How to lay turf in a Kent garden.

Turf is the faster alternative to seeding when you need a lawn quickly, whether that's for a property sale, a new build, or after building work has left the old lawn beyond rescuing. Done well, it looks finished almost immediately and is ready to use in four to six weeks. Done poorly, especially in the ground preparation stage, sections dry out, shrink and die, leaving gaps that take months to fill in.

East Kent's soils vary considerably. Gardens in and around Sandwich and Sandwich Bay tend to be sandier and free-draining. Gardens further inland towards Ash, Woodnesborough and Eastry are often heavier clay. The preparation steps are similar, but the drainage challenge is different, and that affects how often you will need to water in the first weeks after laying.

1. Choosing the right time of year

Turf can technically be laid at any time of year as long as the ground is not frozen or waterlogged. In practice, two windows give the best results in Kent:

• September to October is the best window. Soil temperatures are still warm enough to encourage root growth, autumn rain reduces the watering burden, and the turf has several months to establish before summer heat arrives.
• March to April is the second-best window. Spring warmth encourages quick root growth, but you will need to water more reliably than in autumn because dry spells in April and May can stress newly laid turf before it has rooted deeply.

Avoid mid-summer laying if you can. July and August are the hardest months for new turf in Kent: the coastal winds near Sandwich Bay and Deal dry the surface quickly, and even a day or two without water on freshly laid turf in full sun can cause the edges to shrink and the joins to open up.

2. Preparing the ground

This is where most turf failures start. Rushing the ground preparation produces a lawn that looks fine for the first week or two, then dries out and dies in sections once the roots try to push into poorly prepared soil.

1. Strip the old surface. Remove any existing grass, weeds and their roots using a spade or a hired turf cutter. Dig the top 15 cm over, breaking up any large lumps.
2. Remove all roots and stones. Work through the surface carefully and remove every root fragment you can find, especially from perennial weeds like dock and bindweed. Any root left in the soil will re-grow under the turf and push through within a season.
3. Address drainage on clay ground. If your garden holds water badly after rain, now is the time to add a layer of sharp sand mixed into the top 10 to 15 cm of soil. On heavy clay, this is worth doing before everything else. Simply laying turf on top of unimproved clay gives poor long-term drainage.
4. Level and firm the surface. Rake the ground level, then compact it by treading across the surface with your weight distributed on your heels. Rake again to remove foot marks and achieve a fine, crumbly tilth.
5. Apply a pre-turfing fertiliser. Rake in a granular pre-turfing fertiliser at the rate on the packet, two to three days before you lay. This gives the roots something to find in the first few weeks.

3. Ordering the right amount of turf

Measure your area in square metres (length by width for a rectangle, or break irregular shapes into smaller sections and add them up). Add 10 to 15 per cent to cover cuts at the edges and any waste. Order slightly too much rather than slightly too little: running short mid-lay leaves an exposed soil patch that can dry out and compact before you can get more delivered.

Order turf to arrive the day before you plan to lay, or on the morning of laying day. If it arrives and you cannot lay it immediately, unroll it in a shaded spot and water it lightly. Do not leave rolls stacked for more than 24 to 48 hours in warm weather: the grass inside heats up and starts to die.

4. Laying the turf

Start laying from a straight edge, usually the longest straight side of the area or a line against a path or wall.

• Lay rolls in a staggered brick-bond pattern so the joints between rolls do not line up across adjacent rows. This gives a stronger result and prevents the joins from opening up as the turf settles.
• Butt the edges tightly together. Gaps between rolls dry out and the grass at the edges dies back, leaving visible brown lines.
• Use a plank or board to kneel on as you work across the turf. This spreads your weight and prevents you from compressing newly laid sections.
• Cut rolls to fit around curves and edges with a sharp knife or a half-moon edger. Keep the off-cuts: they are useful for filling small gaps at the edges rather than wasting lengths of turf.
• Once the turf is down, firm it gently with the back of a rake or a lightweight roller to press it into contact with the soil beneath.

5. Watering and the first few weeks

Water the turf thoroughly immediately after laying. The aim is to wet the soil beneath the rolls, not just the turf surface. Lift a corner of a roll after the initial watering to check the moisture has penetrated to the soil below.

For the first two to three weeks, water daily in dry weather, ideally in the morning so the surface can dry before nightfall. This is particularly important in the sandier soils around Sandwich Bay and Deal, which drain quickly and dry out faster than the clay-heavy ground inland.

After two to three weeks, lift a corner of a roll gently. If you can see white roots beginning to penetrate the soil below, the turf is establishing well. If the turf lifts away cleanly with no roots visible, it needs more time and consistent watering before it is ready for the first mow.

6. The first mow

Wait until you cannot lift the turf by hand before you mow. Mowing before the roots have anchored the turf tears it rather than cutting it. In good conditions, this is usually three to four weeks after laying.

For the first mow, set the blade high, around 5 to 6 cm, and only take the tops off. Gradually bring the height down over the following two or three cuts until it reaches your normal summer cutting height. Do not drop straight to a short cut on the first mow: it stresses newly established grass and can cause yellowing in patches that are not yet fully rooted.

A useful video

Lee Burkhill at Garden Ninja, an award-winning UK garden designer and BBC television presenter with over 73,000 YouTube subscribers, has a thorough guide to laying turf that covers ground preparation, the laying sequence and aftercare in detail. You can watch "How to lay turf" on YouTube.