Planting a nice lawn - DIY plough or landscaper?

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#770939 27-Feb-2013 10:46

DarthKermit:. I might dig a trench and install conduit for a future UFB connection before I go ripping up any grass.

might pay to look at your Council for how deep that has to be

Q: For underground deployment, will trenches be dug to traditional depths or may newer “shallow trenching” techniques be used?

A: Again, this will depend on the local District Plan. New standards relating to fibre deployment are currently in consultation with Councils, utilities and others and will eventually form part of the Utilities Code. These provide guidance on how shallow trenching techniques may be used where this complies with the local District Plan.

that is most like on the street side, but i think there also something on the owner side for min depth for unities etc.

DarthKermit

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#770942 27-Feb-2013 10:53

bagheera:
DarthKermit:. I might dig a trench and install conduit for a future UFB connection before I go ripping up any grass.

might pay to look at your Council for how deep that has to be

Q: For underground deployment, will trenches be dug to traditional depths or may newer “shallow trenching” techniques be used?

A: Again, this will depend on the local District Plan. New standards relating to fibre deployment are currently in consultation with Councils, utilities and others and will eventually form part of the Utilities Code. These provide guidance on how shallow trenching techniques may be used where this complies with the local District Plan.

that is most like on the street side, but i think there also something on the owner side for min depth for unities etc.

According to the info I have from Chorus, it says a minimum of 450 mm below unpaved ground.

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nickb800

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#770967 27-Feb-2013 11:27

Full guide for Chorus leadin is available here. For installing a lead-in on your own property, it will be the Chorus guide that is of relevance rather than your local district plan.

FWIW there is a large Turf Farm between Paraparaumu and Waikanae, which presumably would be the cheapest for Wellington supply given transport costs. But l wouldn't go the ready lawn route, it takes a lot more work than people realise for a good finish

davidcole

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#771012 27-Feb-2013 12:23

I just went through an exercise this past autumn, where I sprayed with a weed killer to kill off the prickles, broadleaf etc. Turf Clean I think it was called.

I must say, it was fairly time consuming and I had to pass over it 3 times (and it took about 2 weeks for the weeds to die out. But the lawn is great now (+ I let it grow to about 2")

So if you're planting new, spring/fall spray it with this stuff, and it should keep in it good condition

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timmmay

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#771022 27-Feb-2013 12:31

Yep turf clean is the one you use, but not on new grass, you have to give it 3 months, then you're at half strength for a while - or something like that. I used it just on weeds, not as a general spray, and it works ok. I mixed some in with the roundup when I was killing everything off, even roundup has trouble with some weeds - dealt with them with a shovel.

If you feed your grass well enough the weeds don't get a chance to grow, so I've read.

Niel

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#771336 27-Feb-2013 22:16

timmmay: I know, the aim is to minimise the weeds. WoolGro sounds like a good idea, I think I'll stick with hyrdoseed though, as it's local so they know the conditions.

WoolGro is a Kiwi invention using Kiwi wool offcuts (think they call it dags?), and the head office is in Auckland a few km from my home. The web site has great info on how to establish it and when to cut and how much.

The issue with readylawn which most people do not realise (I know you have done your homework, I'm talking about people in general) is that the roots are only a couple cm thick so it has to be watered almost as much as if you have planted seeds and for the same period to allow it to grow deep roots. In that time you also cannot walk much on it, just like seeds, because the roots are not established in the ground. The only advantages are it cover the bare soil so it 1) looks good and 2) does not dry out as fast as seeds.

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#771409 28-Feb-2013 07:39

I've heard too many not so good stories with readylawn to do it. My neighbour said it didn't grow well, had weeds, and just didn't like it. WoolGro is a good idea, but Hydroseed has the advantage of pre germination along with what WoolGro does.

idle

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#771429 28-Feb-2013 08:29

Having planted several lawns, I have learnt the hard way, so a few thoughts to follow:- 1) the more you plough or dig, and the deeper you dig, the more weeds you are going to get. 2) it is best to sow the seed in Autumn, when it is cooler.
I would suggest hiring a "de-thatcher' which only disturbs the top 3cm. Take all the thatch off with rake or mower and after a week, apply a further dose of roundup. level the site with a loam/sand mix, making sure you get river sand. Roll flat. At beginning of April, apply a rye/fescue mix, using a proper spreader. The cooler weather will give the seed the best chance of germinating, but watering will still be necessary, if no rain.

timmmay

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#771433 28-Feb-2013 08:38

Idle, if you use a dethatcher you still need to do a lot of manual work to get the grass up, right? I turned over one square meter of grass the other day, it took me 25 minutes and was reasonably hard work. Getting rid of the grass and topsoil was my original idea, but it was going to cost me $2000 to get the grass dug up by machines or $1000 in labour, hundreds to cart it away, and more to get new topsoil in. However if the end result is much better I can do it.

I know plowing will bring up weeds, but the top layer of soil is very rich after all the fertilizing I've done. The downside is a lot of old grass in the soil, dead of course, but it should decompose eventually.

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#772535 2-Mar-2013 00:45

timmmay: I know, the aim is to minimise the weeds. WoolGro sounds like a good idea, I think I'll stick with hyrdoseed though, as it's local so they know the conditions.

I turned over a square meter of grass yesterday, it took about half an hour and was moderately hard work. It wasn't even quite ready to plant seed in when I was done either, it was clumpy and would need to be broken up a lot. I think mechanical work with the rotary hoe is the way to go, and someone else doing it for me is definitely preferable.

I used woolgro, tall fescue. I put in irrigation for about $400 so it waters itself (important as I planted 6 weeks ago and it rained only twice in first four weeks!)

can recommend the woolgro stuff. Still need to prep properly - hire a turf machine for a day to do the hard work, roll after, and spray for three weeks. Use weed free soil mix for top layer from landscaping place. Woolgro mat keeps the weeds back, but its not foolproof 😃

Pic at 4-5 weeks here, just after 1st mow on highest setting:

woolgro mat cost me around $600 on somehow special for 6x15m2 bags.

pm me if you want more details. In Oz right now, hope to be back to overgrown lawn in week and a half 😉

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Regs

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#772537 2-Mar-2013 00:56

scuwp: Tall fescue produces quite a thick blade that is very hardy. Looks best when mown a bit longer (like most lawns - people tend to mow then far to short).

http://www.finelawn.co.nz/index.asp?PageID=2145848635

tall fescue is also 'genetically green' so it doesn't go brown during dry periods 😃

we chose it because its lush, hard wearing (kids +trampoline etc) and stays green

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timmmay

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#772548 2-Mar-2013 07:36

Regs: I used woolgro, tall fescue. I put in irrigation for about $400 so it waters itself (important as I planted 6 weeks ago and it rained only twice in first four weeks!)

can recommend the woolgro stuff. Still need to prep properly - hire a turf machine for a day to do the hard work, roll after, and spray for three weeks. Use weed free soil mix for top layer from landscaping place. Woolgro mat keeps the weeds back, but its not foolproof 😃

woolgro mat cost me around $600 on somehow special for 6x15m2 bags.

pm me if you want more details. In Oz right now, hope to be back to overgrown lawn in week and a half 😉

Looks nice! I wanted a turf machine to take the top layer of soil off so I could put new soil in but I can't find one in Wellington, so I'm going to have to plow. I'd still like to get rid of the top layer of soil, but it's pretty expensive to do manually. It's costing $1000 to have landscapers plow and roll, if I add in a step of removing soil and adding new it'll be quite a bit more expensive I bet.

Fescue is my pick, but with a little fine rye for robustness.

Regs

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Snowflake

#773760 2-Mar-2013 23:18

If you're patient, turn the turf with a rotary hoe, roll and keep spraying for 3-6 weeks to kill all the weeds. If you're not patient (and you are rich 😃) cart some dirt away and replace with new weed free soil...

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keriboi

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#781898 14-Mar-2013 19:54

If anyone is still after some advice, answer theses questions and I can help.

1. What part of the country are you?
2. Is property shaded or full sun
3. How wet does the property get in the winter. Can you mow it all year round?

Some info about grasses in nZ

Ryegrass.
This is the easiest grass to grow, but most expensive. It needs lots of water and fertiliser and mowing. If you have water, month fertiliser and can mow every 3-4 days a surface like Eden Park is really quite simple.

Tall Fescue
Extremely hardy but not the prettiest. Can survive a drought.

Fine Fescue
Tricky sucker to get growing but can be a great lawn. Does like it too wet but grows in shaded areas.

Kikuyu
Mow this stuff as low as possible and it can be a good tough lawn for auckland/north. It needs to be scalped and shreded now and then.

Browntop
Hard to establish. Great all round grass, Very fine but not very dark.

Seashore Paspalum.
This is an unknown but I think it may work in auckland. There is concern it will get wiped out by disease.

Couch
Better than Kikuyu but needs full sun. Try not to water is summer or it thatches up.

There are so many options in NZ.

Disclaimer. I grow most these species on a golf course

jonherries

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#781903 14-Mar-2013 20:14

Few things to add:

Hirequip on Adelaide Road has a rotovator which I used last time, works like those old self driving lawn mowers and was really good at turning the soil. Then we used rakes to remove all the old dead grass. We then added top soil from California garden and used a hard wearing type seed with a series of coatings.

Turned out really nice with lots of regular watering (every evening for about four weeks)!

Jon

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