When to Lay Turf

We are often asked by customers "When can I lay Turf?" and "What is the best time of year to lay turf?", the fact is that although these may seem like very similar questions, there are infact two different answers!

When Can I Lay Turf?

Turf can be laid at any time of year, as long as the weather and ground conditions are suitable.

The ground needs to be suitable for the turf to be harvested at the turf farm.
You need to be able to prepare the ground you are laying your turf on.

This basically means as long as the ground is not frozen, covered in snow or so wet that it makes it impractical to work with, you can lay turf at any time of year.

When is the Best Time To Lay Turf?

Although you can lay turf at any time of year, there are months of the year whiuch are better for laying turf than others.

The best time of year to lay turf is Spring or Autumn, as the soil temperature is genearlly above 9°C (the minimum soil temperature at which grass will grow), droughts are uncommon in these months and daylight length is long enough to encourage grass growth.

Read Our Turf Laying Guide

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Turf Laying in the Summer

When laying turf in the summer months you should consider the temperature and amount of rainfall due at the time you are considering lying your turf and the following weeks. Freshly cut / laid turf requires a lot of water, and turf rolls will not last long in periods of high heat (turf laying in temperatures above 22°c should be avoided) turf rolls are much more susceptible to damage through heat stress in warm weather.

Prepare the gound before your turf is due for delivery
Lay turf as soon as it is delivered (to avoid heat stress in the roll)
Ensure you have a hose pipe and sprinkler
Water your turf well once laid and water twice a day for the next two weeks.

Laying Turf in the Winter

You can lay turf in the winter months without any issues, as long as the ground conditions permit you to prepare the soil for turf laying.

The grass may not grow, however it will just lie dormant until the ground temperatures increase enough to facilitate root establishment, which is generally not a problem.

The benefits of establishing a new lawn in the winter months are that it will most likley be raining and so the need to water the turf is much reduced (although it will still need watering when first laid and if no heavy rain falls) and the turf will also last longer rolled up due to lower temperatures and is mush less prone to any heat stress or issue caused by being left rolled up.

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