Instant Lawn FAQs

There are many factors to consider when choosing the right grass type for your landscape. Below is a rough guide on how to choose your grass type.
> Can grow in shade = LM Berea and Buffalo
> Affordable = Kikuyu
> High Traffic Area such as sports fields = Cynodon and Kikuyu
> Best for sidewalks = Cynodon
> Can do well in sunny areas = Kikuyu
> Grows in a variety of soil types = Kikuyu
> Less mowing – LM Berea
> Low maintenance = Buffalo
> Good tolerance of drought and cold = Cynodon
> Best for holiday homes = Cynodon
> Well suited for sandy soils = Buffalo
> Good for repairing damaged areas/ landscapes quickly = Kikuyu
> Light green colour = Kikuyu
> Dark green colour = Buffalo
> Lighter shade of green = LM Berea
> Most expensive = Buffalo (cause its harvested once a year)
> Good around pools = LM Berea (for it has a soft spongy appeal)
> Great choice if you have a dog and children = Kikuyu
> NOT recommended for young children = Buffalo
> Accepted in developments that insist on indigenous plants = Buffalo
> Can be overcome by weeds = Buffalo

It depends on the type of grass. Generally all grasses we offer are good to plant from Spring time to just before winter.  Kikuyu can be planted even in winter in Cape Town for it can do well with lots of water. Buffalo and LM Berea can be tricky to plant at the peak of winter for they affected by frost more than kikuyu or cynodon.  

Yes, we do come for site visits FREE of charge if you are within a 40km Cape Town radius. 

Generally, a site visit is necessary if you are not sure of: 1) The right grass type for you 2) your area size 3) the Irrigation System you ought to use and its related options 4) Have some concerns about trees and shade 5) there is most likely going to be issues with extreme ground preparation or access to the site.

Generally, if you are sure of your area size and send us pictures and or a video of your ground we can address your concerns.

Cape Town

Our prices include general land preparation, grass supply, delivery, and installation. Compost is charged for separately. 

Dumping of old grass that is taken out during land preparation is included in the price. However, soil or rubble that is taken out and dumped is charged for separately per load. 

Land that requires extreme ground preparation (such as removal of sand or lifting up of ground level) or has access challenges incurs extra charges. 

Deliveries are included in the prices. However, they are limited to places that fall within a 40 km Cape Town radius. If your site situated beyond the 40km Cape Town radius you will have to contact us to find out the applicable additional millage charges. 

Generally, we DON’T require deposits for small to medium sized properties.  For large areas, you pay 50% deposit only after material has been delivered to your place.

You must settle your balance due immediately after completion of your job via cash or instant EFT.

Our lead time, generally, averages between 1 and 3 days depending on the size of your area and location. 

Yes, we do.

Irrigation System Types

We setup new systems from scratch, and also repair old systems.  There are two types of Irrigation systems – manual and automatic (also referred to as electronic system).

With the Manual Irrigation System you have to manually turn on and off water supply on ball valves (they function like household water taps).  The Automatic Irrigation System, on the other hand, not only has the ability to run automatically using electronic valves. Electronic valves can also be run manually. 

Automatic Irrigation System Options

There are two choices you must make pertaining to Automatic Irrigation Systems.  The first is on the Control Unit type and the second one is on the built-structure and consequently valve casing of your manifold.

– Control Unit Type

An Automatic Irrigation System Control Unit (also referred to as ‘Controller’) is the device that has software that instructs the system when to water, how many minutes, how frequent per week etc.  The control unit is either housed indoors or outdoors.  An Outdoor Control Unit is weather resistant whilst its Indoor Counterpart isn’t.  The Outdoor is more pricey than the Indoor one.  

–Valve Box 

Irrigation Systems are built on watering stations and manifolds. Due to water pressure issues, sometimes you have to split your irrigation system into multiple stations that are watered independently. The larger your area size, the more stations you will probably have. 

In addition, if your irrigation system covers different kinds of plant species that require differing watering amounts and scheduling you might have to use different stations to be effective.  For instance, grass watering needs differ from those of most flowers.    

Each watering station has its own control valve. The valves are assembled close to each other for easy access to the water source. (It is similar to bathrooms where the hot water tap and cold water tap are close to each other for convenience sake).An assembly of valves is called the manifold. 

A manifold can either be built and pinned against a wall or it can be assembled underneath the ground inside a Valve Box. A Valve  Box is generally preferred by people that do not desire seeing manifold pipes in the open. (A valve box is generally not a good idea for manual systems for they are not easy to access since control valves will be underground. 

We do offer tree felling, tree trimming, and stump removals services to open up tree canopies and allow enough light to come through for your grass’ growth needs.

Stump removals helps with removing of roots that may take water away from the grass. It also helps clear away stumps that are obstacles, stumbling blocks, or an eye-sore on your lawn.  

Watering

Generally, if you get your watering right your grass has a high chance of success. Of course, soil nutrients are also critical for good grass growth.

As a rule of the thumb, water twice a day for a month from the day of the installation of your grass. The amount of time varies per grass type and soil type. However, it is safer to water a minute for every square meter a day. For instance if you have a lawn that is 60 square meters wide you will have to water for 60 minutes a day – 30 minutes in the morning and 30 minutes late afternoon – especially when very hot. If the weather is cold you may water more minutes in the morning than late afternoon to avoid grass infections due to moist loving parasites and weeds.

After the first month you may then reduce watering to once a day for a week. Thereafter you may water twice a week for buffalo grass, thrice a week for LM Berea and four times a week for Kikuyu grass. 

The above are basic watering guidelines which can be affected by weather patterns (such as wind), season of the year, type of soil, your water pressure, whether you use an irrigation system or not, traffic on your ground etc. The best frequency is through observation. The more you take notice of how your grass responds to a certain treatment, the more you can tweak that treatment unto perfection.   

Fertilization and Lawn Dressing

If you choose the compost application option for your grass installation your lawn will have a good foundation. You may add other nutrients enhancers later on. We recommend after a month to allow the grass to first settle. We do, however, allow adding of organic root growth products during the grass installation. 

After a month, you may apply lawn dressing. However, take care to do lightly with grasses for shade areas or in shade areas. Covering their leaves affect the way the produce food and might fail to take off.. if unsure, always consult.  Never over apply composts or fertilizers for they that will burn your grass. 

Lawn Mowing and post Installation Ground levelling

Cut your grass 1 month after installation for such allows it to settle. Ideally, use a lawnmower. Do not cut more a third of the blade at any given time. if your grass has grown big, do not cut it short at one go. Rather, cut it down weekly – trimming not more a third of its blade length.

Although ground levelling is done pre-installation of the grass, it also has to be done a couple of times post installation to achieve an even surface. The reason it takes a couple of times is that grass – even though we roll the grass after installation, the sods settle differently when during and post-installation. 

Post installation ground levelling is best done after cutting the grass for then you will be able to see clearly the surface of your ground. Fill the troughs (dips) in your ground with lawn dressing for kikuyu and building sand for buffalo grass and LM Berea. Remember, grasses for shade must not have their leaves covered. Building sand is fine so it sinks to the bottom of the grass without covering its blades.

Pets, Moles, Pests and Weeds

Pets that dig up grass or are too heavy are best kept off the grass, especially for the first month to help the new grass to settle. You may use a fence or other barriers to keep pets off the lawn. Pet urine makes grass turn yellowish due to heavy concentration of nitrogen in it. The easiest solution is to water such spots as soon as the god peas. Diluting the urine with water actually turns it from a poison into a fertilizer!

Moles invade personal spaces. You might try some poison pills, that is, if you can stomach killing them.  Another solution is to deal with them pre-installation by digging a trench around your lawn area and erecting an underground mashwire fence in the trench or even on the lawn area. They will not be able to come up and disturb your lawn.

Pests can sometimes invade your grass. Since different pests have different ways for getting rid of them consult with us or places that sell pesticides.   

Weeds can be removed manually. Using weed-killers sometimes cam also kill your grass. If you have to use any chemicals, make sure you target the weeds one by one and also do it section by section to monitor if the chemicals are not aaso affecting your grasss. 

Yes, you may chat with us via Whatsapp by clicking here. 

We dig up ground to get rid of any existing grass and its roots up to shovel depth. 

We level the ground and lay compost (optional) and then plant the grass.

We water the new grass and roll it to give it a smoother and flatter surface. 

We then finish off with site cleanup and a small lecture on basic lawn maintenance instructions. We also send those instructions via WhatsApp or email. 

Here is a link to our detailed instant lawn installation process.

Yes, we do roll the grass to flatten the surface.