Turf Trials
Presenter: Nigel Ruck
Episode: 25 (20th October 2007)
Isn’t it amazing some of the things we take for granted in life? One of the unsung heroes of our society is lawn, whether it is for playing with the kids in the park, sport, or that special patch in your own backyard.
These days there are plenty of lawn types so it is important to choose the right variety to suit your environment, intended use and lifestyle. For the average suburban backyard, you want something that looks good all year, doesn’t mind a bit of wear and tear, but won’t need the services of a full time green keeper.
Nigel visited a turf farm where an intensive turf trial programme has been undertaken, whilst there he looked at two great new turf varieties. Ozbreed hired an agricultural scientist and grew on two sites six plots of six different turf varieties.
The research found that Palmetto Soft Leaf Buffalo had an average of 75% better winter colour than the other buffalos tested; therefore for a greener buffalo lawn in winter Palmetto is the best choice. Palmetto had far less thatch build up meaning it was far less spongy than other buffalos; it also had a lot less seed head than Sir Walter, which makes it the best choice for people or dogs with allergies.
Palmetto needs less mowing than other buffalos and a lot less than couch and kikuyu. Another interesting finding from the research was that if you mow the lawn a little higher in summer, the grass won’t green off as much when affected by drought. This is an important thing to know, and practise, with all the current water restrictions.
Research also found the best time to fertilise is in the autumn, although it is important to not forget the spring which is also a good time to fertilise.
In the trials Empire Zoysia turf proved a really drought tolerant variety which need very little mowing. It needs one third the mowing of kikuyu, half as much as couch and thirty per cent less than buffalo.
Ozbreed have put a lot of research into Palmetto & Empire Zoysia, and if you check out their website you can get all the info you need, including suppliers.
For more information and supplier information visit their websites:
www.palmetto.com.au
www.empireturf.com.au
Episode: 25 (20th October 2007)
Isn’t it amazing some of the things we take for granted in life? One of the unsung heroes of our society is lawn, whether it is for playing with the kids in the park, sport, or that special patch in your own backyard.
These days there are plenty of lawn types so it is important to choose the right variety to suit your environment, intended use and lifestyle. For the average suburban backyard, you want something that looks good all year, doesn’t mind a bit of wear and tear, but won’t need the services of a full time green keeper.
Nigel visited a turf farm where an intensive turf trial programme has been undertaken, whilst there he looked at two great new turf varieties. Ozbreed hired an agricultural scientist and grew on two sites six plots of six different turf varieties.
The research found that Palmetto Soft Leaf Buffalo had an average of 75% better winter colour than the other buffalos tested; therefore for a greener buffalo lawn in winter Palmetto is the best choice. Palmetto had far less thatch build up meaning it was far less spongy than other buffalos; it also had a lot less seed head than Sir Walter, which makes it the best choice for people or dogs with allergies.
Palmetto needs less mowing than other buffalos and a lot less than couch and kikuyu. Another interesting finding from the research was that if you mow the lawn a little higher in summer, the grass won’t green off as much when affected by drought. This is an important thing to know, and practise, with all the current water restrictions.
Research also found the best time to fertilise is in the autumn, although it is important to not forget the spring which is also a good time to fertilise.
In the trials Empire Zoysia turf proved a really drought tolerant variety which need very little mowing. It needs one third the mowing of kikuyu, half as much as couch and thirty per cent less than buffalo.
Ozbreed have put a lot of research into Palmetto & Empire Zoysia, and if you check out their website you can get all the info you need, including suppliers.
For more information and supplier information visit their websites:
www.palmetto.com.au
www.empireturf.com.au
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