[Swing Swang]

My neighbour is constructing a large patio where his lawn is, consequently he's just skimmed off a large amount of good quality turf and topsoil, about 8" thick. I want to increase the depth of my soil, he wants to dump his so it's a mutually advantageous transaction.

However in an ideal world I'd stack it upsidedown for a few months before spreading it where I want it, failing that I'd dig it in. It's not an ideal world and I don't want to give up a year's worth of growing space for a huge 'load of old sods', similarly my winter digging is done and I don't have the time to re-dig and bury.

So if he just leaves the turf upsidedown, about, two to three deep, in the 'dip' in my patch that really could do with levelling, am I actually going to be able to plant anything through the upside down roots, or am I going to have to dig it in anyway?

Yours (not wanting to do the work that I think I need to do),

SS

[lucywil]

why would you have to give up a year worth of growing space?  if it was me i would stack it upside down in a corner somewhere, cover it up and leave it till its ready to use

[woodburner]

It can be a pain trying to plant stuff through undecomposed turf remains. (Another reason why I'm not a fan of digging. )
Assuming you don't have a suitable unused corner, I think you will need to do a bit of work. Dig out the weed free topsoil, from the area you want to stack the turf, stack the turf then cover with cardboard, and then the topsoil. That way you can have your turf and plant it!

[WirralWally]

I recently had a load of turf, 30' x 3', that I didn't want to stack.
I also had a dip on my plot that needed raising.
So, I dug a hole, about 3' x 3' and moved the soil to the other end of the plot.
Then I placed upside down turf at the bottom of my newly dug hole.
Then backfill, over the turf, with soil from an adjacent 3' square.
Put upside down turf in new hole. Fill as before.
Rinse and repeat until you have used all the turf and then fill with the soil removed from first hole.

No rush. I didn't break into a sweat. Maximum plot disturbance was one 3' hole at any one time. This is an ideal time of the year to be doing such a job. Get it done before the mad-busy planting rush begins.