How to properly plant a sports turf. How to sow the lawn: general tips for beginner gardeners

plant lawn grass on the site - this is a simple process, which you can do completely with your own hands. The main thing in this business is responsibility. It is also important to choose a quality planting material. Only if all important conditions you can get green beautiful grass on your own lawn.

How to grow lawn grass: preparing the site in the country

First you need to prepare the site on which the lawn will be located. To do this, remove all household waste, roots and stumps of trees, bushes. If this is not done, then the left wood residues will cause the appearance of toadstools.

Site preparation

Sod must also be removed from the site. For these purposes, a shovel or a special device for cutting the sod layer is suitable.

Lot leveling

In order for the lawn to have an attractive appearance, you need to take care of leveling the surface in advance. All holes and hills can be leveled using one proven method. To do this, you have to remove the soil from the bumps and place it in the recesses. To fill the hollows, you can use fertile soil taken from other parts of the garden.

Lawn leveling

When the site is still young and fertile layer is absent, then low-lying areas will have to be eliminated with the help of purchased peat soil.

Drainage

Before you start planting seeds for your lawn, you need to take care of drainage. If the site is located on good location, he is not afraid of rain and melted spring water, then you can simply dig up the earth, lime and feed. In other cases, drainage is provided. It must be done along with leveling the terrain.

Lawn drainage

During the leveling process, a fertile layer of earth was removed from the surface. It must be laid on top of the drainage in two layers. In this case, the lower one should consist of coarse gravel, and the upper one of small pebbles. In the process of laying, each layer should be compacted. The type of drainage must be chosen taking into account the area of the site, the location of groundwater, laid communications and much more.

Digging

On the site, which is allocated for the lawn, it is necessary to carry out the processing of the soil. For these purposes, you can use a pitchfork or shovels. You need to dig to a depth of 20-25 cm. It is during this period that the soil should be fed using organic matter and sand.

Digging up a lawn area

In addition to digging, it is necessary to take care of a flat surface without lumps. If they are small, then you can break them with your own hands, using a pitchfork or rake. In the process of work, you need to get rid of weeds and stones. For processing large areas, it is worth using a motor cultivator.

Before tampering, pegs will be driven in around the entire perimeter of the site. Pull rope through them. At the same time, make sure that you get a perfectly even and straight line. To achieve this result, it is necessary to apply building level.

Video: how to plant and sow a lawn with your own hands

On the video how to plant lawn grass on the site:

Rammer

When performing this work, it is possible to remove a void from the thickness of the earth. Then in the future, when the soil settles, unevenness will not occur. A garden roller can be used for ramming, or if one is not available, your feet will help you. It is necessary to trample down the earth in dry weather. It's worth thinking ahead

Lawn tamping

Smooth out the traces left from the shoes with a rake. During ramming, attention must be paid to the levels of the driven pegs. If the angle is distorted, a hill or valley may form.

For those who want to learn about and how to do it correctly, the information from the article will help to understand.

fallow

This point is missed by many, because here you have to spend extra time and effort. But it’s better to do everything according to the rules, since the fallowing of the site has its advantages:

The essence of the method is that under the influence of steam it is possible to eliminate the seeds of weeds and rhizomes of couch grass
If the lawn will be created by planting seeds, then this item should be skipped;
The duration of fallowing is 1-1.5 months, since it is necessary to regularly remove germinating weeds and carry out herbicide treatment right before the final preparation. But what kind of lawn grass that destroys weeds can be read in this

On the video sowing the site with green manure grasses:

Today, instead of fallowing, many gardeners began to use the sowing of the site with green manure herbs. This should include lupine, sweet clover, white mustard. They are sown 1.5 months before the creation of the lawn. And before sowing lawn grass, the green mass is dug up. This allows you to improve the structure of the soil and saturate it with nitrogen.

Pre-sowing preparation

To get the maximum similarity of the grass, it is necessary to carry out some pre-sowing activities. For 1-1.5 weeks, fertilize the land allotted for the lawn with mineral fertilizers. It will take 40-60 g per 1 m2. Top dressing should be planted in the ground with a rake to a depth of 5 cm. Then perform the final loosening.

In addition, before sowing lawn grass seeds, it is necessary to prepare the ground itself. It should be kept for 3 months for shrinkage. But due to the fact that the growing season in Russia is short, this method is more relevant for the southern regions.

Many gardeners sow seeds during the summer months. Of course, you can do this, but only then you will have to actively water the lawn. It is important that there is no standing water. All this requires much more time and effort.

lawn seeding

So when everything preparations behind, you have already bought planting material, you can safely proceed to sowing the lawn. There is a specific action plan for this:

Loosen the surface of the earth with a fan rake. This will leave small grooves on it. Mix the seeds in a pack thoroughly, take them and send them to the ground. When sowing, it must be borne in mind that about 8 cm should go beyond the edge of the plot on each side.
If there is no instruction on the package, then 30-60 g of planting material must be sown per 1 m2. If you sow less often, then weeds will break through the spaces formed, and ugly bald spots will also be noticeable.
All seeds can be divided into 4 parts and sow each ¼ part of the plot. If you have a seeder on your farm, then sow half of the planting material along the furrows, and the rest across. Top with earth, using a fan rake. It is also worth applying

On the video how the sowing of the lawn takes place:

First watering

You can see the first seedlings in 1-3 weeks. Watering at this time should be done every 2-3 days. But this is provided that there is no rain. Irrigate the grass must be extremely careful. To do this, you can use a watering can with a small sprayer so that there are thin streams of water.

When the young bores take a height of 8-10 cm, you can proceed to the first haircut. When watering, do not use a strong pressure of water. This can wash the planting material to the surface. And here is the best pulse sprinkler for watering, and how to choose the right one. indicated in this

Creating a lawn on your site is easy. This process requires only careful preparation and subsequent minimal maintenance. It is also important to buy high-quality planting material, so here it is better to give preference to trusted manufacturers. As for the subsequent care of the lawn, this is watering and mowing. If all the actions described earlier were performed correctly, then soon you will be able to enjoy a beautiful and green lawn.

A well-groomed green lawn around the house can significantly improve landscape design. In addition, it emphasizes the exterior of the building, helps to create a special aesthetic appeal of the site. But for sowing any lawn grass you need careful preparation sites. Subsequent care of the cover will also require a lot of time and effort from the owners. You can learn more about how to plant a lawn with your own hands and which herbs are better to choose in our detailed article. We also told everything about the rules for preparing the site for sowing lawn grass, the requirements for subsequent watering, cleaning and fertilizing the land. Following simple recommendations, you can grow a beautiful and healthy lawn on your backyard land. Don't forget about useful tips to care for it in different seasons and you will be able to achieve the perfect look of your garden and yard.

Lawn advantages and disadvantages

A beautiful lawn near the house will not only help improve the landscape, but will also be really useful. The presence of a lawn will prevent soil erosion (both wind and water). Therefore, the planted area will retain its shape throughout the entire period of growing lawn grass. Green spaces will also help to purify the air. It is important that constant mowing prevents the appearance of flowers on the lawn and, accordingly, eliminates the formation of pollen. Therefore, rest on the lawn will be completely safe for allergy sufferers. As for the disadvantages of the lawn, they include the need for frequent cutting and watering. Lack of timely watering will lead to the drying of the cover and the need to replace it. Therefore, before planting a lawn, it is worth evaluating your ability to care for the grown cover.

Lawn types

When choosing the right type of lawn, you need to take into account many factors: whether people will walk on it, whether it will be located in the shade or in the sun. There are the following types of lawns:

landscape gardening (standard, ordinary): it has good resistance to trampling, shade tolerance and frost resistance; however, in the spring it will require the most frequent haircuts; forms a dense dark green cover;
parquet: it costs more than usual and does not tolerate trampling; slowly germinates, but after completion of growth forms a dense low bright green cover;
meadow: includes both grasses and low-growing plants (for example, clover); suitable for landing on a sunny site, tolerates infrequent trampling well;
Moorish: is a cover of a variety of low-growing flowers and herbs, creates a beautiful colorful cover, but needs frequent watering and does not tolerate shade, unsuitable for trampling;
sports: forms a low dense cover that is resistant to trampling; needs regular (usually weekly) clipping to maintain its characteristics.

To separate species can be attributed to the rolled lawn. It can include a variety of herbs (not undersized flowers!). Distinguished by ease of installation.

The composition of the lawn mixture

The resistance to trampling and the possibility of growing cover in the shade or in the sun directly depend on the characteristics of the plants included in the lawn mixture. When choosing the right composition of the mixture, we recommend using the following hint:

For landing on sports grounds or as paths: meadow bluegrass, red fescue, perennial ryegrass.
For playgrounds and play areas: perennial ryegrass, bluegrass meadow, red fescue and thin bentgrass.
For a shaded area: perennial ryegrass, bluegrass forest.
For a site with infrequent watering: sheep fescue and red fescue, meadow bluegrass.
For areas with high humidity soils: giant bent grass, sandy wheatgrass.

It is also worth considering the simplified classification of mixtures. Road (aerodrome) includes plants with a powerful root system that are well resistant to trampling. The universal mixture is suitable for sowing in open areas where people will not walk. The Mauritanian mix additionally includes forbs, allowing you to get a variegated cover of grass and flowers.

Selection and calculation of seeds

After studying information about different grass mixtures and types of lawn, you can start buying seeds. Define right amount grass mixtures can be according to the following scheme:

Measure the area to be sown.
Calculate its area.
For light soil (with a high percentage of sand), about 30-40 g of seeds will be required for each square meter. For heavy soil (predominantly clay), 40-50 g of seeds per square meter will be required. meter. Accordingly, 3-4 or 4-5 kg of grass mixture may be required for each hundred square meters.

Additionally, it should be borne in mind that the Mauritanian mixture also includes small (respectively light) seeds of undersized flowers. Therefore, for such a lawn, it is recommended to take the mixture at a critically low level (for light ground- 30 g per sq. m, for heavy - 40 g). For universal and road mixtures, you can take seeds at the top mark (40 or 50 g per 1 sq. M).

Increasing the number of seeds will not allow you to get a more beautiful or dense cover. On the contrary, such an approach will lead to uneven plant growth and germination problems.

Lawn planting methods

There are several ways to plant lawn grass, allowing you to choose best option crops for your site. You can work using the following technologies:

With a seeder.

To begin with, you will need to pour the right amount of grass mixture into the seeder itself and walk with it through the prepared area. Keep in mind that for simplicity and uniformity of sowing, it is necessary to divide the planted area into separate squares and sow on them using the previously determined grass mixture rate.

Manually.

Does not guarantee seeding uniformity, but is the easiest option. Before work, the site is divided into squares, the rate of grass mixture is mixed with sand 1 to 1 (for 40 g of seeds - 40 g of sand). Sowing is carried out along the selected area, then across. Therefore, it will be rational to immediately divide the prepared combination of sand and grass mixture into 2 parts.

Using a tin can.

Outperforms hand seeding. To work, you will need to make small holes in a tin can (slightly larger than the size of the seeds used). The work is carried out similarly to manual sowing (including the addition of sand and the passage along the site along and across).

Features of seasonal planting

When sowing, it is also important to take into account the season when the seeds are planted. Depending on weather conditions, sowing requirements can vary significantly. So, if the work is done:

spring;

Sowing the lawn should be carried out after normalization of temperature and the absence of frost. Gentle spring sun will provide good germination and eliminate the death of plants due to heat. But you need to be very careful: it is mandatory to clean the site from emerging weeds, which also germinate well in the spring.

summer;

Summer planting is attractive for the possibility of preliminary complete cleaning of the soil from weeds. True, landing should be carried out in well-watered land even after 6-7 pm (when the sun does not burn the seedlings).

autumn.

Autumn planting is carried out 1.5-2 months before frost, when the temperature is still quite high. Before planting the lawn, the area is cleared of old grass, weed, mandatory requirement is the application of fertilizers that will help strengthen the seedlings. The advantage of autumn lawn planting is the possibility of grass rooting in winter and the maximum increase in germination.

Preparing the site and soil for planting

Growing a lawn is not easy, but with strict adherence to the recommendations of specialists, it is quite possible to achieve good seed germination and create a beautiful cover. First of all, you need to carry out a complete cleaning of the site from any stones, obstacles, draw up a lawn planting plan. For example, if lawn grass will frame a flower bed or trees in the garden, then you should put pegs that mark the edge of the cover. You also need to consider whether the lawn will closely adjoin the paths and curbs, or whether flowers and shrubs will be located between it and the fences. Additionally, to prepare the site, you will need to purchase all the necessary materials: a covering sheet or pipes for drainage, a pitchfork, a rake, a hand roller and a seeder. Such preparation will help to immediately resolve all issues and not be distracted from the process of planting a lawn cover.

Soil tillage: chopping and weeding

In order for the sown lawn grass to sprout well and at the same time grow quickly, it is necessary to create for it optimal conditions and achieve the correct composition of the soil. So, the first step in preparing the site for planting with a lawn is the removal of weeds. They need to be uprooted, excluding the subsequent possibility of growth. Special attention at this stage, weeds with a large root system or spreading shoots over the surface of the earth should be given: they all need to be removed. Next, the site is excavated. It is recommended to dig the soil to a depth of no more than 25 cm. In the process of digging, it is also important to remove previously hidden pieces of rhizomes, both from cultivated plants as well as weeds. In the process of digging, it is important to loosen the ground well to create proper air access to the top layer.

The presence of a drainage system under the lawn is a guarantee of rapid removal of melt and rainwater. There are several ways to organize the proper removal of moisture:

Multi-layered soil (natural drainage).

Upper layer soil (about 20 cm) is removed, a layer of gravel and a layer of sand (5 cm each) are laid. From above, the soil is again filled up. Such an arrangement of the site will ensure the timely removal of water.

Laying drainage pipes(best option for wetlands).

around the perimeter suburban area where the lawn will grow, and also inside this perimeter, at a distance of 40-60 cm from each other, asbestos drains are dug in. Under them, a pillow should be made of sand and crushed stone with a thickness of about 30 cm. Another 10 cm of crushed stone is poured over the drains. Next, a layer of sand of 10 cm is filled up, and geotextiles are laid. Next, the soil itself is poured (thickness is about 20-25 cm).

When laying drains, it is necessary to take into account the slope of the site and equip the correct water drainage.

After completion of the preparatory work, it is necessary to start leveling the soil where the lawn will be planted. The work can be done by hand, but land owners must follow our step-by-step instructions:

Carry out a breakdown of the site into separate sites: this will ensure that it is easy to achieve evenness of the entire soil without sharp drops.
Large clods of earth (which could have formed after the installation of drainage or in the process of digging) must be broken with a shovel.
Between the selected parts of the site, you need to install pegs and pull the rope, which will serve as a guide for the evenness of the land cover.
With the help of a rake, carry out the initial leveling of the earth. For large areas it is recommended to use manual cultivator. A very popular way of "smoothing" the surface with a board. In this case, a rope is tied to the board and the board itself is pulled along the surface, thereby allowing you to quickly and easily level the top layer of the earth.

Fertilizer and rammer

Proper “feeding” of plants will help ensure good lawn growth near a summer house or residential building. To do this, compost or manure can be added to the top layer of soil. They will enrich the soil and allow lawn grass to grow quickly. For clay (heavy) soils good decision will be the introduction of a small amount of sand. But in sandy (light) soil, on the contrary, you should add a little clay or black soil. After saturation of the soil, the earth is compacted under the lawn. You can work in the following ways:

Manual roller (its weight should not exceed 150 kg).

Rolling should be carried out without effort: the soil will settle a little under the weight of the rink itself.

board.

The board is placed on the edge of the area to be planted, and the owner walks along this board. Then he puts another board in front of him and steps on it. The work is repeated until all the soil is compacted. The main thing is not to leave the board on the ground in order to avoid the appearance of depressions and the creation of drops in the lawn itself.

Plot steaming - what is it and how to do it

To completely get rid of weeds and normalize the soil, fallowing is carried out. In agricultural technology, steam is an unsown field that is “gaining strength”. That is, it is plowed and left unsown. For lawns, the fallowing procedure will not take a whole season, but only 1-2 months. Therefore, it will be the right decision to start work at the end of March in order to be able to sow the seeds by May. During the fallow period, emerging weeds must be constantly removed. Periodic combing of the soil with a fan rake will help awaken sleeping seeds. They will help to saturate the top layer of soil with air and thereby speed up the process of weed germination. Then it remains only to manually remove harmful plants. Sowing green manure can be considered an alternative to fallowing. For example, 1.5 months before sowing the lawn, sweet clover and lupine are planted. After this period, plowing of the site is carried out. Thus, the grown shoots will be "dug" into the soil. They will help enrich the land and create favorable conditions for the growth of lawn grass.

Sowing and its features

Having completed everything preparatory work By choosing a suitable grass mixture and calculating the best way to distribute it on the site, you can sow the lawn. It is not difficult to carry out such a procedure on your own. The following step-by-step instruction will help with this:

Divide the entire area into separate squares and prepare the right amount of grass mixture for each square.
Sow the lawn along and across each square, being careful not to leave empty areas and at the same time not to "overpopulate" individual parts of the soil.
Carefully walk the rake over the sown areas: this will help to slightly deepen the seeds into the ground. It is advisable not only to comb the soil with a rake, but also lightly pierce the ground with them.
Walk with a roller to tamp the seeds and level the top layer.
Water the area with a small amount of water, using a special nozzle for the watering hose with the “fog” mode.

Benefits of laying turf

Unlike a regular lawn, rolled lawn does not require sowing. It is usually sold in small rolls measuring 0.8-1 m by 2 m. But even under such a lawn, the soil must be specially prepared. In general, organizational procedures for all types of lawn cover are the same and include: cleaning the site, removing weeds and leveling the soil, arranging drainage, fertilizing, tamping. Further, the rolled lawn is only unrolled and laid on the prepared ground. This technology saves a lot of time. In addition, immediately after laying the lawn, you can enjoy a luxurious landscape design. Due to the fact that it is not necessary to plant a rolled lawn, it is possible to update the look of a garden or backyard in just a couple of days. Another plus is the uniformity of the cover and the absence of "bald spots" on it as a result of poor seed germination. True, after receiving the rolls, you should immediately proceed to their installation and primary watering. Otherwise, the grass will begin to dry and may partially disappear.

How to properly care

It is necessary not only to sow, but also to take care of the lawn correctly and, most importantly, on time. Of particular importance is its protection, fertilizer and other care at different times of the year. By following simple recommendations and performing each of them step by step, you can avoid problems with the disappearance of the lawn or its partial withering, freezing.

Summer and autumn.

After the growth of the grass, it is imperative to organize proper watering. Fertilization may also be required during the summer period. In the autumn, watering should be reduced (especially in an area with frequent rains). Timely removal of emerging weeds will also become mandatory. In November, you should carry out the last haircut and remove fallen leaves from the lawn.

In winter.

So that in winter the lawn does not disappear and can grow again in the spring, you need to stop watering. Loads are also not recommended (for a sports type) - it is better to exclude walking on plants. If snow is rare in your area, covering plants with agrofibre will help protect plants from frost.

Spring.

Preparing your lawn for the new season starts with removing the old grass. But work should be carried out only on dry grass and in dry weather. Germinating old weeds must be removed. Next, aeration of the soil is carried out (for example, by piercing the soil with a pitchfork). It is necessary to exclude the accumulation of melt water, but after the formation of dry and warm weather, nitrogen fertilizers can be applied.

Watering

In the process of germination of the lawn, you should take care of its moderate and careful watering. That is why the supply of water from the hose to young shoots should be excluded. It is necessary to use a special nozzle with the "fog" mode, which will help to carefully spray the grass. Watering the lawn in spring and summer should be done early in the morning or late in the evening. Young plants are recommended to be watered little by little, but often. But rooted herbs can be watered abundantly 1 time in 2-4 days (depending on the prevailing weather and air temperature). In the autumn, watering should be reduced: choose the frequency of watering individually. The main task is the complete absorption of moisture and good drying of plants. As for automatic watering (for example, when using an automatic sprinkler), the water from it should be supplied in small portions, excluding the formation of puddles on the lawn.

fertilizers

Lawn fertilization should be carried out at different times of the year. At the same time, the composition of substances will change depending on the season. Choosing the right fertilizer for good growth lawn will help you with the following hint:

Spring.

Immediately after the snow melts, you need to apply liquid fertilizers, which include nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium. This combination will ensure a strong root system, healthy turf growth and disease resistance.

Summer.

Constant exposure high temperatures, bright sunlight can deplete the lawn. The introduction of nitroammophoska will help maintain its healthy appearance and condition. It is recommended to use it in late June or early July. In mid-July and early to mid-August, potash salt should be added. But at the end of August, the introduction of potassium-phosphate mixtures is recommended. Such saturation of the soil will ensure dense and dense growth of the cover, its resistance to diseases and negative influences.

Properly cutting a garden lawn is quite simple using modern trimmers and lawn mowers. The first haircut is carried out when the lawn grass has grown by 7-8 cm. The second haircut is carried out once a week. When performing this work, it is recommended to follow some simple requirements:

It is necessary to carry out a haircut no earlier than on the second day after watering in the evening. The lawnmower will not move well on wet ground, and both the lawnmower and trimmer will mow wet shoots unevenly. Grass cut at lunchtime may begin to “burn” and turn yellow.
Each new haircut should be perpendicular to the previous one. This rule will allow you to make neat cuts, get an even and thick cover.
After mowing, it is recommended to lightly spray the lawn with water to maintain the strength of the sprouts. Fertilization of plants is also allowed (unless, of course, it has not been carried out in the last 1-2 weeks and would be appropriate).

Combing and aeration

Combing the lawn consists in removing old plants and weeds, opening air access to the root system of grasses. Combing is usually done in the fall after the last lawn mowing. But it is also recommended to repeat this procedure in the spring before the start of the new season. Combing will help "revive" the plants and provide them with excellent conditions for growth. In summer, combing cannot be carried out, otherwise the whole cover will be broken. As for aeration, such a procedure is aimed at breaking up the soil crust, which is formed in the process of watering and drying the earth. Aeration is performed once a season - in the fall after combing. But it can also be carried out in other periods, if the lawn grass began to hurt, puddles remain in some areas and the water does not pass. For aeration, you can use a pitchfork or a special tool - an aerator. The depth of the holes created in the ground should be from 7 to 15 cm.

Weeding and weed control

In the first year after planting the lawn, you do not need to pull out weeds. Timely mowing will help protect your lawn from weeds. They will prevent the growth of weeds (as well as the emergence of new units due to seeds and shoots), help the lawn grass to strengthen and “drive out” such neighbors. In the second year and after, you need to carry out manual removal of weeds - weeding or pulling them out by the roots. In the resulting hole after pulling out, you need to sow a new lawn. For lawns that have been growing for more than 3-4 years, the use of pesticides is allowed. But they must be used very carefully: dial the right amount of pesticide into the spitz and inject it into the weed stalk. When moss appears on the site, unscheduled aeration is allowed. If the moss has grown on the lawn under the trees, then it is recommended to trim the branches and allow sunlight to access the moss.

Conclusion

Do-it-yourself plant a beautiful home or country lawn not so easy. But if you follow the detailed tips of experts and take care of the lawn grass in time, then achieving the perfect green lawn around the house will not be difficult. You can plant as usual if you wish. green lawn, which will complement the flower beds, and create a dense cover where you can walk. Such a lawn will not only decorate the site, but will also allow you to create original play areas for children and recreation areas for adults. Among the variety of grass mixtures, one can also find original covers with different meadow flowers. Such an ensemble will unusually decorate a personal plot and help to highlight artificial reservoirs or small garden forms in a non-standard way. The main thing is not to forget to remove weeds in time, apply fertilizers and, of course, water the lawn on time. Then it not only forms a thick cover, but will be able to become even brighter and denser in subsequent years.

It seems to many that there can be no difficulties in growing grass. But this only applies to weeds, they really grow beautifully on their own. And to get beautiful grass lawn, you have to work, in this case there is certain subtleties. We will figure out how to plant lawn grass with our own hands, and what care to provide for it.

When to plant lawn grass

Planting lawn grass with your own hands can be done in spring, summer and autumn. Consider the positive and negative sides each of these periods. It is recommended to plant lawn grass in the spring in the last decade of April - early May. These timings have their advantages:

The soil by this time is quite moist and no longer frozen.
The first weeds have time to sprout, and it will be possible to get rid of them even before sowing lawn grass, using herbicidal preparations.
By the end of the season, the grass will be stronger, even survive several mowing. You will be able to detect errors, and if there are bald spots somewhere, then sow the seeds.
In the spring it is already quite warm, and with good seed germination, it will be possible to admire a young green lawn a month after sowing.
To winter period such a lawn will be strong and well rooted, it will easily endure frosts.

Flaw spring planting is that the prepared soil may not have time to stand. That is why experts recommend preparing the site before winter, and sowing seeds in the spring.

Some people think that it is better to plant lawn grass with seeds in June, since the ground is already quite warm. In addition, if the preparation of the site was carried out in the spring, the soil will have time to settle, revealing errors during alignment.

You can sow the lawn in the second half of summer (July - early August), but in this case it all depends on the region. In areas where the cold comes early, there is a risk that the grass will not have time to get stronger. Besides, an insufficient amount bevelling will not form a uniform surface. Some of the plants may freeze and not sprout in the spring, and then you will have to sow the lawn again.

As for the autumn period, there are two options for planting lawn grass. good time for regions with moderate winters - the beginning of September, it is only necessary to carefully prepare the site in the summer. Lawn grass in autumn not only manages to sprout, but also grows to the height of the first haircut (about 10 cm). Thanks to mowing, the lawn will become stronger and at this stage it will overwinter well under snow in regions with moderate winters.

The second option is to sow the plot with seeds before winter (at the end of October), after fertilizing the soil. The grass will no longer have time to grow, but the seeds will undergo stratification, harden off and sprout well in the spring. But even in this case, it is necessary to take into account the peculiarities of the region. If the second half of autumn is warm, the plants will begin to break through (at temperatures above + 5 ° C), and the sharp onset of cold weather will destroy them.

Where to begin

The arrangement of the lawn begins with the planning of a suitable place in the country and markings, while taking into account overall plan site and landscape style(if it has already been created). Then, in the allotted area, they begin to remove weeds. If there are too many of them, then the site must be treated with herbicides. As soon as the weeds turn yellow and dry, proceed to the general cleaning of the territory. Everything is removed - dried grass, stumps and roots of cut trees, branches, stones, construction waste and unnecessary shrubs.

Site preparation

Now the cleared area must be dug up. This is one of the most difficult stages. Do not neglect digging if you want to get a really healthy and beautiful lawn. Depending on the structure of the soil, there are two options: Simple (or single-tier) digging. Only the top layer of soil on the bayonet of a shovel is affected (if it is heavy, you can also use a pitchfork). This method is suitable when you know for sure that the site has normal drainage and the land was previously cultivated.

For example, one-tier digging is enough if the lawn is broken on the spot old flower bed or vegetable garden. Double decker. It will be required in areas that have not been plowing for a long time. With this method, the top layer of soil is removed and taken to the side, and the bottom layer is loosened with a pick or fork. With such digging, it would be good to add manure or rotted compost.

The soil on the site needs top dressing. If it has high acidity, add chalk or slaked lime. heavy and clay soil loosen with humus or compost. And, of course, mineral fertilizers: nitrogen in spring, potassium and phosphorus in summer and autumn.

The prepared site is allowed to stand for 1-2 weeks so that the soil settles. After that, carefully inspect the territory of the future lawn from all sides for irregularities, otherwise, when the grass grows, it will be seen that the lawn is uneven. It is necessary to level the bumps, fill the depressions with soil and carefully walk over the entire area with a rake. The finally prepared area is rolled with a garden roller.

Is drainage necessary?

If the lawn is broken up in a wetland or clay predominates in the composition of the soil, drainage is indispensable. In this case, when preparing the site, it is necessary to make three layers. First, broken bricks (adobe or ceramic), tiles, gravel, stones are poured to a thickness of 10 to 15 cm.

Silicate brick is unsuitable for arranging drainage - under the influence of moisture, it quickly collapses and changes the chemical composition of the soil.

Then a layer of the same thickness is formed from fine screening of crushed stone or sand. And only after that lay fertile soil.

How to choose grass mixtures

Which grass mixture to choose for planting a lawn depends on its functional purpose, site illumination, climatic conditions:

the sports ground should be well tolerated mechanical damage and trampling (red and meadow fescue, meadow bluegrass, perennial ryegrass are suitable);
the lawn for children's games should be soft, so it is better to sow it with a team of hedgehogs, different types clover, meadow timothy;
the decorative coating should look elegant; for its arrangement, sheep fescue, awnless brome, shoot-forming bent grass are used.

A good option to create a background for others landscape elements- Canadian lawn grass. When sowing, it is unpretentious, grows on any soil, its care is simple. "Canada Green" retains its greenery even under snow cover and does not allow weeds to germinate. If you want to form a bright flowering lawn, choose a Moorish lawn grass mixture. A beautiful undersized lawn is created from white clover, Corsican mint, anise and creeping thyme (thyme).

Seeding technology

Lawn seeding technology is no different. The main rule is that there should be calm weather to ensure uniform distribution seeds throughout the area.

Most lawn grass seeds do not require any special preparation for sowing. Only in some plants (awnless bonfire, high ryegrass, meadow bluegrass) do the seeds have thin hairs with which they interlock, form lumps and lose their flowability - they are processed at home on a grater to restore their properties.

Two days before sowing, the plot is watered to plant seeds in slightly moist soil.

If the territory of the future lawn is large, then you cannot do without a special seeder. Small areas can be sown by hand. The grass mixture is poured into sand (equal proportions are taken), mixed thoroughly and scattered over the entire area. This mixing allows you to achieve uniform distribution.

Sow in two directions: along the plot, then across. Then the soil is loosened and rolled with a roller so that the seeds are not blown away by gusts of wind, and preferably sprinkled with peat (a layer of 1 cm will be enough). The final stage is watering the area with a hose with a fine spray.

Care rules

And now a small instruction on how to care for the planted lawn: The main thing is to ensure correct and timely watering - always using a fine sprayer so that the grass roots are not washed out with a powerful water jet while they are still weak. Watered daily early in the morning and in the evening, but not in the scorching heat of lunchtime. The lawn sown "before winter" is not watered - the seeds should sprout in the spring. When the grass grows up to 6-10 cm, the first haircut is made, with the exception of the Mauritanian (flowering) lawn.

Subsequently, they mow every 2-3 weeks (the frequency depends on the type of lawn and the variety of planted plants). The soil needs to be aerated twice a season. The top layer is pierced special devices, due to which a normal exchange of atmospheric and soil air is ensured.

Three times during the season, the lawn must be fed. For the first time, at the end of spring, preparations containing nitrogen and phosphorus are applied - they contribute to the rapid growth of green mass, as well as the strengthening and development of roots. To improve the color and growth of grass in the summer they feed nitrogen fertilizers(you can not do this if the season is not too dry, with moderate temperatures). Application in autumn potash fertilizers will give the grass resistance to winter cold.

Possible problems

It happens that young grass grows poorly and loses its bright color. Most likely not enough in the soil nutrients, which means that fertilizing with nitrogen-containing fertilizers is needed. Weeds may appear if the area has not been carefully cleared of them for preparatory stage, that is, you have to dig them out manually.

The appearance of cracks in the lawn indicates poor watering. To eliminate them, it is necessary to water the damaged area well and mulch, while adding a little grass mixture to the mulch. Yellowing and dying off of the grass indicates fungal or viral diseases - this can kill the entire lawn. It is necessary to immediately treat the focus with special preparations, for example, fundazol.

We hope that you will be able to properly sow the lawn with your own hands. It will be accepted, will not hurt and for many years will delight the eye with a beautiful bright view and nice to tickle your heels.

The lawn always looks good on personal plot. Soft and fresh grass gives the area a well-groomed appearance. Sometimes, without a lawn, the landscape design of the territory looks unfinished, incomplete.

Let's talk about how to choose planting material and how to plant lawn grass yourself on your site.

As soon as the gardener decides on the type of garden lawn, he can already start sowing the grass mixture. But it should be taken into account that even best material for planting will not be able to show successful results without proper preparation of the site for sowing the lawn. This moment is the key on the way to a beautiful and well-groomed area sown with green grass.

Site preparation

Here are some rules and guidelines for preparing the site for sowing the lawn as well as preparation for laying roll type lawn.

First of all, you need to remove absolutely all debris from the site, remove the roots of trees and stumps, as well as all the root systems of shrubs. The remains of trees and bushes left in the soil can provoke the appearance of grebes in a grassy area.

It is necessary to remove the top sod layer of soil using a conventional shovel or a special machine. The method with a shovel will require skill and physical strength from the gardener. This is not as easy as it might seem at first glance. Cutting the sod layer is a faster and less energy-intensive method. Yes, and in this way you can better prepare the soil.

If there are a lot of weeds on the site, then it is imperative to use herbicides, for example, Roundup. After applying the drug, dead plants should be completely removed. It should be borne in mind that plants such as dandelion or clover have a developed root system and even with manual weeding, the remaining part of the rhizome will eventually grow and sprout sooner or later.

Lot leveling

This is a lot milestone on the way to successful landing lawn. The area must be level as much as possible. Specialists in planting an English lawn even use a building level when leveling the ground. This is justified, because this is the only way to get a perfect lawn surface as a result.

Terrain planning should be done only in dry and clear weather. At the same time, the slope can not be removed, its presence will even help drain excess water on rainy days. But even such a slope should have a perfectly even relief.

Holes and bumps in the ground can be leveled in two ways:

remove the layer of soil from the bumps and move it to the recesses and pits,
fill the lowlands with fertile soil taken from other sites.

If there is no fertile soil, then it may well be replaced by a purchased soil mixture or peat soil. If the soil in the area is clayey and heavy, then in order to make it more permeable to water and air, you need to mix it with river sand.

Ideal soil parameters for growing lawn grass, per 100 grams of soil:

acidity 5.5-6.5 pH;
humus - 2.5 - 3.5%;
nitrogen and nitrogen compounds - 10 milligrams;
phosphorus - 15-25 milligrams;
potassium: 20-30 milligrams;
copper and zinc.

Drainage

If necessary, the soil must be present drainage layer. This is an optional step, but necessary in some cases.

Any instruction for planting a lawn says that you need to properly arrange drainage. If the place of sowing is not flooded and not subject to spring floods, then in this case the usual digging and fertilization will be sufficient. In other cases, it is necessary to create drainage system. This process must be combined with leveling the ground.

If the soil on the site is often flooded with water or it stands on it, then in this case it is simply impossible to do without drainage.

When leveling the terrain of the site, you need lay the removed layer of soil on top of the drainage laid in two layers. The bottom layer consists of coarse gravel, and the top layer consists of sand or small gravel. So, a three-layer base will appear at the landing site of the green carpet. It looks something like this:

the upper 15-20 centimeters of the layer - fertile soil,
below is 15 centimeters of sand or gravel,
further 15 centimeters of gravel.

In addition, each layer must be carefully compacted.

The type of drainage directly depends on the size of the site, the location of groundwater and other factors that need to be discussed separately.

There are times when the lawn is located near the foundation, then you need to lay French drainage, which can be done by hand. This is especially true in small areas.

Soil treatment and final cleaning

On small area soil can be processed with a shovel or fork. You need to dig the earth 20 centimeters deep. If the humus layer is thin, then the depth may be less. In this case, it is necessary to feed the soil organic fertilizers and add river sand to it. Lawn grass does not like depleted soil and simply will not grow on it.

Lumps of earth must be broken, otherwise the soil will settle unevenly and this will not allow you to properly level the relief of the site. You can break up lumps with a rake, shovel or pitchfork. During this, it is necessary to simultaneously clear the earth of stones, debris, weeds, as well as the remains of plant rhizomes.

If the area for planting is large, then it is best to use a motor cultivator.

If sowing is planned in the spring, then it is recommended to prepare the site in the fall. Then earthen clods can be left until the sowing period. This will improve drainage. It is necessary to level and break lumps before direct landing.

Before proceeding with tamping, and this is the next stage in preparing the site, you need to drive stakes around the entire perimeter and pull a rope over them. Next, you need to ideally adjust the level of the rope, the straight line of which should be 180 °. For accuracy, you can use the building level.

Rammer

Soil compaction This is a very important step in site preparation. With the help of it, possible voids are removed from the thickness of the soil and thereby the unevenness of the relief of the green carpet is prevented.

You can compact the soil both with your feet and with a special roller. As a skating rink, any smooth rounded object with a radius of at least twenty centimeters is perfect. For example, it can be a large diameter metal pipe.

It is necessary to tamp the soil only in dry and clear weather. After compacting the soil with your feet, you need to remove the traces of shoes with a rake.

Needed during the whole process control the level, and if it seems that there is an unevenness somewhere, then you need to fix it right away. To do this, you can add a layer of soil or remove it.

Plot fallow

Many people ignore and skip this stage, because it takes a lot of physical strength and time to complete it. But it has a number of advantages.

Fallow aging rids the soil of roots and weed seeds. This stage is obligatory for the sowing lawn; parrying can be omitted when laying the rolled lawn.

You need to steam the plot for two months. The method consists in the constant removal of weeds and treatment with preparations - herbicides.

Currently, green manure sowing is used instead of fallowing. They are sown on the site one and a half months before planting the lawn, and before planting, the plot with plants is plowed up. It has been proven that this has a beneficial effect on the soil and enriches it.

Pre-sowing preparation

One week before the expected sowing scatter mineral fertilizers on the site and close them with a rake to a depth of five centimeters.

When loosening the soil, clods of earth should be no larger than the size of a grain of wheat.

Before sowing grass, you need to choose the most favorable day in terms of weather. Should be clear and dry. The top layer of soil should ideally be dry and the bottom layer moist.

Spring sowing is best done in April - June. At summer sowing Abundant watering will be required, as lawn grass is very demanding on moisture and can dry out.

How to sow lawn grass in the spring on your site?

So, now let's talk about direct sowing. The grass mixture has already been bought and now it remains to proceed to the most important thing.

Getting Started:

First watering

Lawn grass sprouts, as a rule, 7-20 days after sowing. If the weather is not rainy, then the lawn should be watered regularly. But this must be done with extreme caution, a watering can with a spray or a special lawn installation that sprays water jets.

As soon as the green carpet grows to 10 centimeters, it's time for a haircut.

Conclusion

We figured out how to properly plant lawn grass in the spring on your territory. It is worth saying that if you follow all the recommendations for preparing the site for sowing lawn grass, as well as the rules for planting and care, then it is quite possible to become the owner of an ideal lawn cover on the site, which will be a highlight and decoration of the territory.