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complete garden clearance and new turf

xyz123
xyz123 Posts: 1,674 Forumite
Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Name Dropper Combo Breaker
hi

as said i want to completely clear current garden and put new turf. at the moment some parts of garden have raised bed, some have pebbles, some parts are paving blocks and then turf (quite high grass!) in other parts.

once i have removed the rubbish, weeds, paving blocks, pebbles what do i do? do i just put down some topsoil and then turf? or do i need to add any other type of soil /fertiliser or cultivate the soil?

any other tips/advise also welcome

ta

Comments

  • I_have_spoken
    I_have_spoken Posts: 5,051 Forumite
    edited 8 June 2014 at 2:49PM
    Do you know what soil you have now - acid/alkaline, wet/dry, clay/sandy etc? That would guide the choice of what you use to improve it.

    I'd certainly add a decent amount of pelleted chicken manure and dig that in.

    When I did my garden, having a small electric rotavator helped lot in preparing the ground or you could hire a petrol model once the weeds and roots are dead.
  • xyz123
    xyz123 Posts: 1,674 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Name Dropper Combo Breaker
    Do you know what soil you have now - acid/alkaline, wet/dry, clay/sandy etc? That would guide the choice of what you use to improve it.

    I'd certainly add a decent amount of pelleted chicken manure and dig that in.

    When I did my garden, having a small electric rotavator helped lot in preparing the ground or you could hire a petrol model once the weeds and roots are dead.

    i dont know what type of soil i have. i am in north west london. is there a cheapish way to find out type of soil!
  • Annie1960
    Annie1960 Posts: 3,009 Forumite
    Tenth Anniversary 1,000 Posts Name Dropper Combo Breaker
    xyz123 wrote: »
    i dont know what type of soil i have. i am in north west london. is there a cheapish way to find out type of soil!

    http://www.london.gov.uk/thelondonplan/maps-diagrams/map-3d-05.jsp

    It's probably clay. Does it get all sticky and muddy when wet?
  • I_have_spoken
    I_have_spoken Posts: 5,051 Forumite
    is there a cheapish way to find out type of soil!

    After rain, get a handful and make a snowball out of it. If it sticks together in a solid blob you have heavy clay, if it crumbles and falls apart at once it's sandy.

    Acid or alkaline really needs a kit but in London you're almost certainly neutral to alkaline, which just means plants like camellias won't do well.
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