Laying Turf During a Hose Pipe Ban

The recent hose pipe bans may worry you if are thinking of laying new turf or indeed wanting to keep your grass in good condition for the summer months, but dont worry...

Turf is tuff stuff and you can usually water it with a watering can!  Here is our guide to help you lay a new lawn in a hose pipe ban.

A Guide to Help You Lay New Turf in a Drought

Newly laid turf needs regular watering (for the first 2-3 weeks) as the roots are only short and will not have bedded into the topsoil beneath to tap into the ground water.  In normal conditions rain fall may be enough to water the turf but in dry spells you will need to water it yourself.

Here are some tips to help you achieve this during a hose pipe ban:

1. Plan ahead to prevent turf drying out, prepare and water the ground in advance to make sure your turf is not hanging around before you lay it and make sure you order only as much turf as you can lay in one go.

2. Consider adding moisture retaining soil conditioner to your soil before you lay your turf, organic compost soil improver is great for this as it will lock water in the soil and add slow releasing nutrients, feeding your lawn as well as reducing the need to water the lawn.

3. Recycle your water, collect it from your shed, house and garage roofs into a water butt. Then prepare and wet the ground immediately before laying the turf, this will lock water in the soil where your turf roots need it most.

4. Give the turf a light rolling after laying to ensure good contact with the soil below.

5. Use a watering can to water your newly laid turf instead of a hose pipe!

6. Water in the late evenings and early mornings so the sun does not evaporate it.

7. Hold off the first mowing of turf until the grass has grown a good 2 inches or even more and then only give it a light mowing with the mower set at its highest setting.

8. And remember... grass is an extreemly durable plant and will usually recover from periods of drought (even if it dries and goes brown). When the rain returns it will sonn green up and get growing.. just like the Serengeti!