Month: August 2024

Over the 31 years we have been producing turf for South East Queensland, I have learnt a lot about introducing new varieties to the market.

Knowing the product and having confidence in what you are selling to your customers is a must. As a result, my wife and I decided to remove an area of our front lawn and replace it with Zoysia Australis, or ZA as we “Turfies” call it.

I sprayed out the existing lawn which required three applications one week apart. I then waited for 6 weeks to be sure the old lawn had completely died.

As our neighbours and regular passers-by were used to seeing the lush green grass we pride ourselves on, this attracted some attention to the ‘dying lawn’ and what was going on at the turf farmer’s place, with many stopping out the front to ask about the project. We had one very enthusiastic visitor to the neighbourhood knock on our door on a Sunday morning asking why we had killed our lawn and what was our plan for it.

After chatting to him about the new Zoysia Australis, as a lawn-lover himself, he was eager to see the results and asked when ZA would be available to the public as he would like to try it out at his place. We welcomed him to come back and check out the new lawn as it was establishing.

I removed the old lawn using a turf cutter, then added organics, lime, gypsum, and trace elements to the soil blending it into 30mm of the top layer. Five millimetres of top-bedding sand was added to create a cap on top. This allows for levels to be precise, with the added benefit of better drainage for the profile as Zoysia doesn’t like ‘wet feet’ – growing in soil that is too wet.

The next day we harvested the ZA. We applied a slow-release fertiliser to the area to provide food for the new turf for 12 weeks, then we installed the ZA. It was rolled twice and watered in well to bed into the soil profile.

Often customers believe the organics that were added to the top layer of soil in preparation for new turf is enough, and that fertilising before installation is not needed. However, a starter fertiliser application should always be carried out, preferably with a slow-release product to ensure the necessary nutrients for optimal establishment are provided.

The new lawn was lightly irrigated morning and night for the first 7 days, once daily for the following 7 days, then every other day for a further 2 weeks.

The new lawn had its first mow after 18 days. I always water new turf immediately after the first mow, which seems to help reduce the stress of the new plant having its leaves cut off.

Since installation, I have only used liquid feed, Lawn Solutions Australia Exceed and Lawn Kelper on the lawn every 4-6 weeks as the colour reduces. This is to control the thatch and the clipping count. Applying small amounts often has had the best results. To date, I have not applied a granular fertiliser, and it doesn’t look like it will be needed. Nor have I applied any herbicides, fungicides, or pesticides despite having had the worst lawn grub season in years.

I have seen the presence of mealy bug in one small area where it’s damp from the shade of a hedge, however, I have not treated the pest and it has not been a problem for the lawn.

The lawn-lover who was interested in what we were doing with the lawn and eager to see how the ZA performed, called by again within days of installation and was excited to see how it looked and loved the blue-green colour like QLD Blue Couch. He placed the first order of ZA for his own lawn right there on the spot, and his second order about 6 weeks later.

We had more interested neighbours stop by over the following weeks, and after answering their questions, they too wanted to have their lawn replaced with ZA. The orders then rolled in.

Zoysia Australis has proven itself, not only to my wife and I, but also to the local community as a great variety of turf for a beautiful lawn. It has shown how little input is needed to achieve excellent results. The lawn has grown successfully in the entire area of installation, and even in the shade of the hedge despite having one of the wettest and most humid summers in years.

In 2020, the Sunshine Coast Council (SCC) commenced major re-development of the Mooloolaba foreshore.

The Mooloolaba Esplanade Holiday Park was permanently closed to allow for Stage 1, Northern Parkland to take place. This incorporated a raised boardwalk to link Alexandra Headland to Mooloolaba with new community facilities including picnic areas, undercover barbeque areas, a state-of-the-art playground with sails and hard-covered areas and landscaping.

This stage was completed in June 2022 and was opened to the public. By September 2023, the SCC could see that the turf areas were in major disrepair, and they contacted Daleys Turf located in Bells Creek seeking a solution.

After several onsite meetings, it was decided to replace the old turf with an improved variety that would suit all the needs the council required for such an area. TifTuf Hybrid Bermuda was the chosen turf variety based on its wear tolerance and that it would handle the punishment of sporting events such as the Mooloolaba Triathlon, the Sunshine Coast Marathon and other fun runs whereby the grassed area can be covered for up to 10 days at a time with temporary infrastructure that is used for these events.

The first challenge was working out how to conduct the work safely and efficiently without completely closing the area off to the public. Access for pedestrians on the Mooloolaba foreshore is via a footpath shared by over 1,000 people daily.

With the assistance of SCC management and their employees, Daleys Turf devised a plan.

The project was to begin once the Queensland school holidays were over, but it needed to be completed 6 weeks before a large event that was booked in November to give the turf time for establishment. It would then be ready to re-open to the public. This only gave the team a 4-day window to complete the job.

Metal safety fencing was erected, then the existing turf and soil were removed, the drainage system was installed, irrigation was upgraded with more stations and sprinklers added to increase coverage, and then the new sand-based soil was added.

All materials had to be delivered to an off-site location and then re-loaded onto smaller vehicles that could access the shared walkway. Each vehicle was escorted into and out of the site with spotters in front and at the back.

Fifty-five cubic metres had to be removed and the total area of turf to be replaced was 890m2. There were 65 cubic metres of SFB8000 (a special sports blend to handle foot traffic) to be added. This was blended in with the existing profile using a Harley Rake, and then the prep area for the turf was laser-levelled to maximise the drainage.