When to lay new turf in Melbourne

The short answer

Mid-September to early December, and March to early May. The soil is warm enough for roots to grab hold, and the weather is mild enough that new turf isn’t fighting heat or frost while it settles in.

Can you lay turf in summer?

Yes — plenty of our lawns go down in January. It just needs more water: usually twice a day for the first two weeks, and laying it early in the morning rather than mid-afternoon. Warm-season varieties like Sir Walter and TifTuf cope best.

And winter?

Turf laid in June and July will survive, but it won’t really root until the soil warms up in spring. If you need the yard usable by summer, a winter lay is fine; if you can wait until September, you’ll get a stronger lawn faster.

What matters more than the month

Preparation. Most lawns that fail were laid on compacted clay with no topsoil and poor drainage. We remove the old lawn, level the ground, add 75–100 mm of good soil and check where the water goes before a single roll comes off the pallet.