Hi All

I have a 13m x 13m garden set on 2 levels. One half has a lawn with a Japanese cherry blossom tree and the other half is set 2m lower and is a combination of paving and decking. Basically, I would like to dig out the higher lawn part of the garden, moving the earth to the lower paved/decked area to create a level garden which I would like to set to lawn. I have a few questions I hope someone can answer:

1) Rather than having to build retaining walls around the boundary, I would like to create slopes at the garden edge. Am I right in thinking to do this I must leave a 1m boundary at the current level and then cut the slope at 45 degrees to this boundary?

2) I would like to leave the Japanese cherry blossom tree in situ. The tree has a 1.5m high, 20cm thick trunk, with a canopy 4m across. It currently sits in the lawn with 2m of lawn either side of it, 5m behind and 9m in front of it. Could someone tell me if when I dig out the lawn I leave a 2m lawn in each direction from the trunk, the root system will remain intact and thus the tree will survive?

3) Is the best way to relay the lawn for the whole area with turf?

Many thanks in advance.