Home / Information & advice / Turf & Lawns / Creating a new Lawn - preparation and laying / Introducing a wildflower lawn alongside a traditional turf lawn
Bringing together the traditional charm of a well-kept lawn and the natural beauty of wildflower meadows can transform your garden into a vibrant and eco-friendly space.
At Rolawn, we understand the importance of sustainable gardening and would love to help you incorporate wildflower turf alongside your traditional lawn turf. Here are our top tips for successfully blending these two distinct landscaping elements.
Before you begin, it is essential to plan out the area where your traditional lawn and wildflower turf will coexist. Consider the amount of sunlight the area receives, as wildflowers thrive in full sun.
Design your space to have clear delineations between the traditional lawn and wildflower areas to maintain a tidy appearance. You could use natural edging materials like stones or wood to define these boundaries.
Soil preparation is crucial for both traditional and wildflower turf, but each has different requirements:
Traditional Lawn Turf: Rolawn Medallion® turf requires a nutrient-rich, well-draining soil. Prepare the ground by removing weeds and debris and ideally add a task-specific turf and lawn seeding topsoil, or a general purpose topsoil, to enhance fertility and texture.
Wildflower Turf: Wildflowers prefer less fertile soil, which reduces competition from aggressive grass species. Remove the top layer of soil to reduce fertility, if necessary, and consider using a landscape fabric to suppress weeds for a period of time before laying your wildflower turf but remove prior to laying the turf.
Selecting the appropriate type of turf for each area is essential:
Traditional Turf: Choose a high-quality turf like Rolawn Medallion® for its fine texture, resilience and aesthetic appeal.
Wildflower Turf: Opt for a wildflower mix that suits your local climate and soil conditions. We offer a range of wildflower turf products, each designed to flourish in different settings, but all offering support to local wildlife and biodiversity.
Install your traditional lawn turf first, ensuring it is laid on smooth, even ground. When laying wildflower turf, butt the edges tightly together and avoid stretching the turf. Water both types of turf immediately after installation, keeping them moist until they are well-established.
The beauty of combining these turfs lies in their varied maintenance needs. Traditional Lawn needs regular mowing, watering and feeding to maintain its lush, green appearance. However, wildflower turf requires minimal maintenance, once established. Avoid mowing until after the flowers have seeded, which is usually late summer or early autumn. This approach helps the plants self-seed for the following year.
With the right care, your garden will soon offer a dual experience: the neat, calming green of traditional lawn and the dynamic, colourful array of wildflowers. This combination not only enhances the aesthetic appeal of your garden but also contributes to local ecology by supporting pollinators.
Integrating wildflower turf brings substantial environmental benefits, such as attracting bees, butterflies and other pollinators. Additionally, it improves soil health and helps in carbon sequestration.
By combining traditional lawn turf with wildflower turf, you can create a striking and sustainable garden that is both beautiful and beneficial to the environment. Rolawn is committed to providing you with the highest quality products and advice to make your garden a success.
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