Cheap & Easy Way to Fill 40sqm..? Also, Turfing v Seeds

[2520years]

I'm having a go at developing a rundown property. It's nearly finished and I have two questions about the garden.

FIRST
We've got:

1) A border round the front garden, which is 1m wide x 20m long.
2) An area in the back garden, which is 4m x 5m.

So, 20sqm at the front and 20sqm at the back.

I'd like to prevent weeds taking over if it's for sale for over a few months in the summer. I was thinking of maybe putting wood-chippings or stones with a plastic underlay.

In your view, what would be the cheapest / most attractive / easiest solution?

SECOND
The rear lawn is about 60sqm. We've rotavated it and flattened it, so would you now recommend turfing or seeding? Which would be the cheapest / most attractive / easiest solution?


Thanks very much for your help...

 

[breezer]

seeds are the easiest / cheapest, but turf is instant

wood chippings "shrink" after a while stones may not be to the new buyers liking, grass that too

 

[2520years]

If I'm right, seeds will take a few weeks to really show. That'll be fine as the house won't be for sale for a month or so anyway.

That's not a bad idea about grassing, especially for the front border.

Thanks breezer.

 

[JohnD]

If you're in a real hurry, you can spray the weeds with glyphosate, mulch heavily with chips or bark (to suppress regrowth) and put some shrubs in the ground.

It will look neat for the rest of the year.

 

[2520years]

Thanks John.

We've already put weedkiller down and the weeds are gone. At the moment it's just soil, so we'll have to do something to keep the weeds from returning. I don't know when we can re-plant, which is why we were thinking of chippings etc.

 

[breezer]

as i said chippings shrink.
I borrowed my mates shredder (with teeth not wheel) made short work of branches etc, nice pile of wood chips, I spread said chips on small area, nice pile, about 3 montyhs later you wuold not know i had done it, they have all dried out and shrunk, same with woof in aa bag, i got some a few years ago, looks / smells nice, few months all gone, also it needs a barrier to stop it mixing with anything else

 

[2520years]

Thanks for the replies. I've bought some Canada Green Grass Seed (on offer at Argos!)

I've yet to decide what to do about the front border and 20sqm at the back. A friend suggested I go to a builder's merchants and have a few tonnes of limestone (or equivalent) delivered. It sounds expensive to me, but he said it would work out cheaper. Has anyone else done this?

 

[Nerine]

Stick to grass seed. Limestone (slabs?) are very expensive. Grass is the cheapest way to make large area an attractive outdoor space.

 

[FredFlintstone]

Path Clear Ultra kills weeds and prevents regrowth for six months. Beware though that anything the new buyers plant within six months of you treating the soil will die.