How to Establish a Brand New Lawn

• Measure the length and width of the area, so you can work out the amount of lawn seed and starter fertiliser you'll need to cover your area.
• Before sowing lawn seed, it’s important to prepare the soil first, to give the new lawn the best possible start. If the existing soil is hard and compacted, loosen the surface with a rake to create a softer 'seedbed' layer for the lawn seed to germinate in.
• If the lawn surface area is lumpy and bumpy, it’s the ideal opportunity to add some topdressing soil to level it out. Add fine 80/20 mix (80% sand, 20% loam) to bring the low spots up to the level you want. It's best to spread only 1-2cm in depth at a time to level out the area, and then water well to compact the topdressing soil.
• Applying a layer of 'lawn mix' top dressing is a great idea if the existing soil is heavy clay or very sandy. Topdress over the whole lawn, at a rate of 1m³ of lawn mix per 10m².

• Once the area is level and has a layer of loose soil, lightly rake the whole area in one direction to create shallow furrows.
• Mix the required amount of lawn seed with a starter fertiliser. Yates Lawn Fertiliser for New Lawns is ideal for this. This makes it much easier to spread out the lawn seed, adds valuable organic matter to the soil and provides the new grass seedlings with gentle slow release nutrients as they establish.
• Spread the seed mix evenly over the area, either by hand or with a seed spreader.
• Gently ‘cross rake’ the sowing area (rake at a perpendicular angle to the first raking furrows, to make a 'grid' pattern).
• If your lawn is on a slope, at this point you can apply Yates Seed Sealer hose-on, to prevent rain from washing away your grass seed. It's a easy-to-use hose-on formulation that forms a polymer film over the soil, to bind and stick lawn seed in place. It also helps retain moisture during the all-important seed germination period. It even provides gentle nutrition to grass seedlings. If you're sowing a new lawn, Yates Seed Sealer is the 'peace of mind' insurance you need.

• Water the area gently and thoroughly, so that the top soil layer is moist. It's a good idea to place a sprinkler in the centre of the lawn, then leave the sprinkler and hose in place until the seed has established. This avoids foot traffic on your germinating grass.
• It's critical to prevent germinating grass seed from drying out during the germination phase. Drying out for even a short period can kill delicate new grass shoots. Keeping the topsoil moist often requires watering several times a day. 
• After germination, it’s also very important to keep the top 1cm of soil moist for the first 2 – 3 weeks while the grass establishes. The most common reason for a newly sown lawn not being successful is drying out during the germination and establishment phase.

• Minimise foot and pet traffic on the new lawn area until the grass is well established.
• It's a good safeguard to put up some bird scaring devices during the germinating phase. Old CDs strung onto bamboo stakes work well. Christmas tinsel and brightly coloured ribbons fluttering in the breeze over your sown area really helps to keep bird losses under control. Some bird species (notably sparrows) are very persistent and may overcome their fear of scaring devices if food is scarce.

Caring for Your Establishing Lawn

Fertilising a New Lawn

If you applied Yates Lawn Fertiliser for New Lawns at sowing time, the lawn won't need a repeat feed for 12 weeks. At that 3 month point, your lawn will really benefit from a second application of Yates Lawn Fertiliser for New Lawns, as the seaweed bio-stimulant, humic acids and trace element ingredients are tailored to encourage the beneficial microbial community that supports healthy grass.

For ongoing feeding after the first 6 months, regular light fertilising during the growing season will give you much better results than infrequent, heavy fertilising. Use a good-quality balanced fertiliser on established lawns. Our go-to option is Yates Lawn Fertiliser Quarterly, a premium granular lawn food designed to give you a strong, green & healthy lawn. The concentrated formula feeds more, for longer (12 weeks), using less!

Alternatively, Yates Dynamic Lifter Organic Lawn Food is a gentle organic fertiliser, that feeds all lawn types and improves the structure and moisture retention of the soil.

Mowing a New Lawn

Hold off mowing after sowing a new lawn for as long as you can bear it! Set the mower to its highest setting for the first mow and decrease it gradually over successive mows. A rule of thumb is to never cut off more than 1/3 of the grass length.

Once established, mow ryegrass or fescue blends to a height between 3cm and 5cm. For warm season grasses (e.g. kikuyu), cut to 2.5 cm. The trick is to cut as frequently as possible, but remove as little growth as possible.

Never mow grass too low or ‘scalp’ the lawn. Grasses need maximum leaf area to produce nutrients for the plant and to shade the root system. In fact, during hot weather it's best to let the lawn grow a little longer than usual, to reduce stress.

Blunt mower blades make a poor job of cutting and will rip and tear new grass. If you look at the ends of mown grass leaves, you’ll notice little strings of fibre on the cut end where it's frayed and damaged. That’s a signal you’re overdue for sharpening your blades! Sharp mower blades make a cleaner cut and cause less stress to the grass, which helps it recover faster.

Never mow a wet lawn; it tears grass just as badly as a blunt blade.

It's best to remove grass clippings after mowing, or use a mulching mower.

Weed-spotting

While establishing your new lawn you'll most likely get some weeds appearing, but don't be too alarmed. Annual weed seeds are everywhere, and they'll often germinate alongside your new grass. These opportunist weeds sometimes die out on their own, or you can control them (if you wait about 12 weeks after sowing) with an application of Yates Turfix, using the label dilution rate and directions for new lawns (less than 6 months old).

Watering Lawns

Some lawns require more watering, depending on the situation and soil type. As a rule, cool season grasses (most popular in NZ) need consistent moisture. Fescue species need the most pampering, but the payoff comes in the form of an immaculate 'bowling green' lawn. Ryegrass species are a little more forgiving - Yates Tuff Grass lives up to its name and is reasonably drought tolerant.

Yates Kikuyu is our most drought tolerant grass variety. It's most often used where nothing else will grow; coastal areas that are predominantly sand, or where consistent heat and low moisture make it difficult to grow other types.

Water in the morning, rather than the evening and give thorough, less frequent soakings instead of short, frequent waterings. Don’t allow surface runoff.