Why Laying Turf In The Autumn Can Lead To Serious Lawn Problems Later

We often see lawns being laid in autumn in a Mediterranean climate.  But this is not the best idea and Jonathon Ya'akobi tells us why....

While laying turf during the autumn is unthinkable in cold winter regions, in the mild winters typical of Mediterranean type climates, it is both possible and common. This does not necessarily mean it is a good idea. Although in most cases, the turf should survive the winter and regenerate in the spring, for the reasons I shall outline, it often proves to be a thoroughly bad move.

Firstly, the likelihood is that the grass will not manage to root properly by the onset of winter, and will just "sit" on the ground, inert, straw-colored, without any aesthetic value whatsoever. It will also be functionless, as it is virtually impossible to use a rootless lawn for such purposes as playing, sitting, and entertaining.

Secondly, the grass is liable to be smothered by winter annual weeds, which while not absent from established lawns, have an almost free reign to germinate, sprout, and grow in the week, rootless lawn. To make matters worse, it is usually impossible to mow the weeds, as one would normally do with a regular lawn. This infestation of winter weeds makes it difficult for the grass to take advantage of the onset of warmer weather in the spring, retarding its recovery and capacity to send out roots into the soil.

Neither does the weed problem end with the onset of spring and the withering of the annuals, because now, the development of the lawn is further retarded by both the summer, annual weeds and the perennial ones. In areas that receive light frosts, the grass may not root satisfactorily until the early summer, which means that only then is it possible to start dealing with the weed infestations.

By far the most serious drawback however, concerns the use of water, a chronic problem in Mediterranean, and other dry climate regions. While with established lawns, the sprinklers can be turned off for the winter, the turf laid in the autumn, needs to be irrigated during the dry periods common in Mediterranean winters - an unacceptable waste at a time of increasing water shortages and drought.

The alternative to laying turf in the autumn is to sow seeds of a winter grass variety, and to wait until the spring or early summer before putting down the permanent lawn. Sowing a temporary lawn has its disadvantages of course – it can take some 6-8 weeks before reasonable cover is attained - but at least, most of the problems just described are bypassed.

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