How To Look After New Turf
The first few weeks after laying decide how thick and green your new lawn turns out so here's how we care for ours.
The short answer
To look after new turf, water it every morning or evening for the first two weeks, or for up to four weeks if it's laid in summer, and keep off it until the roots have knitted into the soil. Give it a first light cut on the mower's highest setting once it's growing, then feed it after a few weeks, clear fallen leaves and pull out weeds by hand.
Laying turf gives you a green lawn in a day, but at that point the rolls are only sitting on the soil. How you treat them over the next few weeks decides how thick, green and even the lawn turns out. Turf that's left to fend for itself dries out, shrinks at the joins and goes patchy.
We've laid over 300 square metres of turf in our own garden, and the six tips below are what worked for us. If you're still at the planning stage, start with our guide on how to lay turf step by step, because good ground preparation makes the aftercare far easier.
How To Look After New Turf
1. Water It Every Day At First
Watering decides whether new turf takes or fails. Do it early in the morning or in the evening, when the sun isn't strong enough to evaporate the water before it soaks down to the roots. A garden hose with a spray gun is fine for a small lawn and for targeting dry spots, while a lawn sprinkler for even coverage saves you standing out there on larger areas.
How long to keep it up depends on the weather. In mild spells of around 10 degrees, two weeks of daily watering does the job, while turf laid in summer can need up to four weeks before it copes on its own.
Lift a corner now and then to check the soil underneath is damp rather than soaking. Overwatering leaves the ground soggy, which starves the roots of air and invites lawn disease.
2. Stay Off The Lawn
Keep feet, children and pets off the new turf until the roots have bedded into the soil. That takes several weeks, and longer on a slope. To check, give the edge of a turf a gentle tug. If it lifts easily, give it more time, and once you feel real resistance, the roots have taken hold.
3. Mow High And Lightly
A few weeks after laying, the grass will have grown enough for its first cut. Set the mower to its highest setting for the first few months and mow regularly, taking only a little off each time, which encourages the grass to thicken up from the base. Our guide on when to cut new grass covers the right height for that first mow.
4. Feed The Soil
Pale, thin grass is a sign the turf has run short of nutrients. A lawn feed a few weeks after laying brings the colour back and helps the grass thicken. Stick to the rate on the bag, as too much feed scorches young grass.
5. Clear Leaves And Debris
Leaves left lying on new turf block the light and hold moisture against the grass, leaving yellow patches underneath. Rinse light debris off with the hose or rake it gently with a spring-tine rake, taking care not to lift the edges of the turf.
6. Keep On Top Of Weeds
Weeds that come in with the soil or blow in on the wind are easy to deal with while they're small. Pull them out by hand while the lawn is young. Once the turf is established, a selective lawn weed killer takes out broadleaf weeds without harming the grass, and our pick of the best weed killers for lawns and borders explains which type to use where.
Fixing Patchy New Turf
A few patches don't mean the lawn has failed. When parts of our own new turf started to brown along the edges, we gave those areas a week of targeted watering with the hose. The two photos below show the same corner before and after that week.
Edges and corners dry out fastest because they're exposed on more sides, so give them extra water through the first few weeks. Gaps between rolls are the other trouble spot, and brushing a little topsoil into them stops the edges drying and curling.
Patience Pays Off With A New Lawn
Turf looks finished on day one, but the roots take weeks to establish properly. Keep an eye on how the lawn responds, adjust the watering to the weather and deal with patchy areas as soon as they appear. Once it has knitted in and had a few cuts, you can treat it like any other lawn.
Planning a new lawn for another part of the garden? Our comparison of grass seed vs turf sets out the pros and cons of each.
Watch Us Do It
Treat Your Lawn To An Even Coverage of Water By Using A Sprinkler! We've Been Testing The Latest!
Other Questions We Get Asked
How long should you stay off new turf?
Stay off new turf until its roots have knitted into the soil, which takes several weeks and longer on a slope or in cool weather. Test it by gently tugging the edge of a turf. If it lifts easily, keep off for longer. Once it holds firm, light foot traffic won't do any harm.
Can you overwater new turf?
Yes, you can overwater new turf. Soil that stays soggy starves the roots of air, slows rooting and encourages lawn disease. Lift a corner of a turf to check, as the soil underneath should be damp but not waterlogged. Skip watering after heavy rain, and water in the morning or evening so less is lost to the sun.
When should you first feed new turf?
Feed new turf a few weeks after laying it, once it has started to root in and grow. Use a lawn feed at the rate given on the pack, because a heavy dose scorches young grass. Turf that looks pale or thin is short of nutrients, and a feed brings back the colour and helps it thicken.
Should you water new turf every day?
Water new turf every day for the first two weeks in mild weather of around 10 degrees. In summer, keep daily watering going for up to four weeks. Water in the early morning or evening, and cut back after heavy rain so the soil stays damp rather than soggy.
Is a hose enough to water new turf or do I need a sprinkler?
It depends on the size of the lawn. On a small one, a hose with a spray gun is all you need, and it's handy for giving dry corners extra attention. On a bigger lawn a sprinkler spreads the water evenly and saves you standing there holding the hose. Either way, water early or late in the day so the sun doesn't take it first.
What did you do about brown patches on your new turf?
We aimed the hose at them. A week of targeted watering on the browning edges brought most of that turf back to green, with just the outer strip still brown. Edges and corners are open to the air on more sides than the middle of the lawn, which is why they dry out first and need the extra water.
What do I do about gaps between turf rolls?
Brush a little topsoil into them. Open joins let the turf edges dry out and curl back, and filling them with soil protects those edges and gives the roots something to grow into. Give the joins a good share of the watering too, as they're among the first places to dry out.
Can I use a weed killer on a new lawn?
Not straight away. While the lawn is young, pull weeds out by hand, which is easy enough while they're still small. Wait until the turf is established before reaching for a selective lawn weed killer, which takes out broadleaf weeds and leaves the grass alone.
Archie is our gardening specialist. He started out as an apprentice at a gardening firm, built up his own knowledge from there and now writes most of our garden content.