– Well maintained lawn and green space areas have a positive benefit on public health outcomes Continue reading “New Research Examines Health Benefits of Turf”
Author: Anthony
Quality turf adds to Kerb-Appeal
- The value of a property can increase by as much as 10 percent with a well-maintained lawn.
- Simple quick fixes can have a dramatic effect on prospective buyers’ first impressions.
- A neat and tidy house façade, gardens and lawns adds value – but don’t forget the nature strip.
Surveys suggest that around half the potential buyers of a property would try to knock between 10 to 20 percent off a property’s asking price if it looked unappealing from the street. It is said that people typically take just 10 seconds to decide whether they like a property from the outside with the top turn-offs of a scruffy garden and unkempt lawn the easiest things that can be turned around. Quick fixes that can have significant effect on first-impressions include:
- Sprucing up the garden so it looks neat-and-tidy.
- Pull out any weeds and refresh any mulch in garden beds and trim hedges, and mow the lawn at a higher setting so it looks neat and healthy.
- The use of a lawn-colourant like Lawn Solutions Australia’s ColourGuard can help create an instant-green appearance.
Kerb Appeal is that type of real-estate terminology that fits well with similar jargon – ‘Renovators Delight’, Fixer-Upper and the like. However, kerb-appeal is probably a more descriptive term than most; literally meaning the appeal a property presents to potential buyers when viewed from the street. And, according to a number of surveys carried out over the past twelve months, there is a definite correlation between the first-impressions and the value of a property as perceived by a prospective buyer. The survey findings released earlier this year from comparison website finder.com.au, suggests that nine-out-of-10 Australians would offer below a property’s asking price if the exterior was not appealing – with house hunters offering 17 percent on-average below the asking price, if dissatisfied with the property from the outside. Corroborating these survey results was another study carried out for Barclays Mortgages in the UK which found that about 44 per cent of buyers would try to knock between 10 to 20 percent off a property’s asking price if it looked unappealing from the street. The survey of some 2,000 homeowners found that people typically take just 10 seconds to decide whether they like a property from the outside. Top turn-offs include poorly-maintained appearance with a scruffy garden and unkempt lawn the easiest things that can be addressed to turn things around.
Tips to come from the reports included a number of ‘quick-fixes’ that can have significant effect on first impressions: – Attention to detail was a recurring theme and touching-up any cracked or peeling paint around windows or fascias and sparkling-clean windows was high on the list. – Sprucing up the garden was also seen as a priority with the majority leaning towards it looking neat-and- tidy. – Pull out any weeds and refresh any mulch in garden beds and trim hedges, or untidy or overhanging trees or bushes, especially any that block the view of the home from the street. – Appeal to the buyer’s sense of smell as this can enhance the prospective buyer’s walk-through experience and adding some simple pot-plants with pleasant smelling flowers, like lavender, can make a significant difference. For homes with grass in the front yard, it is recommended to mow it at a higher setting so it looks neat and healthy.
- Using a lower setting can scalp the lawn and expose sections of dirt which give a dirty appearance.
- Of course the use of a lawn-colourant like Lawn Solutions Australia’s ColourGuard can create an instant- green to help present the property in the best light.
Reaction to Green Space ‘far beyond expectations’
Eight times more appealing to families; Visitors staying up to three times longer; Attracting almost twice the foot traffic. It sounds like some kind of ‘magic-marketing-formula’, but these were in fact the preliminary figures revealed from simply adding smart-green-space to a CBD shopping precinct in Canberra recently. What was a ‘fringe-event’ or ‘public-activation’; a pop-up-park project that was held on the back of the International Festival of Landscape Architecture in late October this year, has potentially become a turning point for future city planning design and green open space areas, according to the initiator of the project. The #BackyardExperiment project as it was known, was developed by June Boxsell of Street Furniture Australia (SFA) in conjunction with the Australian Institute of Landscape Architecture (AILA) and Context Architects of Sydney and was strongly supported in its construction by Lawn Solutions Australia, Turf Australia and Horticultural Research Council organisation Hort Innovations Australia.
The project was centred on a hard-landscaping area in the middle of Canberra’s CBD and was aimed at finding out – with the help of video and time-lapse-photography – just how the addition of softer-green-space and landscaping-elements of quality lawn and street furniture would make to public visitation and use of the area. Ms Boxsell is currently in the process of preparing a technical report and compiling video footage of the two-week experiment, but says her preliminary findings were “far beyond expectations”. “It’s quite amazing really,” Boxsell says after her preliminary work on the camera-footage. “We expected there was going to be some lift in visitation and then maybe people staying to linger in the area a little longer, but the numbers we are seeing are off-the-scale and reflective of the anecdotal evidence we gathered from the shopkeepers around the site.” “Before; during; and then after the construction of the park area; we were regularly talking to the many small business proprietors, the café and coffee shop owners in the area.
They all loved the turf, the furniture and the appeal of the space, most of them wanted it to remain as a permanent fixture,” she said. The ACT Government carried out their own surveys during the period and the higher-usage of the area they also observed during the experiment is being corroborated by the numbers gleaned from the video footage. “So far, we’ve seen 190 percent increase in foot traffic, 247 percent increase in what we are calling ‘passers and dwellers’ or those that linger a while, and in the vicinity of an 800 percent increase in demographic diversity . . . the families that were enjoying the lush-lawn and street-furniture that featured so prominently in the park.” 
“We’re looking to have the technical paper together before the end of the year as well as a video overview of the project and already we’ve seen the media and some government agencies keen to get hold of the information,” Boxsell said. The directors of the Smart Cities Summit, the ACT Government, and a number of other design organisations including the Institute of Landscape Architects, are all excited about the potential outcomes of such a simple green-space experiment. “It’s early days yet and once we get this information into the right hands it will be tremendous for turf and our furniture elements in urban design.” “I can’t thank Lawn Solutions Australia, Turf Australia and Hort Innovations for being involved and hopefully we can work together again on something similar in the not-too-distant future to highlight the importance of green-space in our built-environment,” Boxsell went on to say.
Video – Laying Your New Lawn
Green side up, brown side down! Read on for all you need to know about laying your new lawn.
It is best to have your turf delivered on the day you intend to lay it, so be sure to have all your preparation done beforehand.
Whether you’re installing Eureka Kikuyu, Nullarbor Couch or Australia’s favourite buffalo grass Sir Walter DNA Certified Buffalo lawn, make sure you give your local Lawn Solutions member a call a couple of days in advance to place your order.
Your turf will have been grown in large paddocks at the turf farm and is normally cut the day before or the day of delivery. Once the grass has been harvested, it is under stress and can dry out so the sooner it’s laid, the better it is for your new lawn. Here are a couple of handy videos to talk you through the process.
Preparing to lay your new lawn
Laying your new lawn
Remember
Try not to walk on your newly laid lawn or wheel a barrow over it until it’s established, as this can damage the root system and cause undulations in the soil. If necessary, use timber planks or plywood sheets for protection and spreading of the load.
Keep up the watering, especially at the edges where grass is more likely to dry out. It is important to keep your lawn moist during establishment – which is generally about 2 weeks depending on the time of year.
It can be hard to judge exactly how much water you need to use. You don’t need to flood your lawn, just be sure to keep the turf and immediate underlaying soil moist. Your lawn will let you know if it is drying out by its appearance and behaviour. The leaf blades will start to curl, shrivel and dry out so you’ll know when your grass needs a drink!
Lawn Solutions Australia Joins Plant Health Australia
Lawn Solutions Australia (LSA), the country’s leading national group of accredited turf growers, has joined Plant Health Australia (PHA) as an associate member from October 1, 2016. PHA is the not-for-profit coordinator of the industry-government plant biosecurity partnership in Australia. PHA Executive Director and CEO Greg Fraser, welcomed the group, saying that the turf industry had a lot to gain from good biosecurity. “Lawn Solutions Australia rely on their reputation as a supplier of weed- and pest-free turf,” he said. “Becoming an associate member of PHA will help the industry secure its reputation in this regard and promote best-practice in minimising biosecurity incursions both on-farm and on-site.”
Mr Fraser describes PHA’s purpose as being for government and industry to have a strong biosecurity partnership that minimises pest impacts on Australia, improves market access and contributes to industry and community sustainability. “It’s groups like Lawn Solutions Australia coming on board as members that will enhance this relationship,” he says. Lawn Solutions Australia Business Manager Simon Adermann echoed Mr Fraser’s remarks, saying that in joining PHA the turf group was keen to embrace measures that helped their growers keep abreast of latest legislation and remain pest- and disease-free. “Updated biosecurity measures have now been brought into our AusGAP turf accreditation program and it’s terrific to partner with an organisation like PHA so we’re always up-to-date” stated Adermann. “Entry and exit of people and machinery on our member’s turf farms and jobsites are just some things we want to keep our eye on,” he explains. “These are issues that could potentially affect biosecurity for turf growers and their customers and the wider community.” Such areas are becoming increasingly more important for turf growers according to Adermann; particularly when dealing with interstate transfer of turf or traceability when working with large-scale corporate developments that may have a number of different suppliers. “Red Imported Fire Ant, Spiralling Whitefly, Electric Ants and Green Snails are just some of the pests that have seen recent biosecurity-restrictions put in place regarding turf production and distribution,” he says, “and unchecked these kinds of things could do a lot of damage on-farm and into the wider-community.”
“Membership with PHA will give us a number of tools to properly address aspects of the turf industry which can often be overlooked, like such biosecurity issues as well as broader environmental considerations. It’s our goal to be more than the best turf growers; we want professional operations that provide quality and service that exceeds industry and community expectations,” he went on to say. With Lawn Solutions joining PHA the organisation now has 48 members in total—all Australian governments, 38 industries plus 10 associate members. The combination of plant industries, government, and other biosecurity stakeholders ensures that PHA is in a strong position to provide independent advice and facilitate decision making into the future in the best interests of the national plant biosecurity system.
How Sir Walter DNA Certified Soft Leaf Buffalo lawns can help in the future of smaller backyards
Looking to make-over your outdoor entertaining space? Continue reading “How Sir Walter DNA Certified Soft Leaf Buffalo lawns can help in the future of smaller backyards”
Melbourne’s Eureka Moment
Lawn Solutions Australia’s Eureka Kikuyu in the spotlight
Transforming what was a disappointing outcome into a finish that was fitting of the MPavillion project in Melbourne the poor-quality, substituted turf grass was replaced by the originally spec’d Lawn Solutions Australia’s Eureka Kikuyu. Just what sets Lawn Solutions Australia apart was on show in Melbourne recently when a mix-up in turf-type was rectified with dramatic results for a Docklands Precinct project. Amanda Levete Architects‘ 2015 MPavilion in Melbourne has been in the construction phase of relocation from the Queen Victoria Gardens to its permanent home in Melbourne’s Docklands Park, in a new section of parkland designed by Melbourne Landscape Architecture firm MALA. Speaking on the project, MALA director Campbell Morris said how well the move came together, however he explained how he was very disappointed with the quality of what he thought was Eureka Kikuyu turf supplied to finish the job. Following a phone call of complaint to the Lawn Solutions Australia Office, Mr Morris said that it was quickly realised that the turfgrass-type that he had originally specified for the project had been substituted – without his knowledge – with a poor-appearance, inferior grass-type. What was supplied to the project as Eureka Kikuyu lawn was actually a common-type of Kikuyu grass that didn’t offer the same appeal and benefits of Lawn Solutions Australia’s Eureka Kikuyu – as originally specified by MALA for the relocation project. With time-constraints pressing like most jobs of this nature, continued wet-weather and only a couple of weeks to the official opening, the decision was still made to try and replace the inferior turf with what was spec’d in from the start.
Exemplifying just what Lawn Solutions Australia can offer with their strict adherence to turf-quality, service and on-ground performance, local Lawn Solutions Australia grower Lilydale Instant Lawn offered their assistance. Standing strongly behind its claims of quality and professionalism, Lawn Solutions Australia goes out of its way to ensure the utmost in customer and end-user satisfaction. This was one of those occasions where Lawn Solutions Australia’s reputation was on the line; in the face of a mix-up that could have also potentially damaged their Eureka Kikuyu brand for their 43 Lawn Solutions Australia member-turfgrowers Australia-wide. With the prompt response and determination to protect their name, the repairs to the project demonstrated how their turf-types, professionalism and adherence to AusGAP’s Turf Certification Program all come together to work just right on sites like this.
Following the removal of the condemned-turf, Lilydale went about assisting with the ground preparation and the installation of the nearly 600 square metres of freshly supplied AusGAP Certified Eureka Kikuyu turf with the difference in the end result plainly seen by all. “The finish in the end was amazing,” said Mr Morris on Lilydale Instant Lawn’s completion of the job with the genuine Eureka Kikuyu turf. “This is a high-profile project . . . and it now looks a million bucks to what it was,” he said. “It looks lush and green, just perfect for the opening and we’re very happy now with what was a fairly-poor-result before. In the scheme of things; you get what you pay for,” he went on to say.
What is DNA Certified Sir Walter Buffalo Lawn?
Watch this handy video to learn more about Sir Walter DNA Certified Buffalo Lawn and how Lawn Solutions Australia are setting even higher standards in turf.
A Lawn Solutions Australia soft-landscaping success story
Lawn Solutions Australia member grower Twin View Turf received much acclaim for the finishing touches to the Riverside Green Playground project completed late last year. The project carried out by Eureka Landscapes came down to the wire as far as the turf was concerned with only a few weeks made available from installation to when the turf needed to be ready for access for a large-scale public event – the Riverfire Festival held at the end of September last year.
Eureka Landscapes Project Manager Heath Pyatt, spoke about the works on a recent inspection to see how the site was holding-up after an inundation of visitors to the area over the busy holiday period. “The site is still in really good nick and it’s held up really well; better than I imagined really,” said Heath on seeing the site again after a few weeks following handover. “This is a very high profile site and I’m fairly impressed with the Lawn Solutions Australias Nullabor Couch. It looked terrific when it went down and it’s stood up really well after a pretty demanding time over summer,” he said. Greg Mitchell of Brisbane City Council City Parklands Transition Services (CPTS) working with Eureka Landscapes, made the decision to go with one of Lawn Solutions Australia premium varieties Nullarbor Couch, in order to achieve the premium finish required for such a site and also meet the tight deadlines. “I was wrapped with Twin View Turf’s work and the quality of the turf when it arrived, said Heath on recalling that part of the job. “Service, Quality, Safety – the three big stars – Twin View Turf ticked all those boxes and you could see it in the finish of the work. I’ve never met anyone who can cut-in turf like the Twin View Turf guys. They even taught me a few things and I’ve been doing this a while now,” he quipped. “Even the Director was super-impressed with the finish and if the comments on my Linked-In page are anything to go by, there will be plenty more Lawn Solutions Australia Nullarbor Couch specified into jobs down the track” said Heath.
The area that was returfed had been problematic over the years and was difficult to keep any turf cover with high traffic and a poor-draining and poor soil combination adding to the woes, explained Heath. “We worked with CPTS to remove the top 200mm of topsoil which was quite heavy and clayey and rather than having to take this off site we used it for some shaping work to soften the falls in some areas. We then bought in around 200 Cubic metres of high quality sandy-loam mix and put this down over the prepared sub-base – including new irrigation as well.” “The three-week window to try and get it established was a big ask; especially at the start of Spring before the peak growing-season,” said Heath, “but we made it in the end.” All-in-all, the initial quality of the turf in the big Maxi-rolls, the Lawn Solutions Australia Nullarbor Couch Turf variety, Twin View Turf’s installation methods and their after-care fertilisation recommendations and program really made a difference and ultimately gave us the results we were after,” Heath went on to say.
Festival Features Lawn Solutions
Featuring turf amongst the usually stark hard-landscaping of the promenade area of Melbourne’s Federation Square, the area was softened with the greenery and made more welcoming in appearance during the AILA Festival. Turf and more specifically Lawn Solutions Australia (LSA) featured prominently at last week’s Australian Institute of Architects (AILA) Annual Conference. Titled ‘This Public Life Festival’ and held at Melbourne and surrounds, the conference-proper was staged on Friday and Saturday at the Iconic Federation Square building in the centre of the City with fringe events scattered also around town over the week. Over and above its sponsorship arrangement with AILA, Lawn Solutions Australia participated in a number of events over the week that helped showcase turf and its importance in the urban environment.
Greener Environments Tour
In what was a first-time experience on a turf farm, many participants of the Greener Environments Tour to Anco Turf in Cranbourne Victoria, got a first-hand look at turf growing, harvesting and pictured here, aeration. A keenly sought-after event the ‘Greener Environments Turf Tour’ was held on the Thursday and included a bus trip and tour of the Melbourne Botanical Gardens at Cranbourne, then an inspection of Lawn Solutions Australia member Anco Turf’s new farm and facilities nearby. Over 20 Landscape Architects braved the hot and blustery conditions to see a turf farm in operation, as well as a number of displays also provided by some key industry partners. Turfgrowing, the different varieties, harvesting; even turf installation were demonstrated to the visitors, most of whom had never previously seen turf in production. Host Ryan Cotter of Anco spoke on the first part of the tour and gave some insight into their relatively new operation. Ryan explained how their choice of location was partly dependent on the soil type – the high sand-content soils of the Cranbourne farm being attractive to many in the commercial and sportsturf sectors to offer savings in negating the need to wash turf in most instances – their sand profile more than sufficient in meeting most free-draining, soil requirement specifications. Mr Cotter also explained the differing turf varieties and the processes involved from the initial planting through to harvesting and delivery. Industry partner Gavan Hegan of Nuturf addressed the audience of the importance of soil structure in turf design and maintenance and Stan Wells of Equipment Solutions demonstrated the need for relieving soil compaction, including an ‘Agrivator’ aeration demonstration on a newly-harvested turf surface. Anco’s Manager Bruce Stephens also gave a practical demonstration on ground preparation and turf installation and establishment that garnered many questions from the participants. Anco turned on a terrific presentation that was nearly surpassed by the luncheon they put on that was also thoroughly enjoyed by their guests. And judging by the positive comments that came back following the event, further turf tours may be also planned in the future for other centres; with these designers hungry for knowledge in the main, when it comes to turf. AILA Victoria Chapter Manager Felicity McGahan spoke highly of the trip on the visitors’ return to the city and those who enjoyed the tour. “Literally everyone couldn’t speak highly enough of the experience,” said Ms McGahan. “Thanks to Lawn Solutions and the terrific team at Anco Turf who went over and beyond with their hospitality and their demonstrations.” “I can see this becoming a much sought-after event in times to come,” she went on to say.
Showcasing turf
Lawn Solutions Australia staff members take a break after their installation work (l-r) David Raison, Simon Adermann, Joe Rogers and Anthony Betts. Back at Federation Square in the centre of Melbourne, turf was again to be given centre-stage; this time with a number of static turf displays installed in the early hours of the Thursday morning. Featuring Lawns Solutions branded varieties, Sir Walter Buffalo, Nullarbor Couch, Eureka Kikuyu and Platinum Zoysia made up the attractive displays, whilst Lawn Solutions Australiaís Cool-Season Favourite RTF Fescue formed the centrepiece with some 80 square metres installed in the venue’s surrounds. The turf from Lawn Solutions northern Victoria member Strathayr was in terrific condition and changed the entire look and atmosphere of the outdoor paved areas. Ensuring turf wouldn’t be missed by the event’s participants a welcoming Green Carpet was also installed at the entrance to the venue and stood up well, even after the rigour of thousands of feet over the two-day event. The Lawn Solutions Australia on-site team were inundated with comments on how much of a transformation had been made to the outdoor area, with many requests by those close to the venue to leave it there or make it a more permanent fixture. “That, in essence was what the majority of the festival represented in the main” said Lawn Solutions Australia Business Manager Simon Adermann. “Much of the content of the presenters and quite a great deal of the conference focused on better delivering Green Open Space outcomes,” said Adermann. “It was really heartening to see from our perspective,” he said. “Turf had often been seen in a negative light over much of the last decade as an environmental vandal or a water guzzler, but now we’re seeing the health, erosion, filtration, cooling, carbon sesquestration and many other environmental benefits of turf being realised in landscape design and very much a part of many of the speakers’ presentations,” he explained.
Turf got the royal treatment with its status as Green Carpet the focal entry piece for the AILA Conference
Turf in design
Victorian Turfgrowers and Lawn Solutions Staff and Ambassador Jason Hodges enjoyed the AILA Victoria Landscape Design Awards that took place in conjunction with the AILA Festival event. Turf was even featured heavily in many of the categories at the AILA Victoria Awards Ceremony held at the Melbourne Town Hall on the Thursday night. Lawn Solutions was again a sponsor here and a number of LSA’s Victorian Turfgrowers and Lawn Solutions Ambassador, Landscaping Personality Jason Hodges, joined in the event with some 200 guests for what was an entertaining and inspirational night. Speaking after the event Mr Adermann also described the importance of the relationship that he says has quickly developed with AILA. “We were warmly welcomed by all the AILA staff and they did a fantastic job with the event.” “Our Lawn Solutions staff and our Victorian growers, Anco Turf, Strathayr, Coolabah Turf and Lillydale Instant Lawns all played a huge part in helping out as well to make the event a monumental success,” he went on to say.