Wembley Stadium’s hallowed turf is one of the greatest and greenest pitches on the planet.
As part of our #FootballsStayingHome series, we’ve asked our Wembley grounds team to offer their award-winning expertise to those with gardens, who would love to replicate our famous striped pitch on their back lawn.
And Karl Standley, Wembley’s head groundsperson, was only too happy to offer up his best advice.
“The act of gardening and horticulture is great for mental health," he said.
"The team and I wanted to give you something short and simple to help refocus and re-energise. Not only will you have a stunning lawn to show off to your mates post lock-down, but you’ll feel great doing it.”
Here’s our team’s step-by-step guide on how to achieve a replica of the magnificent Wembley turf…
Step 1 – De-weed
Remove weeds, thatch and moss with a rake in 2-3 directions.
Step 2 – Drainage
Improve drainage by poking holes down to 4-5 inches with a garden fork at 4-5 inch spacing.
Step 3 – Overseed
Overseed with rye grass to help rejuvenate your worn lawn!
Step 4 – Water
Water seeds twice a day to germinate, once in the morning and then again in the early evening.
Step 5 – Cut
Once your grass is growing, it’s time to cut. Only do this when it’s dry and as a rule of thumb only ever cut one third of the length.
Step 6 – Hello Wembley!
If you have a roller on the back of the mower you can use this to stripe your lawn. If not, use a yard brush and brush in different directions to make your lawn look like the famous Wembley turf!
