How to Lay a New Lawn – Step by Step

Before buying lawn, look at how much sunlight the area receives during the day. Grass varieties have different light requirements, and choosing the wrong type can result in thin or bare patches later.

• Kikuyu – a strong, fast-growing lawn that performs best in sunny areas. It handles regular foot traffic well and recovers quickly.
• LM (Berea) – better suited to partial shade or filtered sunlight. It has a softer, broader leaf and is often a better choice underneath trees or around buildings.
• Heavily shaded areas – first consider whether there is enough light for lawn at all. Selective tree trimming can improve sunlight and airflow, while very deep shade may be better suited to shade-loving groundcovers.

Remove the old lawn, weeds, stones, building rubble and unwanted plant material before laying your new lawn. Pay particular attention to weeds and old plant roots. Simply cutting them off at ground level may not be enough.

Remove as much of the root system as possible, especially from persistent weeds or plants that can regrow through your new lawn. It is much easier to deal with these problems now than after the new lawn has rooted.

Loosen compacted soil and break up large clumps. Level the area with a rake and remove remaining stones or debris. If the soil is poor, add suitable good-quality topsoil or lawn dressing where required.

The final surface should be reasonably level but not compacted rock-hard. Also check drainage: water should soak into the soil rather than collecting in low spots.

Start along a straight edge and lay the lawn pieces tightly alongside one another. Stagger the joins rather than creating one long continuous line. The aim is good grass-to-soil contact so that new roots can grow down into the prepared ground.

Once the lawn has been laid, gently firm it down. A lawn roller is ideal, but smaller areas can also be carefully pressed into position by hand.

This removes air pockets underneath the sod and improves contact between the existing grass roots and the new soil. Avoid excessively compacting wet soil – you want firm contact, not a hard surface.

Once the lawn is in place, correct nutrition will help support healthy growth as the lawn establishes. TurboGrass 10:1:5 (25) can be applied evenly using either a fertiliser spreader or by hand according to the application instructions on the pack.

A spreader is particularly useful on larger lawns because it helps distribute fertiliser more evenly. If applying by hand, divide the area into smaller sections so you do not accidentally apply too much fertiliser in one area and too little in another.

Water the lawn thoroughly immediately after installation. The water needs to penetrate through the sod and wet the soil underneath it.

For approximately the first 10–14 days, keep the root zone consistently moist while the roots begin growing into the soil below. In warm or windy conditions this may mean watering lightly more than once a day. In cooler weather or after rain, less water may be needed.

Rather than following a rigid number of minutes, check the soil. Carefully lift a corner of the lawn and feel underneath it. The soil should be moist, but the lawn should not continuously sit in water.

As the roots establish, gradually reduce the frequency of watering and water more deeply. This encourages roots to grow further down into the soil.

After approximately 10–21 days, depending on temperature, grass type and growing conditions, start checking the lawn. Gently take hold of a corner of a piece of sod and try to lift it.

• If it lifts easily, the roots still need more time.
• If you feel resistance and the lawn is holding onto the soil underneath, new roots are developing.
• Fresh new growth across the lawn is another good sign that it is establishing.

Once the lawn has rooted, gradually move away from frequent establishment watering towards a normal lawn-watering routine.

Do not rush to mow newly laid grass. Wait until the lawn has rooted firmly and has started producing active new growth. Before mowing, test several areas to make sure the sod does not lift.

For the first cut, use sharp mower blades and avoid removing more than roughly one-third of the grass blade at a time. In shaded areas, keeping the grass slightly longer can help it make better use of the available light.