How to lay turf - ultimate lawn fitting guide

Here's Garden Ninjas step by step guide to quickly and easily laying turf for your perfect lawn! This lawn laying guide will have your lawn transformed from shabby to superb in record time! See the entire guide on www.gardenninja.co.uk/how-to-...
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#gardening #lawn #gardening
Lawns are probably one of the most widely recognised garden design components. Turf has a huge variety of uses if you want to lounge on a deck chair on it, manicure it to perfection, get your mates round to have a BBQ on it or even football pitch for your children. Turf is the staple of a multi-functional garden. You can use turf for informal gardens that are hard wearing, utility gardens with play areas or formal lawns with the manicured ornamental stripes running up and down it.
Grass lawns are tough, resilient, evergreen and can be low maintenance.
Whether you’re laying a lawn from scratch or simply replacing one that’s become weed infested and lumpy, laying a lawn by turf is relatively quick and far quicker to establish that laying one from seed. Here’s Garden Ninjas quick guide to laying turf, just in time for chilled out weekends in the garden firing up the BBQ!
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Carefully measure the area where you want to lay the lawn. This will enable you to order your turfs. You’ll need a least two measurements to work out the surface area. Simply times one side by the other size. A good rule of thumb is to order 10% more than you need. This is so that when you’re staggering your joins your not left with a few tiny pieces to finish an edge, you can use a longer piece which will bed in far better than smaller bits which will dry out.
Prepare the beds for the turf by digging over the plot. This helps aerate and break up compaction in the soil. Compaction causes all sorts of problems, such as waterlogging, poor growth, dead spots and diseases in new turf. So using your spade and then fork turn over the ground. This is hard work but essential, think of it as free cardio!
Dig in some compost or other organic matter. This will help provide long-term nutrients for the lawn and help retain moisture without being water logged. I usually dig in some compost to help break up any heavy soil.
Using a rake and plank on your freshly turned over soil start to level the plot. Again, if debris or rocks appear to remove them.
Consolidate the area. Consolidating the soil means that the lawn won’t sink as readily and make sure there are no big air pockets in the soil. If there are, fill and then relevel.
Check the area is level. Using the plant of wood and a spirit level you can check that the area is level.
Create tilth. Lastly using the rake on your level surface lightly rake the top layer to create a fine tilth, think a powdery layer. This then enables a quick root uptake for your turf. Doing this one way and then 90 degrees the other.
Order your turfs. You can buy them either online in advance or from a local DIY store. Once you have your fresh turfs it is vital you lay them within 24 hours and don’t let them dry out so bare this in mind if the weather changes or your preparation gets delayed. Fresh healthy turfs should be a healthy green colour, not yellow or brown. They should also be moist not bone dry.
Start to lay turfs in a brickwork fashion. Using the board lay this out over the soil and either work forwards or backwards. It really doesn’t make too much difference though some would claim forwards is better. In the video, I turf backwards so it’s easier for you to see the joins and laying technique. The aim here is to use the large sections together of your meter long turfs rather than short sections of leftovers. It is better to have two medium sized turfs than one full size and one tiny size next to each other.
Butt up the joints tightly. This enables the turfs to mesh together. Gaps will cause them to dry out and curl. You can butt them up by hand and then use the back of a rake afterwards compress the turfs lightly to ensure contact with the ground and each adjacent turf.
Fill any gaps. If there are gaps in the turf use a mix of sharp sand and compost to fill these gaps to ensure the turfs mesh together well.
Water the grass thoroughly. As soon as its laid water it in. There’s no need to feed it again, in fact, it takes to the soil better if you don’t. Then ensure that the grass never dries out for the first few weeks. Usually, a heavy water every 4-5 days is enough, as frequent light sprinklings can encourage Poa annua, a grass weed, to propagate in the newly laid turf.

[@DGQ1Q2]

8 years later your effort keep growing. Thanks for the video. very well explained.

[@Gardenninja]

Glad it was helpful! It’s a joy to do what I love for a living and help so many new gardeners in the process! Make sure you check out my blog www.gardenninja.co.uk 🥷🌿🤘

[@DGQ1Q2]

@@Gardenninja Thanks for the blog, I just read there about fake grass, very good explained I am against of fake grass. And you answer there a lot of my concerns 👍, I had been thinking use it, but naaah thanks

[@18dvine]

I have lived in my town house for almost 3 years now and have always needed to put in fresh turf in my TINY backyard and this video has inspired me to give it a shot!

[@Gardenninja]

Hey DJ! That’s fantastic news!!! So pleased my guides help inspire you. Make sure you checkout my blog www.gardenninja.co.uk for hundreds more free gardening guides! Happy gardening. 🥷🌿🤘 Lee

[@davidniven6665]

Thanks for your time and advice your turf laying on ground that was not ideal or manicured to perfection was appreciated.. this was a true to life situation.. cheers

[@Gardenninja]

Thanks David. I always try and show real life gardening rather than insta style snappy cut together gardening. Make sure you check out my blog for hundreds more real life gardening guides www.gardenninja.co.uk. 🥷🌿🪴

[@petercook3911]

Thank you! Great advice and great video. Using a plank of wood to help level is just what I was looking for. Thanks again.

[@Gardenninja]

No worries Peter, glad you found the video useful! Subscribe for more how to design tips! Lee Garden Ninja

[@Knappa22]

I admire the perfection of it, but for those of us less inclined towards hard work don't be too daunted. I laid turf about a month ago and all I did was rake over the soil a bit. I didn't use measures or a level or anything, just did it by eye. It grew a treat what with the mild, rainy October we've had. Grass is pretty tough, lets face it. It grows over millions of acres of farmland all over the UK.

[@mickeymouse9823]

Bob on mate it’s not rocket science , just laid 60 sqm with no issue . Let face it if you can’t plant a weed then you may as well give up

[@mazriz3825]

Thanks for the videos im laying turf next week and will definetly folow your advice!

[@Gardenninja]

You’re welcome. Hope it goes smoothly for you! 🥷🌿🤘

[@Gardenninja]

Laying turf is super easy when you know how to prepare properly! Has this video helped you? Let me know or share!

[@kanedNunable]

how long would you say to lay 1m2? trying to work out how long it will take me to lay 100m2. just the laying of the turf

[@Gardenninja]

Gosh it’s a bit like how longs a piece of string! Everyone works at different paces. Also have you already prepped then the ground. I’d maybe lay a meter see how long and then factor it up. All the best. Lee

[@sherifedjenan6530]

We are so happy we watched your video. We have had a nightmare for years with our garden. Turf never lasted. Thanks to this video it was clear and very simple. We are not gardeners but thanks to you we have a beautifully layed turf.

[@jimb1453]

Great preparation tutorial, but you didn’t cover shrinkage or knitting together, surely going to end up with gaps between these turfs?

[@davefran]

Cheers mate I'll be using your advice soon 👍👍

[@anthonyxuereb792]

You have given me the confidence to do it myself, thank you.

[@Gardenninja]

Hi Anthony. So pleased to hear it! Go forth and lay lawn with gusto! 🥷🤘🌿

[@gazzcat4849]

Nice video. Keeping it simple. Thanks...I'll be laying it tomorrow 👍

[@Gardenninja]

Cheers Gazz. Glad you found it useful. There’s plenty more garden design guides on my channel. Happy turfing! Lee 🥷🌿

[@misterjaypeasmith]

This is a really helpful video! Thank you

[@Gardenninja]

Jermaine Smith you’re welcome! Glad it’s useful! Happy gardening. Lee

[@p.r.e.p.p.y_vlogs_5313]

Thanks, I will give it a try tomorrow :-)

[@johnreilly1059]

That's it mate a few cold beers and a few hours break from the the wife happy days 😂😂👍 all the best mate

[@johnreilly1059]

U did a Great job mate👍

[@Gardenninja]

Thanks John Reilly it’s all in the preparation. That and cold beers afterwards! 🍺 😜

[@renishaw6339]

Thanks for the video! Just what I needed! :)

[@Gardenninja]

You’re welcome! Glad it’s been helpful! 🥷🌿🤘

[@cloudeater]

Nice Video. Clear and precise.. Think I'm going to use a rotavator for the turning bit... thank you.

[@Gardenninja]

Hi Wayne, Thanks for the great feedback. Yes a rotavator can save you lots of time. I have a video on how to use one of those too if you need any other tips. Good luck with your lawn Wayne! Lee

[@mrkingpin3436]

Brilliant job there

[@Gardenninja]

Thanks Kingpin! Happy Gardening. Lee

[@sarahcolbourne7714]

Great! Easy to follow.

[@Gardenninja]

Thanks Sarah. So glad it’s been helpful. Make sure you subscribe for even more. Happy turfing! Lee 🥷🌿👍

[@lh1842]

Brilliant information site. I've already looked up on your site the correct way to prepare a hedge. 😐🤨🤔🤓

[@Gardenninja]

Blue-Eyed Pagan great to hear. Glad you like the channel and site. Hope your new hedge planting goes well. Happy Gardening! Lee

[@lh1842]

Again thanks Lee. All the best Blue Les👋

[@matthewthomson2180]

Hi Great video. Glad i found your channel. Was thinking about getting a rotavator, but your method doesn't seem to time/labour intensive. My garden was a giant concrete slab, which i've just finished taking up. Underneath is fortunately completely flat, but it's a very compacted clay-ey soil. Would the method in the video work with this type of soil? Would i need to add much organic matter/topsoil before laying the turf?

[@matthewellis8869]

Really great video!!!!!

[@Gardenninja]

Thanks Matthew. I’m glad it’s helpful. Make sure you checkout the full guide here with even more details! www.gardenninja.co.uk/how-to-lay-turf/ 🥷🤘🌿

[@leesapollo]

Great video 👌🏼

[@Gardenninja]

Thanks Lee! 🥷🌿

[@TobyConrad]

Great video. Thanks

[@Gardenninja]

Thanks Toby! Make sure you checkout my award winning blog where there are hundreds of free gardening guides www.gardenninja.co.uk/ 🥷🌿👌

[@bobbykhan3256]

Great advice good video. I dug out about 1 foot of clay and replaced it with top soil to help my garden soak up the rain water as it used to just get water logged before. Now i need to turf 7.5m by 20m. Wish me luck any tips would be great.

[@Gardenninja]

Good luck. Biggest tip is to prepare well but you’ve already done that! Happy turfing! Lee

[@MrRunningDan]

What prep work would you recommend for a garden that was previously overgrown with random plants, weeds, flowers, roses, and patches of grass? To add to that, the soil conditions around the garden are different in certain areas (clay like in some areas, dry and stoney in others). Your videos are great by the way!

[@Gardenninja]

Thanks Daniel. I’m glad you like them. First thing first would be to fully wees the area. Then you can see what your left with. I’d then ID your plants and roses. See what you want to keep. Make a note of the different soil types and choose plants that thrive in those soil types. You’ll struggle to force something to thrive where it’s not meant to live!! Then do a full mulch with organic matter in September to get you’re soil in tip top condition for next year. Hope that helps. Happy gardening. Lee

[@MichaelJanischMusic]

thanks! glad i watched this, was literally gonna slap it on the ground and leave it haha

[@Gardenninja]

Phew!!! Lucky escape then eh!! 🥷🌿😜

[@rustybaws]

600th like..... nice video mate. Really helpful!

[@Gardenninja]

Cheers Rusty! Make sure you check out some more of my 100+ gardening guides and designs by subscribing! Happy gardening. Lee

[@juchetony1910]

nice job, but it seemed a bit deep compared to the path round: I like my lawns to be slightly above, so they don't get waterlogged and are easy to mow. Depends, of course, how short you like you grass (golf course rough/fairway/green).

[@R4ND0MH3RO83]

Really good video! I'm about to lay grass in the back garden. The soil is full of stones and rocks. Any ideas for best practice? I was thinking off-putting manure over the soil and then laying the grass afterwards?

[@Gardenninja]

Hi Omar. Thanks for the comment! You really need to remove any large stones or rocks. Preparation is key. If you’re going to add manure let it bed in for a few weeks first. So you don’t burn the roots of turf or grass seed. Sometimes manure can be a bit too strong for new plants trying to root. Hope that helps. Lee

[@R4ND0MH3RO83]

Garden Ninja Ltd Thanks for the rapid response. Would you recommend me laying anything else instead of manure which would take so long to settle? Thanks

[@aubanepattar8087]

Did you need to flatten or roll it after?

[@dani4772]

Great video and a great job. I am currently working on my lawn 70m2. It's not an easy job. Do I start my turf from the middle or a straight edge.

[@Gardenninja]

I’d go edge to edge then you know you’ll at least be side has a full width strip. You don’t want to be really cutting them down too thinly. Happy turfing. Lee

[@dani4772]

@@Gardenninja thanks Lee at the moment I'm taking stones and weeds out and wow it's a long procedure. I will be hiring a rotavator to to break up the soil further because my soil is really clumpy.

[@martiangod]

Ive got to lay 130 square metres any tips ? Should i divide into 4 sections and do one each weekend ? Thanks, good video

[@Gardenninja]

Mark Hickman it sounds sensible. Just make sure the ends are kept moist so they don’t dry out. Ideally you want to get it all down as soon as possible. Also if you’ve got rolls of turf waiting them keep them damp too. Maybe ask some friends and get the beers in to speed things up? (Well after corona) Happy Gardening. Lee

[@jakelamotta2387]

No matter what soil/compost your using it's always necessary to use sharp sand before laying turf! Looks healthy enough though👍🏼

[@Gardenninja]

Sorry Jake but I disagree. It’s a myth that sand is needed for draining or to help grass root. If you have proper tilth you don’t need it. It’s just a waste of materials. The same with digging sand into soil to ‘help drainage’ it doesn’t work. The best thing is organic matter to break up heavy soils in the long term. Happy gardening. Lee 🥷🌿

[@jakelamotta2387]

@@Gardenninja As a Landscape gardener we never layed Grass without Sharp Sand. There was only ever 1 case in which we were called back 4months later because we didnt use hardly any Sharp Sand and the person end up with mossy/damp grass during every rain and after(His garden was sloped downward tbf😅). Its not expensive and you cant go wrong in my opinion but that's the beauty of gardening, each is unique and to the owners taste and every garden ends up unique in the end. Happy Gardening Lee👍🏼

[@Gardenninja]

Hi Jake. That’s so interesting to hear!! Like you say the beauty with gardening is there’s a number of ways to cut the cake. Good to hear this as an alternative method. Happy gardening! Lee 🥷🌿

[@andyr4735]

Will you need to keep on top of the mowing or can you leave it for months then expect it to look that good again once its cut short?

[@Gardenninja]

I usually wait 2 weeks after laying and then give it a light cut, ie with the blades on a high setting. There's no point scalping it. Then cut it again the week after a bit short. That will help it thicken and root. If you did let it grow for months and cut it short you would get yellowing. Where the grass hasn't had as much sunlight. But it would soon return just would look a bit odd for a week or two! Hope that helps. Lee

[@bathams]

Does laying turf have to be exactly like a brick work pattern? Or is it ok along as I stagger the joints ?

[@Gardenninja]

Small Echos as long as they are staggered it’s fine. Obviously brick work is the best method as the joins are further apart this stops then drying out. If you have to many joins to close together the chances are they will start to dry out and potentially die back. If you do end up with joints close together or small slices of turf make sure to keep them extra watered. Happy Gardening. Lee

[@gettinglost270]

I have a lot of stones that have mixed in with the soil and also have black membrane down will this affect my grass that I put down ?

[@Gardenninja]

You really don’t want to try and turf over weed membrane. It affects the footing considerably and your grass will struggle. The more effort you put into preparing the ground, removing rocks etc the better your turf will look! Keep going!! Lee

[@domJhurr]

I want to turf my garden whoch is currently slabbed is it the same process after ive removed the slabs?

[@Gardenninja]

Hi. Yes it is. If it’s been paved you may need to spend more time helping to break up the hardcore underneath the flags before turfing to assist with drainage and rooting. Happy gardening. Lee

[@tomfurniss4503]

Great video thank you! How much should I be watering my turf when its laid and at what time of day? (If that makes a difference) Thanks.

[@Gardenninja]

Hi Tom. Water either early doors or later in the day. Never midday sun as the water just evaporates. You don’t want it to fully dry out or be soggy either. Depending on the weather I usually water new turf every other day for a week or two before it starts to establish. Obviously it’s weather dependant. More watering tips here. www.gardenninja.co.uk/garden-watering-top-10-tips-save-time-conserve-water-in-the-garden/ Happy Gardening! Lee

[@kriskalpa]

thank you! for the tilth, is it just soil or do you add compost?

[@Gardenninja]

Hi. Tilth is just fine soil that’s been raked free of large stones and debris. So it should already be there once you’ve prepared the top layer. Hope that helps. Lee 🌿🤘🥷

[@kriskalpa]

@@Gardenninja Hi Lee, thank you! Video was very helpful.

[@shirleenbragoli8310]

Please can you advise me? ive just moved house my back garden is just a small boarder and the rest is all block paved I want to lay a turf semi circle lawn when we have taken the blocks up do I need to put top soil on first, no probs if you are too busy to answer I fully understand

[@Gardenninja]

Hi Shirleen. Congrats on the house move! In terms of turf it needs to go on bare earth not paving like you’ve acknowledged. When people turf over hardcore or paving the grass starts to struggle. It then becomes water logged before dying after a year of so. You’ll need to remove the paving from where you want to lay the turf. The good news is you could reuse this elsewhere! Then prepare the soil. By taking removing any debris. Fork is over then rake it both ways. If the soil is a good quality, ie dark and earthy there’s no need for loads of top soil. If it’s gritty and dusty then yes you’ll need to add an inch or so of decent soil. Watch my video guide on soil types to help you visualise decent soil from poor. You’re wanting a fine tilth ie crumb structure. Some people use sharp sand with the tilth for air/drainage but I’ve never bothered. Hope that helps and happy turfing! Lee 🥷🌿🤘

[@shirleenbragoli8310]

@@Gardenninja thank you so much you are amazing I love your videos. I’m a 68 year so been dabbling all my married life but only do basic stuff. I’ve left a 38 year old mature garden. I miss it but need a smaller garden as not getting any younger lol. Thanks so so much. X

[@cjkpre]

How much do you think can be done in a day? I have 325sqm to lay, but need to barrow the turf about 60m from the drive to where it will be laid. Is it feasible to get this done over 2 days with a labourer (me!) bringing the turf to the garden so the laying should be pretty non stop. It's rectangular, 25m x 13m so a simple shape, but on a bit of a slope.

[@Gardenninja]

Now there’s a question. All depends on stamina. In my experience. Always double your time estimate for manual labour. It’s not a gig you want to rush either. Temperature, ‘gotchas’ that may occur and general fatigue all play a part with how much you can feasibly achieve. Turf will be fine rolled up for around a week if it’s kept watered. So don’t let that panic you too much. Hope that’s of some support! All the best. Lee

[@deneberry4463]

Do you cover Bradford area

[@Gardenninja]

Hi Dene, I cover the North West of England for Garden Design services. Please see my blog www.gardenninja.co.uk :-)

[@gusgus6653]

How long after laying the lawn before it's OK to go on it?

[@Gardenninja]

You want to avoid walking on it where possible for a few weeks really. I use a board if I need to walk on freshly laid turf. Just helps even out the pressure. Happy gardening! Lee

[@gusgus6653]

@@Gardenninja thanks

[@travelsphereuk-7090]

I have stinging nettle plant growing. It is very difficult to pull roots out. Can I just throw my real grass turf rolls over it. Please advice.

[@Gardenninja]

Hi Travel Sphere UK. No I’m afraid not! If you leave it the nettle will spread under the grass and pop back up everywhere. You can remove nettles using a knife and tracing back their fleshy yellow roots. Bit like a piece of string. After all no one wants to sit on a lawn covered in stinging nettles!! Happy gardening. Lee 🥷🌿🤘

[@travelsphereuk-7090]

@@Gardenninja thanks for reply. But its a lot harder than it sounds trying to pull out roots of these plants. Whats about artificial turf (it has plastic underlay). Surely that will stop it from managing to grow through it.

[@Gardenninja]

Hi Travel. The issue is that nettles will always find a way through. Saving time now will cost you time trying to constantly battle with it. Artificial turf should never be used given its huge detrimental environmental impact. Given it can’t be recycled and basically cooks the soil beneath. You can read more on that here. www.gardenninja.co.uk/artificial-turf-low-maintenance-dream-or-environmental-disaster/ Good luck!

[@travelsphereuk-7090]

@@Gardenninja I’ve already ordered the artificial astro turf rolls. Its much easier for my garden. I just need a clean simple place.

[@bigbob6700]

What about if there are tree stumps??

[@Gardenninja]

Hi Big Bob, You need to either grind these out or remove them. Turfing up or around them will just leave you a huge headache and risk damaging your mower! 🥷🌿 Lee

[@billzer9102]

Fail to prepare, prepare to fail..😝

[@BoosiveFPV]

How long do you have to leave the prepped soil for before you can lay the turf?

[@Gardenninja]

Once prepped you can lay it straight away. Keeping the turf well watered if the most essential part after soil prep. Hope that helps. Happy Gardening! Lee

[@BoosiveFPV]

@@Gardenninja happy days! Thanks for getting back to me. I have 48sqm of my overgrown weed filled garden to do and thats not all of it either lol. Going to make it my summer mission to finally sort it out though. Plus, its much cheaper doing it myself.

[@johnreilly1059]

Hi mate what price range would a job like that cost

[@hiraumar]

My 84 meter lawn cost me £1000 to turf.

[@donnamia07]

Lol. Offerton sand and gravel. You a local lad?

[@Gardenninja]

donnamia07 North West born and raised! 😀

[@bencummings1663]

Hmmm Average

[@gavinMorrice]

Watched about 5 videos on this before yours. Others were way higher budget, but far less helpful than yours. Thanks!

[@Gardenninja]

Cheers Gavin. Glad it’s helpful. I’ve got over 100 gardening guides now so make sure you subscribe! Happy Gardening. Lee