Lawn in Turkey

Hi all, I am hoping that I can get some advice. I have rented a Villa in an area just outside Istanbul and the lawn is in a terrible state. It is very thin and patchy and has lots of weeds growing in and around it. I imagine that a simple solution would be to lay a new lawn but as the garden is very big I am concerned about spending a lot of money on a place I am only renting, also I don't have the time to put into taking care of it until it takes hold. One of the big problems is that the ground is very hard and cracked, the sun can get very fierce and I am on a hill with one side of the garden completely open to the wind. Is it a good idea to rent a machine to turn over the soil as it is now, without weeding, or should I use a chemical to remove the existing growth before I do this, and then sowing seeds?

 

Hi David,

My parents have a similar problem with their house in France. I'd say the problem is almost certainly lack of water, in which case nothing you do is going to solve the underlying problem - unless you install irrigation of course, and that is expensive

If you do try to re-seed the lawn, you'll need to consider looking at warm season species like Bermuda grass, as our cool season species won't survive out there unless you are pouring the water on. Bermuda will survive for up to 9 weeks without water - the top will go like straw, but as soon as you have rain, the roots will regenerate a surface coverage very quickly.

Bermuda is "sown" using sprigs rather than seed, and will form a dense carpet very quickly, but again, it's not cheap.

If you decide to re-do it, then yes, I'd remove all the existing growth with a total weed killer, and then cultivate the soil. It'd be well worth bringing in a professional local company (you wouldn't want to sprig yourself anyway), as they might have some ideas as to the best species to go for.

 

Hi David,
Will a lawn grow in Turkey? Would it not be more suitable to have gravel and easy maintainence.The ground sounds as if it does not hold much water so why work against nature. You could still have a nice garden with flowers etc. If you miss the enjoyment of mowing the lawn you could mow mine.
Jacqui

 

Me I would take a look at the grass grown in the locality and see what does well and looks well. Then seek some local advise about whether it is best to seed or turf both in money and result terms.

 

Thanks for the replies, it looks as though my choices are limited. I would happily bring in a company, as Will suggested, but most are little more than cowboys who might do more harm than good. I can't really gravel the area because it's about 1200m2. I'll do as Fran suggested and look around at other gardens.