Soil Preparation
Our Goal is for you to have the best lawn possible!
Preparing the soil correctly on which to establish a new lawn, is critical. One needs to identify what soil type is present. Is it very sandy? Is it a heavy clay? Is it a nice loam soil? These factors will determine the route to follow.
If it is a very sandy soil, some form of heavier clay soil needs to be mixed in with the sandy soil so as to encourage a bit of water retention. The more sandy the soil, the quicker the water will drain away, taking all the nutrients with it, leaving the soil with a water and nutrient shortage. Lawns established on sandy soils use a lot af water and requires to be fed more frequently. This becomes quite costly.The opposite is experienced with very heavy clay soils.
Soil particles are very small and water retention is common. With water retention the grass roots will ly in a watery slush too long and start to die off. Also clay soils compact very quickly and very hard, making it very difficult for roots of any plant to penetrate the soil. Thus mixing in some sand and compost will loosen up this soil type. When starting, clean the area of all other plant material, rocks, roots, sticks and twigs. Water the area thoroughly the day before to soften the soil a bit and then get stuck in with garden forks, hoe’s and or picks.
Insects and especially Termites are a very big problem when it comes to grass planting and maintenance. Check your garden ( and peap over the walls into your neighbours garden) to see if there are any signs of termite activity. New freshly laid instant lawn make a wonderful meal for termites. They will destroy a lawn in days. If you have crickets, ants, army worms or any other visible animals like moles it would be recommended that you get the appropriate specialists in to resolve this problem for you, otherwise all your hard earned money for new lawn will go down the drain.