it is hard work) and how big your lawn is.
The two lawns I re-turfed were too big to attempt without mechanical equipment, so I hired a petrol driven turf-remover and rotavator.

I began by removing the old turf the rotavated the ground throughly. Then it pays to take your time to remove stones & perennial weed roots, before raking the soil level.
The next task is to tread the soil with your feet before giving it a final rake to make it level. (at this stage add a slow release fertilizer such as bone meal).

Then you are ready to order & lay the turf.

Good luck!

[Deleted]

Thanks David. The lawn isn't too big but we are not as fit as we used to be (!!!) so will probably need to hire equipment. Now this is where I really start to show my ignorance. Are turf-remover and rotavator two separate machines ? Roughly how much would they cost to hire? Should I use a suitable weed killer at any point? Should I treat the prepared surface with top-soil or soil 'enricher' before laying the turf?

Thanks.