New turf fixes what is on top. On a newer estate the problem is nearly always underneath.
Only where the cause is addressed at the same time. Turf reliably fixes uneven levels, because levelling happens with the old turf lifted.
On an estate plot, patchiness is usually soil depth or compaction — and new turf laid over either goes patchy in the same places within a couple of years.
| Symptom | Likely cause | What fixes it |
|---|---|---|
| Browns off every summer | Thin soil over subsoil | Import topsoil |
| Moss throughout | Compaction, shade, wet | Aerate; address the cause |
| Bare in the same spot yearly | Something buried | Dig out, replace soil |
| Bumpy, uneven | Settlement | Lift, level, relay |
| Boggy patch | Drainage | Drainage work, not turf |
| Thin under a tree | Shade and root competition | Tree work, or rethink |
| Worn to soil on a route | Traffic | A path, or hard-wearing seed |
| Thin generally | Poor soil, no feeding | Feed, overseed, top-dress |
That fourth point is the important distinction. Returfing an estate lawn works when it is really a soil-improvement job with turf on top. Returfing without the soil work is the wasted spend.
Tell us what you need and we will arrange a free quotation.
This is the underrated answer on a newer plot. It is slower than returfing and considerably cheaper, and over three or four autumns it addresses the actual problem — a lawn that has an inch more soil beneath it than it did is a noticeably better lawn.
See what our turfing service covers in Stoke Gifford, or read more about the service across the areas we work in.
Only if the cause is addressed. On an estate plot the cause is usually soil depth or compaction, and new turf over either goes patchy in the same places.
Almost always thin soil over compacted subsoil. A few inches of topsoil holds very little water, so the grass runs out as soon as the rain stops.
Not with soil depth. Feeding addresses nutrition; it does not give the grass more moisture to draw on in a dry spell.
When it is really a soil-improvement job with turf on top — imported topsoil and decompaction, then new turf. Returfing without that is wasted.
Aerating and top-dressing each autumn with good compost or loam. Over three or four years it genuinely builds soil depth without lifting the lawn.
Uneven levels, a dead lawn, and the wrong shape or position — plus soil depth and compaction, but only because that work happens at the same time.
That is drainage, and neither turf nor feeding fixes it. Address the drainage first.
Deep shade under a tree, permanently wet ground, heavy traffic routes, or a very small area where the mowing outweighs the benefit.
Need tree surgery, hedge maintenance, fencing, garden clearance, turfing or power washing? Complete the form and tell us what work you require.
