Lawn repair or relaying new grass need some advice!
Welcome to the Bunnings Workshop community @Dorin88. It's wonderful to have you join us and many thanks for your question on laying turf.
Looking at your photo, the first thing that stands out is how compacted the soil appears. It also looks to be almost flush with the surrounding concrete paths, which means there isn't really any depth available to lay new turf successfully. If you were to lay turf as it is, it would likely sit proud of the paths or struggle to establish due to the poor growing conditions.
I'd suggest removing around 100mm of the existing soil across the area. You can then replace around 50mm of that with a quality lawn topsoil, such as a lawn underlay or premium topdress mix, before laying your new turf on top. This will provide a nutrient-rich, free-draining layer for the roots to establish while leaving the finished lawn at a suitable height below the surrounding concrete.
Before laying the turf, I'd also lightly cultivate the remaining soil beneath the new topsoil to help break up the compaction and encourage the roots to grow deeper. Once the turf is down, water it thoroughly and keep it consistently moist for the first few weeks while it establishes. If you wanted to try and use the existing soil, you'd need to give it a real good going over with a https://www.bunnings.com.au/ryobi-18v-one-cordless-garden-cultivator-tool-only_p0344130 to break it up entirely. You'd still need to remove some of it to get the grass flush with the concrete.
Here's a helpful guide: How to lay turf for a lush, green lawn.
Please let me know if you have any questions.
Mitchell
What about putting grass seeds? I was thinking about planting a orange citrus tree near the concrete path
Putting down grass seed is definitely an option @Dorin88. The same applies if you're planning to plant an orange citrus tree near the concrete path. In both cases, the main thing is improving the quality of the soil first, as that will give the best chance for healthy growth. With seeding, you won't need to remove soil from the area as with the turf.
Here's a guide that should be useful: How to grow grass from lawn seed.
Hi What is the recommended distance between each tree? We pulled out a plum tree stump and there were roots and then concrete path which i couldn't remove because I didn't know how long are the roots
As a general guide @Dorin88, fruit trees should be spaced according to their mature size:
From your photo, your existing spacing looks about right for most backyard fruit trees.
Don't worry if you couldn't remove all the old plum roots. It's not usually practical, and they'll break down over time. I'd just avoid planting directly where the old trunk was and instead position the new tree about 500mm to 1m away if possible. Mitchell
Unfortunately my when my dad planted the tree around 11 years ago they where dawf size less than a metre high, he didn't space them wide enough
Hi @Dorin88,
The existing trees seem to be growing fine, but an additional tree might struggle to establish alongside those existing trees. Keep in mind that anything planted near those trees has to share resources, such as water, nutrients and light.
I can't say with any real certainty whether an orange tree would work in that space, but it's certainly tight in terms of space and not exactly ideal.
If you were to try, a dwarf variety would definitely be the way to go.
Jacob
Thanks and Mitchell and Jacob for the advice so far,I just want to know how to go about spreading seeds for the grass to grow do I need to rake the soil first to brake it up or use a cultivator like this Ryobi one Mitchell suggested me!
Hello @Dorin88
I suggest having a quick look at this guide if you are planning on using seeds to grow your lawn - How To Grow Grass From Lawn Seed. But if you are using turf slabs, I recommend this guide - How To Lay Turf.
If you need further assistance, please let us know.
Eric
Hi @Dorin88
The last time I grew a lawn from seed was quite some time ago but I took a few samples of the soil from random areas in the garden to a seed merchant who tested the soil for me and told me exactly what to do, My soil was lacking iron (Perth Metro area) so I was told to add Iron sulphate and dig in some chicken poop. Then leave it a few weeks to rot in (smelly time) then sow the seed and keep well watered. some weeks later an aerial photo of our new suburb was taken and there were two green areas in the photo, someones green tin roof and my lawn!
I can recommend consulting your local seed merchant!
Edited due to lack of proof reading.
Hi is it the right time of the year to start the process of repairing the lawn with new grass considering im living in Melbourne and it's very cold!
I suggest delaying your lawn rebuilding plans to mid-to-late September through October depending on the temperature, as this is generally considered the optimal time for Melbourne. You'll benefit from mild days and natural spring rainfall without the extreme shock of winter cold or summer heat.
