DIY job AstroTurf removal and returf

Hi all,

My wife and I have recently moved in to a new house and the only thing we wanted to change was the astroturf in the back garden (approx 18m x 5m). I wanted a 'little project' so thought I'd do it myself.

After peeling off the astroturf and digging out the hardcore MOT base that it was sat on, I dug down 200mm all over with the aim of filling the hole with top soil and returfing at the start of next year.

The issue I face is that now I've dug down, I've found that the ground is really heavy with clay.

It has rained over the past few days and the garden is full of puddles so its got me thinking.. Since I've put the effort in to hand dig the area down to 200mm, I might as well go a step further and add some kind of drainage so that the garden doesn't end up a boggy mess!

However,

All of the information that I can find is on how to make an existing lawn less boggy, but seeing as I've dug the hole, does anyone have any advice on how I can build my garden from the bottom up, to be less boggy?

I could maybe link on to an existing drain to get rid of the water but I need to pull a couple of the paving stones up to find out for sure. Or is there a method that I could use so the water will soak away but with top soil on top so that its under the ground?

Any advice would be greatfully accepted.

Thanks

Bluemoon ✌

 

Welcome to the forum.

Ooops! Sorry but it seems to me, you have dug yourself into a hole. No puns intended.
From the information you give. I tend to picture the previous owner to have experienced something of a boggy garden. So following a simple basic drainage method, commonly called 'a soak away' This is a method of getting rid of rainwater from the roofs of buildings. Basically a hole is dug to reasonable dimensions, filled with hardcore topped with topsoil and perhaps grassed over.


I would seriously consider back tracing. To attempt to divert water to existing drainage systems can be a very technical and costly plus legal matter. Hope this helps. Best wishes.

 

Hi Mike,

Thank you for your response.

Yes I now feel like the previous owners put the astroturf down due to the heavy clay soil. In hindsight, maybe I would of just left it as it was!

If I was to dig down another 200mm or so in the places that hold the water, before filling with limestone or something course and then my top soil on top, might that be something that could work?

Thanks again

Bluemoon ✌

 

Hi @bluemoon1502 and welcome to the forum,
I would get a lot of grit and organic matter then dig it in before you put the top soil on that would help with drainage.

 

You could make a soak away like you've mentioned or like a french drain . Can I ask what are you doing with the garden back to lawn / flower beds ?

 

Hi Logan/Perky,

Thank you for your responses!

Logan - I've read about digging organic matter in to the clay soil however the area is quiet big so how much would I need? Do you have a rough guide of how much organic matter per m2 and/or how deep I would have ro dig? I've already dug down around 200mm?

Perki - I've also read about French drains, however I can't seem to work out weather I'm able to cover it with topsoil? Also, would it have to drain off somewhere as the only place I have is where the drainpipe goes in to the ground to drain away (not sure how deep that is yet).

After I've sorted the drainage out, I plan on filling the area back in with top soil before the end of this year (hopefully) then re-turfing with grass at the start of next year.

Image of the area attached.

Thanks again.

Bluemoon ✌

 

No not really, you would need a lot when it looks like there's half and half i think, I'd do it a bit at a time. Or you could put a thick layer of grit and then mix the organic matter with the soil, it all depends on what you want to do with the ground.