Like everything in the garden regular maintenance and the occasional overhaul is the best way to keep things looking their best – This includes lawns too.
There are several ways you can keep your lawn looking in top shape and regular maintenance is top of the list, cutting your lawn little and often is the best way to have a lovely deep rich green lawn.
Lawn Maintenance
Keeping on top of weeding is also a good way to ensuring your lawn looks more like a golf course than council park in the middle of summer! Weeds are often an indicator to underlying issues with your soil so have a chat with your local Lawn Solutions grower as they can advise on how to keep them at bay and stop them from returning.
Dethatching and Aerating are also jobs that are great for maintaining air in the soil and fungus free foliage, if you are unsure about when and how to do this, again talk to your local accredited grower.
Top dressing is the practice of spreading a sand rich soil on the surface of the grass to remove divots and to fill any holes, not to be done all the time but a great way to even out an aging lawn after aerating and dethatching.
Fertilising a lawn ensures the grass is getting all the nutrients it needs but make sure you do a PH test before applying as if your PH is out no matter how much fertiliser you put on your lawn it simply wont be able to take it up.
You have run out of excuses not to do that backyard makeover you have been putting off, but understandably you are dreading the work involved. The threat of cold weather is also in the back of your mind, but some things are best attended to before they get out of hand.
Here are a few innovative gardening tools to lighten the load:
Battery Powered Blower
Autumn means leaves, combine this with wind and the build-up of sticks and other debris your lawn and gardens can slowly become smothered. But a quick and easy way to tidy up is to use a battery powered blower.
Battery blowers have come a long way in recent years and models like this Husqvarna are quieter and still have plenty of power to get the job done quickly and easily.
Fiskars Xact Weed Puller
It is important to not let the weeds infiltrate your lawn while it has slowed in growth and this Fiskars Xact Weed Puller is a great way to remove weeds easily and it also makes it kind of fun as well.
You don’t need to bend down; you simply use the four deep-reaching stainless-steel claws to dig down into the soil where it grabs the roots from all directions and removes the entire weed cleanly.
Battery Powered Hedgers and Trimmers
The trees and shrubs are getting shaggy which not only looks a mess but the extra shade to your lawn is not ideal either. A handheld battery trimmer like this one makes light work of giving them a trim and you can use the blower to help clean up afterwards.
Battery Powered Chainsaw
If you have bigger trees to trim, then there’s battery powered chainsaws as well, good for trimming branches and for cutting up firewood as well.
It is important you provide as much sunlight as you can to your lawn, this will allow better photosynthesis and help to limit excessive amounts of moisture sitting within the profile where disease issues can develop.
Husqvarna Automower
This last one will keep the lawn mowed and you won’t even have to go outside to use it. A robotic lawn mower like this Husqvarna Automower will keep the lawn neat with a sharp cutting action, but also go over the lawn regularly enough that it will help to breakdown most debris that lands on the lawn as well. Automowers are comparable in price to a ride on mower or cylinder mower in most cases and are easy to install. If you hate the cold, you can simply keep warm inside while it does the job for you.
With the use of these gardening tools you can keep your lawn tidy through winter and if all goes to plan, be ready to entertain again in spring.
Often overlooked when reviewing golf courses is the grass itself. Some grasses like to be cut super short; others prefer to be kept longer. Some grow during the cooler months and others thrive during the summer. All of these factors, plus many more, play a part in determining which golf course grass is best suited to the different areas of a golf course, and for the climate in which they are located.
Ever wondered what grass is used at some of the best golf courses like Augusta, Pine Valley or even Royal Melbourne? Well, read on!
Augusta National Golf Club
What grass is used at Augusta?
The famous Augusta opened in 1932 and has hosted the Masters Tournament since 1934. To play host to one of the four major championships in world golf you need to be a pretty impressive course.
Augusta is situated in what many consider to be Bermuda grass country, or couch as we know it by here in Australia. The Masters Tournament is held in early spring, which means the turf grass has to be at it’s very best in both appearance and playability. Bermuda/Couch grass is a warm season variety, so by nature it’s usually not at its peak during early spring. To overcome this problem, the grass on the tees, fairways and roughs at Augusta are over seeded with perennial ryegrass. The greens, however, are bentgrass (since 1981). Bentgrass has no need for over seeding with it being a cool season variety. Bentgrass makes for a great putting surface as it has very thin blades and high density. A sub-green cooling system makes it possible for it to retain quality appearance even during the warmer months.
Royal Dornoch G.C.
Royal Dornoch Golf Course is a links course tucked in an arc of dunes along the North Sea shoreline in Scotland. The Royal Dornoch Golf Course is known as the most natural course in the world.
Being situated in a cooler part of the world, the grasses on the course are cool-season grasses. The greens are predominantly fine fescue with some highland bent grass. The greens, surrounds and fairways are overseeded at the end of every season with pure fescue. Fescue is a versatile grass that works very well particularly in the coastal areas of Great Britain.
Royal Melbourne Golf Club
The Royal Melbourne Golf Club is Australia’s No. 1 golf club. It features two courses, West and East, of which the West Course is ranked number 1 in Australia and in many rankings is ranked in the top 10 courses in the world.
The fairways were converted to Legend Couch in the lead up to the 2011 Presidents Cup. This was done to restrict the process of the ball along the ground. Fescue green surrounds were also implemented to encourage the ground game and prevent couch infestation in the greens. The greens feature a special strain of bent grass unique to Royal Melbourne known as Sutton’s Mix.
The Grove XXIII
Basketball great Michael Jordan’s new course, aptly named to include the No. 23 he played in, is a sight to behold. This relatively new golf course in Florida is at the cutting edge for design and for improved golf course grass. The championship course is grassed with Trinity Zoysia (L1F) tees and Zeon Zoysia (Sir Grange) fairways. These new turf varieties are the very of the best available anywhere in the world.
Hoiana Shores
Hoiana Shores is a stunning links golf course on the coast of Vietnam. The course has TifEagle Bermuda/Couch greens, with Zeon Zoysia (Sir Grange) tees and fairways. The coastal property is constructed on a base of pure sand, with the zoysia being perfectly suited to provide a firm and fast surface. The course is near Hoi An, UNESCO World Heritage site known as The City of Lanterns. Because of this, as a nod to Hoi An, the pin for every green has a lantern instead of a flag.
Lawn Solutions Sports Turf through its partnerships with leading turf scientists and turf breeding programs, have exclusive access to the best new golf course grass varieties available for golf in the world.
These grasses are being used on some of the best golf courses in the world and are now available in Australia.
LSA Sports Turf varieties currently include Sir Grange Zoysia, TifTuf Hybrid Bermuda, Trinity Zoysia and Primo Zoysia. These turfgrasses have proven their superiority over other grasses and continue to impress professional golfers, sportsmen and women, superintendents and curators all over the world.
It can be hard to find a reason to venture out into the yard during the colder months, particularly at night. But there is one activity that is best done in winter and your lawn is the perfect vantage point for it… stargazing!
Less humidity, cool calm air with generally clear skies, presents the perfect opportunity to see the black star lit canvas in more detail.
The centre of the Milky Way is passing overhead in the colder months of winter, which is also the best part to view as well.
Ask most experts and they will likely tell you that the very best place to view the stars is from your own front or back lawn. A place away from bright lights, with no fireplaces burning and also best when there is no moon.
All you need is a blanket, maybe a pillow, a star map for navigating and binoculars. If you have a telescope you will be able to see a lot more detail, but if the sky is clear binoculars will be enough to see some of the main attractions in the night sky.
Some of these include:
Asterisms
An Asterism is a pattern of stars that looks like a recognisable shape.
The Southern Cross
The most famous of the asterisms in the southern skies, the Southern Cross consists of five stars. Four of these stars form the primary cross shape. Commonly referred to as a constellation, the cross itself is actually an asterism, a collection of stars that belongs to the constellation Crux, the smallest constellation. The Southern Cross can be seen at any time of the year in the Southern Hemisphere.
The Teapot
The Teapot asterism is formed by eight of the brightest stars within the constellation Sagittarius. The Milky Way forms what looks like steam coming from the spout when the conditions are at their optimum for stargazing.
Constellations
A Constellation is a grouping of stars that creates a recognisable pattern. Constellations are traditionally named after their apparent form or after a particular mythological figure. Astronomers use the term constellation to identify a region or area of the sky.
Sagittarius
Sagittarius is a constellation of the zodiac and lucky for us is located in the Southern celestial hemisphere. The word Sagittarius is latin for archer and as a whole it appears much like a stick figure archer drawing its bow. As mentioned above, it also includes The Teapot asterism.
Scorpius
Scorpius is the southernmost constellation of the zodiac located in the Southern celestial hemisphere. Latin for scorpion, the constellation has a j shaped tail which makes it relatively easy to identify as it resembles its namesake.
The centre of the galaxy is located between the tail of Scorpius and the Teapot of Sagittarius.
Stars
Sirius – Brightest star in the sky
Sirius is known as the Dog Star as it is the chief star in the Canis Major constellation. In early July, Sirius can be seen twice. Once in the evening where it sets after the sun and again in the morning where it rises before the sun.
Canopus – 2nd brightest (shown in Southern Cross image above)
Canopus is part of the Carina constellation, Carina is latin for the hull or keel of a ship. The name Canopus is believed to have originated from the mythological Canopus, who was navigator for the king of Sparta.
Alpha Centauri is actually a triple star system. Stars Alpha Centauri A and B are sun-like stars that form the binary star Alpha Centauri AB. To the naked eye, these stars appear to be a single star. Alpha Centauri is the brightest star in the Centaurus constellation.
To help you learn about the southern night sky and stargazing, Sydney Observatory provides a guide and a sky map or chart each month. You can check them out here.
The best time for stargazing is when there is no visible moon (new moon). Check out this Lunar Calendar for best observation dates.
Turf Talk – Australia’s newest and most comprehensive turf magazine.
TurfTalk is a free quarterly magazine and distributed to over 3000 landscape and turf professionals.
Turf Talk is suitable for all turf professionals, from turf growers to landscapers, golf courses and sports ground curators, to government and related industry organisations.
Turf Talk is here to share with you the latest information on the turf industry, the exciting developments in turf research and to keep you up to date with everything you need to know about turf.
Some topics in this issue include:
Smart Approved WaterMark World First – TifTuf Hybrid Bermuda
Charlie Albone shares his secrets to creating the perfect show garden at home
Creating a show garden is not just about producing something that is breath taking and beautiful, you also need to meet a brief – just like designing a garden for a client in a design business, or simply creating a home garden for yourself.
The Brief
What a lot of people do not understand when you enter a garden show is that you need to tell the judges who the garden is supposed to be for and what you are trying to achieve. For example, the garden might be a family friendly space, an entertainers delight, a chic city courtyard or even a conceptual piece inspired by an experience you have had.
Once you have your brief in place the garden must meet the criteria you have set in every way possible. Like all gardens a great design starts with the layout, placing your spaces throughout the area in a way that gives a usable format with impact and having the correct scale and proportion is the best place to start.
When I designed my second Chelsea Flower Show garden in 2016, I designed a chic city garden with a stylish sunken lawn and this was one of the first spaces I laid out on the design. Former garden selector for the Chelsea flower show, head lecturer for the London College of garden design and a friend of mine, Andrew Fisher Tomlin, once told me “a lawn should never be so small so you cannot lay out on it and enjoy staring up at the sky.” This stuck with me as I started the planning of this garden.
The Details
Once you have a layout you can start thinking about the details – this is often the junctions where materials meet, the layout and pattern in the paving and the selection of the plants. For me the plants are the biggest and most exciting part of any garden be it a home garden or a show garden. In real life a garden is always evolving, as plants grow micro climates change and things come and go with the changes of season. In a show garden the whole planting palette needs to be horticulturally correct at that moment in time and its judged against the brief you put in. This also comes down to the variety of lawn you select – remember it is a plant too!
Lawn Choice
For a family friendly garden, you would want a lawn that is hard wearing, something like DNA certified Sir Walter. For a drought tolerant garden TifTuf Hybrid Bermuda is the only grass in the world with a water accreditation approval so it would suit perfectly. For a chic city garden or a luxurious and stylish space Sir Grange Zoysia would be a great choice.
Designing a show garden is also about pushing the boundaries so you can inspire the thousands of people who come to see the garden. As a designer we are always looking for the new ways to turn the standard on its head and with grass this comes in the form of Sir grange Zoysia.
This turf variety is unique in the fact when you mow this grass to a standard backyard height it gives you a manicured fine leaf and stylish appearance but if left unmown it grows to an even 300mm, doesn’t get covered in seed heads where it can look scrappy but instead looks like a vibrant, luscious green native looking feature grass. Having this versatility in a single variety of grass means you can create great impact by leaving the edges and areas around trees wild and deep green and still hitting the mark like a traditional grass where it is mown.
Caring for a show garden is a very different concept to caring for a garden in the real world. Show gardens only last for a maximum of one week where as home gardens are for ever (unless you get bored and change the whole thing!) and this is something that needs to be considered when selecting all your plants and lawn.
When designing your very own show garden at home I would follow these 5 steps
Think like a show garden designer by collating a brief for yourself, think about what you are trying to achieve and how you want to use the space.
Draw up a layout of the garden to make sure you are making use of the spaces, that everything has enough room and the interactions between the spaces works – it also means there are no wasted spaces.
Select your materials from the things you love, prioritise the areas that will be used and seen the most and direct your budget to these spots first.
Pick your plants wisely so they succeed for your aspect and climate and this also means get your turf right to suit your theme.
Design for the amount of maintenance you can give your garden as a good looking space is one that is well looked after.
