A well-groomed green lawn can become a real highlight of any suburban area. However, its cultivation is a rather lengthy process. Not so long ago, summer residents had a great opportunity to get such an ornament in just a few hours. All that needs to be done is to purchase a rolled lawn. Reviews of them from the majority of owners of suburban areas are extremely positive.
How to grow a rolled lawn?
Such lawns are created by companies specializing in landscape design. The final product is a bed of turf rolled up. A lawn has been grown for two years. At the end of this period, special vehicles enter the field. They evenly cut a very thin upper layer of turf. The tightly bound root system in such bands accounts for about 2-2.5 cm, and the grass itself - 4-5 cm. Rolls have standard sizes - 0.4x2 m. They can weigh from 15 to 25 kg.
In the event that all grass has the same color, this is a quality rolled lawn. The producer also monitors the absence of weeds. In addition, with shaking, such grassy strips do not fall apart, remaining a solid canvas due to the tight weave of the roots.
How to calculate the required number of rolls?
A standard roll has an area of 0.8 m 2 . On 1 m 2 of the plot area, 1.25 rolls will be needed. Calculating the required number of such bands is not so difficult. Just the area you need to multiply by 1.25. In addition, another 5% should be added to the result if the area of sodding is more than five hundred square meters, and 10% if less. Ten percent is added if there are winding paths or flower beds on the site.
How much does a rolled lawn cost
Roll lawn (price for 1 m 2 - 50-300 rubles) - the pleasure is quite expensive. To the cost of the grass itself should also be added the cost of delivery, as well as laying. However, such a spectacular decoration, of course, is worth it to purchase. A small area can be covered with turf and independently, thereby saving a certain amount.
Types of rolled lawns
Today you can buy lawns of various types. The most popular are the following:
1. Standard. Such lawns have a very wide range of applications. It is the standard options that are usually installed in private houses in the country. Moreover, bluegrass is most often grown on the lawn.
2. Sports . It is precisely such a rolled lawn that should be laid on children's playgrounds or sports grounds. Reviews about him are not bad. Such lawns can be seen not only in private households, but also, say, on the football fields of sports complexes.
3. Park . As the name suggests, these lawns are ideal for public urban park areas. Their main distinguishing feature is unpretentiousness. Plants on such lawns can do without watering for a long time.
4. Elite . This is the highest class of ground grass. This option is unusually beautiful, is expensive and requires special care.
Site preparation
Before laying the lawn, the area must be carefully prepared. The soil is fertilized and leveled. This should be done in advance. The fact is that in rolls of sod can be stored no more than three days. Ideally, it is necessary to lay the purchased lawn within 24 hours after cutting it. In the same case, if it is impossible to do this for any reason, rolls should be rolled out and stacked in stacks in a dark place. In order to protect the grass from drying out, it is necessary to cover the “mats” with a damp cloth.
How to lay a rolled lawn?
After preparing the site, you can proceed to the most critical stage. Expanded layers of turf are neatly spread out in a checkerboard pattern. In this case, it is necessary to ensure that the edges of adjacent elements do not overlap each other, but at the same time are in fairly tight contact. Excess fragments must be cut off using a sharp knife or simply chopped off with a shovel. As soon as the entire surface of the plot is covered with layers, the resulting carpet must be pressed firmly to the ground. Ramming perform a special skating rink. This operation is necessary so that the roots of the grass on the entire surface of the lawn are in close contact with the ground.
The technology for laying a lawn roll, as you see, is not very complex. At the final stage, all the seams between the layers should be sprinkled with a mixture of fertile soil and sand.
Watering after styling and first mowing
Of course, first of all, you should water the lawn roll. Reviews about this natural coating are also positive because it does not require special care. In the summer, one watering per week will be enough. However, immediately after planting, it is required to moisten the lawn daily. On the first day, pour the surface as carefully as possible. In the next day, the amount of water consumed can be slightly reduced. Every day watering the lawn is necessary for a week after planting. This will allow the grass to take root quickly. The first mowing is performed seven days after laying.
Spring lawn care
A rolled lawn laid on a site with your own hands , of course, requires periodic care. Grass needs not only to be watered and mowed. In the spring, at the end of March, puddles can form on the lawn during snow melt. In order to remove them, perform aeration, piercing the sod with a pitchfork. In April, fertilizing with complex fertilizers is carried out. After drying the top layer of the lawn, the surface must be carefully, trying not to damage the roots and not pull out the grass, comb with a rake. At the same time, all dry and rotten shoots and leaves, as well as the “felt” formed during the winter, are removed. Among other things, this combing allows you to normalize the air exchange in the root layer of the soil.
In May, the first lawn mowing is carried out . Mowing is carried out in such a way that the grass after it is at least 5-6 cm long. A shorter mowing during this period can lead to the death of the grass cover, since the plants have not yet come to life too much after winter.
How to care for the lawn in summer
In summer, the height of the trimmed grass should be at least 4 cm, otherwise the weeds will clog the lawn. The fact is that a sufficiently high grass simply does not allow them to develop. Mowing should only be done with a mower with sharp knives. Dumb people do not cut, but tear the grass. As a result, its upper part dies, and the lawn itself acquires an ugly brown hue.
After each mowing, which is carried out in the summer approximately once every 5-7 days, the lawn must be watered. It’s best to do it in the evening. In this case, the moisture before drying will have time to saturate the soil well under a dense layer of grass shoots.
In summer, a rolled lawn, reviews of which indicate the advisability of laying it on the site, requires top dressing. Spend her in August. In addition, the lawn should be free of weeds at the end of summer. Very effective is the procedure for treating herbicides with selective action.
Autumn lawn care
In September, the lawn is being "repaired." Plots that are too overgrown with weeds, burned out and thinned, cut and sow the vacant places with grass or cover them with new rolls. In October, the lawn is fed with phosphorus-potassium fertilizers. The last haircut is performed in early November. The grass should grow a little before the onset of cold weather (by 2-3 cm, that is, so that its height is at least 5 cm).
How to care for the lawn in winter
In the cold season, it is necessary to ensure that the snow cover on the site is uniform. Walking on the lawn until the grass is covered with a sufficiently thick layer of snow is not recommended.
Artificial rolled lawns
As you can see, lawn care, although it takes a lot of time, is technically not too complicated. Grass needs to be cut, watered and combed. If there is no particular desire to do all this, you can think about purchasing such an ornament for the site as an artificial turf. All you need to do is to properly lay such a coating. The base under it can be either solid or sand-gravel.
The strips are laid with an overlap of 15 cm, and then the edges are trimmed to match their joint to joint. Then the edges are turned away, a connecting tape is laid under them, on which glue is applied. After this, the seams are rolled in a roller. At the next stage, the artificial turf is sprinkled with sand and combed. The last step is backfilling with rubber granules. After this operation is completed, the grass is again combed.
Both natural and artificial rolled lawns are a great decoration for a suburban area. And although it costs both, the other is quite expensive, if possible, it is definitely worth buying one of these options.