Browse Forums Landscape & Garden Design 1 Jan 18, 2010 5:37 pm The area to turf is 270 m2 with Palmetto, maybe EZ if I can get some? Is the following correct? You can: A) simply buy 100mm worth of "turf base" and put that on top of current soil then lay turf on that. Ouch because that equates to 27 cubic metres or 35 tons of turf base! or B) you can bring in a *lot less soil* and hire a rotary hoe. You lay that soil on the ground and mix it all in with the hoe? Is that correct? If so how much soil should I get, was it 30 to 50 mm worth? And exactly what type of soil or mix should this be? I asked for "certified organic soil" but since I said the magic word "turf" their brain kept auto switching to "turf base" a mix of river sand, soil and chicken poo. Is there another name for "certified organic soil", I mean what is it exactly? Many thanks. Re: The all important Lawn preparation 2Jan 18, 2010 6:00 pm Is there another name for "certified organic soil" yep, certified organic soil That is all. It isn't loaded with chook poo to make your new lawn grow like buggery with no roots and impress you. Certified soils are not easy to come by at your local soil joint. They don't smell and provide a complex balance of healthy aerobic soil microbes. Of a quality and standard miles ahead of organic soils and common landscape mixes. yes sands, as i have written in quite a few threads,can be added in clay soils if you want. layering soil on top is a very big no no and a common practice even in the landscape industry. It will ensure you have an expensive problematic and poor performing lawn for the rest of eternity. Mix the good soil through. No matter if it is turf or in garden beds it's the same prep work. Your plants (and that includes turf) need a healthy layer of soil at least 400mm deep for good strong root growth. Easy in our soils/sands but not so easy in your heavy clay soils. You might even need a jack hammer in some places to properly break the clay up. Zeolite and spongolite are also essential for improved sustainability of your garden. They trap nutrients and slow nutrient leaching from your soils. This leaves more nutrients available to your lawn and less in the rivers. look for 270m2 a good 7 or 8 cubes mixed in will go a treat over that area. then as spring warms get another lot delivered and raked in over the top of your lawn while all your neighbours load their lawn and our environment with lots of nitrogen and herbicides yours will be the better looking lawn Your location will depend on the availability of certified soils. Re: The all important Lawn preparation 3Jan 19, 2010 12:57 pm Fu Manchu Is there another name for "certified organic soil" yep, certified organic soil That is all. It isn't loaded with chook poo to make your new lawn grow like buggery with no roots and impress you. Certified soils are not easy to come by at your local soil joint. They don't smell and provide a complex balance of healthy aerobic soil microbes. Of a quality and standard miles ahead of organic soils and common landscape mixes. yes sands, as i have written in quite a few threads,can be added in clay soils if you want. layering soil on top is a very big no no and a common practice even in the landscape industry. It will ensure you have an expensive problematic and poor performing lawn for the rest of eternity. Mix the good soil through. No matter if it is turf or in garden beds it's the same prep work. Your plants (and that includes turf) need a healthy layer of soil at least 400mm deep for good strong root growth. Easy in our soils/sands but not so easy in your heavy clay soils. You might even need a jack hammer in some places to properly break the clay up. Zeolite and spongolite are also essential for improved sustainability of your garden. They trap nutrients and slow nutrient leaching from your soils. This leaves more nutrients available to your lawn and less in the rivers. look for 270m2 a good 7 or 8 cubes mixed in will go a treat over that area. then as spring warms get another lot delivered and raked in over the top of your lawn while all your neighbours load their lawn and our environment with lots of nitrogen and herbicides yours will be the better looking lawn Your location will depend on the availability of certified soils. Thanks for your reply, I really appreciate it SOIL: I have found certified organic soil in my area: http://soilco.com.au/soilmixes.cfm, the "Gold Blend" complies to standard AS 4419 (not suitable for natives) and they also have "Landscape Mix" - similar but for natives. They also have certified CO Compost, Aus Standard AS4454. Are these what you had in mind? If so exactly which one: gold, landscape or just compost? SAND: The Gold Blend has 20% sand, should I get more added? If so how much. OTHER ITEMS: I have also found Zeolite and Spongolite supplies, how much of each do I get per m2? The seller wasn't sure a the time. I probably should get Gypsum to breakup clay. Should I be using Dynamic Lifter at all? (actually I'd get a generic brand)? I'm researching and reading your other posts but thanks for replying to mine. Cheers Re: The all important Lawn preparation 4Jan 19, 2010 10:25 pm The stuff posted isn't certified organic soil. It can't be used on natives due to higher nutrient content often associated with the addition of chook poo. Chook poo is organic and as I said organic and certified organic are very different things. very. A certified organic soil is most often certified by either of these two organisations. Like ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ Like ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ http://www.nasaa.com.au/ http://www.bfa.com.au/ http://www.nasaa.com.au/links.html#srorganicgroups http://www.organicchoice.com.au/ How do you know it's certified organic? http://www.theorganicsdirectory.com.au/ ... ganic.aspx http://www.organicchoice.com.au/certification.php Unfortunately I don't have where to get certified soils Australia wide. It will be something you will need to search around with. The worst thing you can do is sign a building contract without a pre contract review. Over the years many people have come to me with disputes where they just signed… 0 8339 the leaves that are now underground go yellow, the tips that poke through photosynthesise and have chlorophyll, same reason they grow rhubarb in the dark. 5 4863 A question. Im in Queensland and building a new home. We managed to reach practical completion 6 weeks ago but we haven't heard any date for handover yet. Who should we… 0 5807 |