DIY Winter Garden Project.

[infinityleague]

Evening all.

First ever DIY garden project.

Did the top soil over the weekend and unfortunately it rained & become all soggy.

1) Will the grass survive & grow in the upcoming frosty conditions or do I wait till April ?

2) Do I have to re-lay the top soil if I do postpone it to April?

3) Are there any specific grass seeds that grow relatively quickly during winters so that the top soil isn't wasted?

4) The land by default is sloping towards the rear & I haven’t levelled it so as to not disturb the natural drainage. Will that be a problem going forwards? The slope can be seen normally but have marked it in the picture attached for reference.

5) In the picture labelled 1 - confused between planting vegetables or having small shrubs or just pave it with tiles it as drawn in the picture?

6) Any other suggestions regarding weeding or general lawn care if I do end up growing, are more than welcome.

Thanks in advance.

PS : Hindisght - feel like I should have waited but seeing the backyard covered in just rubble got me depressed.

 

[Electric_Andy]

I did my lawn from scratch once. Things I learned were, weeds always appear out of nowhere. Perhaps wait for the weeds to come and kill/remove them first before you plant your grass. But there are weedkillers that do a good job on weeds whilst leaving the grass healthy. Frost will be your main concern with grass seed as well but better do it sooner than later if you don't want to wait until spring

 

[Drago]

You're probably a bit late in the season to seed now the frosts are imminent.

 

[Jameshow]

Get some old carpet / dpm / weed control down till the spring.

 

[november4]

Need 10deg C for grass seed to germinate

 

[infinityleague]

Safe to say I have to start this in April and be happy looking at the black top soil until then instead of the rubble.

Thank you everyone.

 

[Electric_Andy]

Safe to say I have to start this in April and be happy looking at the black top soil until then instead of the rubble.

Thank you everyone.

you may still find that weeds grow; bird poo and the wind can bring in mystery seeds but with a blank canvas and uncompacted soil it should be easy to keep on top of by letting them grow a bit and then yanking the whole thing out carefully, roots and all.

 

[CXRAndy]

You're probably a bit late in the season to seed now the frosts are imminent.

You really need to be doing seeding April to September. Ground gets too cold and sunlight less strong.

Re what's there. When you have a dry spell. Get yourself a pallet, tie a rope to it and drag back and forth to level out the area. It also brings stones to the surface which you can remove by hand. Keep doing it till you have a super smooth levelled surface.

It really does work and results are excellent


Then use a cheap seeder, working the seed out in opposing 90° paths to get even coverage.

Then water twice a day, every day with sprinkler setting to keep seeds moist until they germinate and you get thousands of small shoots. Keep watering until grass pretty much looks like a lawn. Then clip the tops of the grass to encourage it to thicken out.

Fescue is a lovely grass, fine and gives a great look when mown with a roller attachment, nice stripes

 

[PaulSB]

You will struggle to grow much in the area in picture 1. I would pave it and then install a few planters with evergreen shrubs. These will give you some colour all year round. Trying to maintain beds of ornamental shrubs or vegetables in there will be very difficult.