Raising the lawn

[Jay003]

Hi. My lawn is lower than the patio and is uneven/patchy. I’ve been thinking about raising the height (say up to 10-15cm in some places) and levelling out.

not all that knowledgeable about how to do so. My first thought was top soil and dropping it over the grass over time. Not sure if that’s the best way?

Many thanks

 

[IT Minion]

Hi. My lawn is lower than the patio and is uneven/patchy. I’ve been thinking about raising the height (say up to 10-15cm in some places) and levelling out.

not all that knowledgeable about how to do so. My first thought was top soil and dropping it over the grass over time. Not sure if that’s the best way?

Many thanks

It'll take forever adding it a cm at a time and allowing the grass to grow through. Not that you can't but based on trying to do something similar to fill in some dips in my garden you're looking at a couple of years and it looking pants for the duration.

With 10cm+ I'd do it as one hit and then reseed or turf it. You'll have a period of bare earth, then grass you can't walk on and then suddenly it'll be a lawn.

Turn over the top bit of lawn with a fork everywhere to loosen it up, drop a couple of tons of topsoil and go to town with seed. Maybe add an automated sprinkler if you're as lazy as I am.

 

[Munroast]

It'll take forever adding it a cm at a time and allowing the grass to grow through. Not that you can't but based on trying to do something similar to fill in some dips in my garden you're looking at a couple of years and it looking pants for the duration.

With 10cm+ I'd do it as one hit and then reseed or turf it. You'll have a period of bare earth, then grass you can't walk on and then suddenly it'll be a lawn.

Furn over the top bit of lawn with a fork everywhere to loosen it up, drop a couple of tons of topsoil and go to town with seed. Maybe add an automated sprinkler if you're as lazy as I am.

yep, it needs turned over, top soiled and turfed (the grss what is there does not look worth saving)

might need more than a couple of tons though - at a guess the garden is about 25' x 50' raise that 6 inches and its more like 30 ton - big job

 

[Jay003]

Great thanks for the responses. Sounds like a bigger job that I first thought but I’m keen to sort out so I’ll most likely use this time to do something productive. Thankd

 

[conny]

The problem with gardening is you need LOTS of patience for some jobs.

I'd be tempted to leave it until Sept/Oct then rotovate the whole lot. Level it off all over and dump as much topsoil as needed to raise it to the required height.
Sow new grass seeds and allow it do it's own thing over winter when you won't be using the garden. Don't sow any later than October though as the ground temperature needs to be around 5-7C for the seeds to germinate. You will also need to keep it watered without over watering into a boggy mess.

 

[Munroast]

September October is the time to sow grass seed, at that time of the year weeds are not that interested in growing so the grass seed does well - I have sewn grass early summer and ended up with 50% weed.

Here is some I sowed 20th Sept last year - hardly a weed in it and it is starting to look like grass.

the obvious edge around the new stuff will disappear by the end of the year.

 

[dal5band]

What i did years ago - cut out strips of lawn by plunging a digging spade about 4 inches down. The slits run away from the patio at 90 degrees forming the strips. Strips should be about 1/2 to 1m long depending on the slope you want. Then working from the patio, slidethe spade to undercut each strip a 1/2 to a meter out. Roll back each strip of turf, exposing the soil underneath. Then you can fill with top soil so when you unroll the strips they come level with the slabs. This will give you a gentle slope and will recover quickly.

 

[IT Minion]

September October is the time to sow grass seed, at that time of the year weeds are not that interested in growing so the grass seed does well - I have sewn grass early summer and ended up with 50% weed.

Here is some I sowed 20th Sept last year - hardly a weed in it and it is starting to look like grass.

View attachment 193032 View attachment 193033 View attachment 193034
the obvious edge around the new stuff will disappear by the end of the year.

I don't want to alarm you but your picnic bench is making a break for it.

 

[Munroast]

I don't want to alarm you but your picnic bench is making a break for it.

I wish it would, sick of the sight of it - tried to sell it last year, failed, tried to give it away this year - failed.

 

[Munroast]

What i did years ago - cut out strips of lawn by plunging a digging spade about 4 inches down. The slits run away from the patio at 90 degrees forming the strips. Strips should be about 1/2 to 1m long depending on the slope you want. Then working from the patio, slidethe spade to undercut each strip a 1/2 to a meter out. Roll back each strip of turf, exposing the soil underneath. Then you can fill with top soil so when you unroll the strips they come level with the slabs. This will give you a gentle slope and will recover quickly.

yes, it's an easier job than you may imagine. raised a large section of lawn a couple of years back using that method - and wow! it grows amazingly well afterwards, I guess it must appreciate the oxygen and lack of compaction to the roots.