On 18 Dec, 08:36, Charlie Pridham wrote:
In article ,
says...

On Sun, 16 Dec 2007 12:27:23 -0000, Charlie Pridham
wrote:

In article ,
says...
I have a raised border that is about 4ft high, the depth of this
border is about 16ft.

I want to grass the whole area.

Whats the best way of going about it. Obviously the shrubs have got to
be dug out.

But then the soil will be soft.

What do I do ???

Clear the area, rake it level, walk over it with your heals in several
directions, re rake it level, when you have it compacted its ready for
seed or turf, takes more time and effort than you think its going to but
its worth the time to get something flat to mow!
Give some thought as to how you are going to get the mower up onto it for
cutting, 4 feet is quite a height to lift one.
I presume you want the grass for recreational reasons not to reduce
maintainance? I say this because a mulched shrubbery is a lot less work
than grass.

My only concern is how compacted should I make the soil. Some people
say I should roller it. But its too high to get a roller onto it.

I've seen some grass that the soil has been walked on, and it is very
soft and spongy when the turf has been laid.

As I use an electric mower, I had thought for the first cut or 2 to
borrow a rollered petrol mower.

The walking backwards and forwards on your heels is a very effective way
of compacting the soil without over doing it. Throw a party and get a
load of you up there! If you seed it once done you will find by the time
the grass is established enough for the first cut the roots will have
started to bind the top layer. It is possible that you may have to spot
fill some subsided patches the following autumn but if you do the walking
well it will not be very much; take alook atwww.roselandhouse.co.uk/pond/pond.htmwhich shows how much you can
disturb the ground and get a lawn back! the grass bit only took 3 days to
finish
--
Charlie Pridham, Gardening in Cornwallwww.roselandhouse.co.uk
Holders of national collections of Clematis viticella cultivars and
Lapageria rosea

I dont know about laying a lawn, but I have just braved the arctic
winds in order to hang out some washing. While I was doing this there
was a familiar sound in the distance, but I did not take ant notice
until my brain suddenly latched on to what the noise was...

Someone down our street was mowing their lawn.

My outdoor thermometer reads 3C, and it is the 18th December. I can't
believe it, unless it is some pitch for the Guinness Book of Records,
or a letter to The Times.