How Much Does it Cost to Turf a Lawn?

Turfing and preparing the ground for turfing is not rocket science, and there is nothing complicated about it. However, it’s a physical and energy-requiring job, which is not so recommended for people with back problems. So, if you are feeling fit for the job and ready to handle the work yourself, you can go ahead quite confidently.

Mind you, though, you may think that you’ll be saving this way on the turf installation cost (if you were to hire a specialist), but don’t forget that you’ll still need to invest in some special tools and equipment. 

No matter if you rely entirely on yourself or prefer to ask for professional help, turfing is the easiest way to achieve green and long-lasting lawn. In this article, we’ll cover both the cost of laying turf if you decide to complete the task yourself and how much a gardener might take to turf a lawn.

The cost of turfing a garden on your own

In such a case, you should consider all turf laying costs, from the expense for the turf itself to the equipment you have to buy or hire. Of course, the bigger your lawn is, the more it’ll cost you, and therefore you should start with some calculations.

How to estimate how much turf you will need?

What equipment should you buy or hire?

Besides the money you need to spend on the turf itself, the cost of turfing a garden depends on what equipment you’ll need to handle the job. 

If you are a small garden owner, then you probably can do all the work manually. If not, you should have some mechanical tools to prepare the area.

Let’s start with removing the old lawn if this applies in your case. To make things easier, you can apply a weed killer on your old and tired-looking lawn and wait for about a few weeks till the magic works. Or you can buy or hire a turf cutting machine, which will help you remove the old lawn in less than a day. Note that if you choose the second option, you may need to pay someone to dispose of the old turf. 

As soon as the old lawn is in the past, you should give the soil a good turn over. To do that, you need to buy or hire a rotavator. This also will increase your turfing costs since you should pay not only for the equipment but also for the fuel. 

Once the soil is perfectly rotavated, you’ll need to level it and to deal with that, we advise using a landscaping rake. 

Well, now your lawn is ready for the actual turf laying job. Before starting, we recommend the use of turfing boards. Once you lay the first row of turf, place the board on it. They will serve as an exact edge for the next row and avoid damage from walking on the freshly laid turf, which is not advised.

Last but not least, you should invest in a hosepipe and sprinkler. Your new lawn needs thorough and daily watering, so better not skip these gardening gadgets.

As you can see, we covered all the tools that you will need to complete the turf laying task by yourself. Given that, you can estimate the average cost of turfing your garden. Good preparation is an important part of achieving a beautiful lawn, so all of these tools are crucial for the job. And yes, the final expense is the turf cost itself and turf price can also vary, as most of the retailers offer different types of turf with different price tags.

How much do gardeners charge to turf a garden?

Well, here we can’t advise you on the exact amount, as prices vary according to many factors. First come the size and condition of your garden and what preparation work it needs. Is your garden overgrown and do the gardeners need to clear it and remove the existing lawn? Will that require a waste removal, as well? Or is your garden uneven and needs levelling? 

The above foregoing details can affect your turfing cost one way or another. Anyway, as we said, preparation is nearly 90% of the actual turf laying work and shouldn’t be underestimated. If you decide to rely on professional turf laying service, here is what you should expect from the landscapers to do:

Takeaways:

• Laying turf is easy. The hardest part is the ground preparation and it’s not recommended for people with back problems.
• Good preparation is an important part of achieving a beautiful lawn, and you should be careful with it.
• Turfing is the easiest way to achieve green and long-lasting lawn within just a day.
• New turf needs time to establish, so better avoid walking on it for a few weeks.

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Header image source: Shutterstock/ By Ingrid Balabanova