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

While laying turf dug the autumn is unthinka in cold wer regions, in the mild wers typical of Mediterranean type climates, it is both possi and common. This does not necessarily mean it is a good idea. Although in most cases, the turf should survive the wer and regenerate in the spg, 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 wer, and will just "sit" on the ground, inert, straw-colored, without any aesthetic value whatsoever. It will also be functionless, as it is virtually impossi to use a rootless l for such purposes as playing, sitting, and entertaining.

Secondly, the grass is lia to be smothered by wer annual ds, which while not absent from established ls, have an almost free reign to germinate, sprout, and grow in the k, rootless l. To make matters worse, it is usually impossi to mow the ds, as one would normally do with a regular l. This infestation of wer ds makes it difficult for the grass to take advantage of the onset of warmer weather in the spg, retarding its recovery and capacity to send out roots o the soil.

Neither does the d prom end with the onset of spg and the witheg of the annuals, because now, the development of the l is further retarded by both the summer, annual ds 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 possi to start dealing with the d infestations.

By far the most serious drawback however, concerns the use of water, a chronic prom in Mediterranean, and other dry climate regions. While with established ls, the spklers can be turned off for the wer, the turf laid in the autumn, needs to be irrigated dug the dry periods common in Mediterranean wers - an unaccepta waste at a time of increasing water shortages and drought.

The alternative to laying turf in the autumn is to sow seeds of a wer grass variety, and to wait until the spg or early summer before putting down the permanent l. Sowing a temporary l has its disadvantages of course - it can take some 6-8 ks before reasona cover is attained - but at least, most of the proms just described are bypassed.