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The healthier your grass is going into the cooler months, the better it will come out the other side in spring.
Author: Nathan Edwards
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First Bowling Club in the World to Trial Trinity Zoysia
Brooms Head Bowling Club
Brooms Head Bowling Club is located on the North Coast of NSW between Coffs Harbour and Ballina.
Greenkeeper Blair Littlechild has worked at the club for over 13 years. The club currently has Tifdwarf bowling greens, which have proven to be difficult to manage over the years. Some issues have included ground pearl, turf disease, salinity issues from proximity to the ocean and poor greens construction also a contributing factor to the overall performance of the greens.
Tifdwarf has been the prominent bowling green grass in Australia for over 40 years. Up until recently there have been limited alternatives with superior traits available to greenskeepers. Many bowling clubs operate with very limited budgets, so any investment in construction or refurbishment of greens is critical to get right. Bowls Australia produces Bowling Green Construction Guidelines that provide greenkeepers with a solid resource for ensuring greens facilities are constructed to a particular standard. These guidelines, with the experience and expertise of greenskeepers like Mr Littlechild, have gone a long way to ensuring quality bowling green surfaces in Australia.
Mr Littlechild, the club and their staff were looking for an alternative option that would address the issues they continue to experience. They were looking to introduce a more cost-effective surface that didn’t require the stretching of financial resources for upkeep costs and were prepared to look outside the box for these results.
Enter Trinity Zoysia
Early discussions into exploring turf varietal trials began with communication between Mr Littlechilds and Simon Adermann from Lawn Solutions Australia (LSA). With Sir Grange Zoysia having achieved considerable success in the Australian sporting market, Teven Valley Golf Club nearby in particular, Mr Littlechilds asked Mr Adermann what other new turf varieties may be suited to being used in a bowling greens situation.
Trinity Zoysia is a newly introduced turf species in Australia, exclusively licensed through LSA and ticked a lot of the boxes required for a bowling green and for the Brooms Head climate and proximity to the beach. Trinity Zoysia is a Zoysia Matrella that was originally bred for the golf course industry as a versatile grass that can be mown low, primarily suited for greens and tees.
Mr Littlechild drove to Brisbane and checked out the newly installed Trinity Zoysia putting green at Indooroopilly Golf Club. Impressed with the appearance and performance of the grass, Mr Littlechild
put a trial proposal to the Brooms Head Bowling Committee. The proposal was approved in December 2019 to be trialled on one rink, making it the first trial in the world to use Trinity Zoysia for a bowling green application.
Eradication of Tifdwarf for the trial commenced in January 2020. Fumigation followed in February and Trinity Zoysia stolons supplied by Twin View Turf were planted in March. The Trinity Zoysia showed signs of fine white fibrous roots within 5 days of planting. Shortly after, 200 millimetres of rain fell leaving the greens underwater for over 4 days, but no damage was caused to the trial.
The Fertiliser program started 14 days after planting and progressed throughout winter. In August granular fertiliser was applied to promote growth and the green was top dressed in September. Mr Littlechild worked with Andrew Smith from Nuturf on the fertility program required to get the most out of the Trinity Zoysia.
From there regular mowing, grooming and rolling commenced to prepare the surface for play. Play started on the green in December 2020.
Over the next 12 months the club will monitor winter dormancy, playability, maintenance requirements and member feedback. If everything goes to plan the club will add another 3 rinks to the green in January 2022.
The primary goals they are hoping to achieve in order to determine the trials success include:
- Lower maintenance costs
- Reduced chemical use
- Less weekly maintenance hours
- Increased winter colour
The grass has already received glowing reviews from both the committee and club members, with first and foremost Trinity looking and performing as a bowling green should. Members have commented on the beautiful fine leaf and some have even said it almost looks artificial with how good it looks.
“Australia is leading the way to find a new turfgrass variety for bowling greens – Trinity Zoysia is showing some really positive signs thanks to Brooms Head Bowling Club in New South Wales”. David Doguet, Trinity Zoysia Turf Breeder – Bladerunner Farms
Mr Littlechild would like to thank the volunteer support and the committee for backing the opportunity to trial this new grass and is excited to see how it performs over the coming years.
For more information on Lawn Solutions Australia Sports Turf varieties like Trinity Zoysia, click here.
TIFTUF Travels to Dubai
Dubai Sports City ICC Academy | TIFTUF Trial
In July 2020, Lawn Solutions Australia was approached by Dubai Sports City ICC Academy and Stadium Head Curator Tony Lumsden to see if it was viable to send TifTuf stolons over for a project in Dubai. Having conducted some research on drought tolerant grasses, Mr Lumsden decided to try TifTuf as a trial grass to see if the data would be relevant to Dubai’s extreme heat.
Currently, Mr Lumsden and his team use Princess 77, TifWay 419 and have recently planted Paspalum Pure Dynasty. In summer the Dubai average temperature is 42 degrees Celsius, “soil temperature can climb to over 40 degrees and water temperature pushing 40 degrees also” Mr Lumsden said. With grass under stress, water consumption is high, so Mr Lumsden was looking for a new grass that might help reduce water consumption.
With TifTuf new onto the market and the ‘Smart Approved Water Mark’, Mr Lumsden thought this would be an excellent grass for the Dubai climate. After some communication with Lawn Solutions Australia, Mr Lumsden was put in contact with Victorian turf grower StrathAyr Turf Solutions to arrange for the TifTuf stolons to be delivered.
StrathAyr have extensive experience with growing, harvesting and exporting specialist turf products and services domestically and abroad. StrathAyr made contact with Mr Lumsden to determine their exact needs and requirements, before arranging the stolons to be sent from Australia to Dubai – over 11,500km away.
The Project
The scope of works was to provide 100kg of washed TifTuf turf stolons to enable a trial area of 400m² to be planted. The most challenging aspect of exporting turf is the immense logistics requirements encompassing certificates, inspections, flight changes, clearances…. all the while factoring that the turf is a living product and there needs to be time minimisation between harvest and replanting on the other side of the world.
Preparation and Delivery
Office Manager Alison Hall has been with StrathAyr for many years and her experience enabled careful manoeuvring and persistent coordination of all the processes required for the Dubai project to be successfully accomplished over a six-month period.
The TifTuf stolons were harvested on November 25th, with sanitisation then conducted to ensure the grass was free from disease, insects and nematodes.
The turf material went through the washing plant three times to ensure all of the soil was removed. The turf washing facility in Seymour is environmentally friendly and water is continually recycled in a closed loop system with a dedicated dam that feeds and captures all water utilised in the process. StrathAyr have a proud fifty-year history of being world leaders in the development and provision of natural turf solutions. The process of washing turf was developed and commercialised by StrathAyr many decades ago and their world-wide patent resulted in turf washing equipment being manufactured in Seymour Victoria and exported to specialist turf farms across all corners of the globe.
The washing facility at Seymour in Victoria has a module that precisely shreds the turf to create stolons ready for planting. Once the stolons were bagged, they were rapidly dispatched to the airport where pre-arranged officials were waiting to thoroughly inspect the plant material for any diseases or pests. The stolons were then re-packed in temperature-controlled packaging and loaded onto the plane, which immediately departed via air freight to Dubai International Airport (DXB).
After a lot of communication with the UAE Ministry of Finance and Dubai Customs, Mr Lumsden received the TifTuf stolons on November 30th, after sitting in cold storage for 4 days. The stolons were again tested for nematodes on arrival with a positive result being found. As a result, the stolons needed to have repeated spray applications before final testing to ensure a negative result prior to establishment.
Planting and Establishment
The stolons were spread over the plot for spraying and once given the go-ahead Mr Lumsden and his team were able to press ahead and gave the grass a very light top-dress and fertiliser application.
Hessian covers were placed over the stolons to help with moisture retention while the stolons began to establish. Day time temperatures were sitting around 26-28 degrees Celsius during this time. After approximately 12 days, the hessians were removed to see good signs of leaf growth and some root development. With half the plot covered in shade during the winter months, it was a good sign that the grass was establishing well.
The TifTuf is planted next to Princess 77 in the trial nursery, so that will provide a starting point in regard to water consumption, growth rate, shade tolerance and thatch accumulation. The shaded area of the plot will also be a valuable trial to see how the grass will perform in shade and see if it is a viable option for the cricket stadium, which has a shade issue.
The plan for the grass is to also look at trialling it in the cricket wicket, as the texture (leaf size, small internodes) is very similar to TifWay 419 and quite a bit less course than Princess 77.
“I am very excited about the possibility of this grass in the Middle East, given the possibility of less water consumption and the lack of varieties available here.”
“Given that the International Cricket Council Academy needs to be leaders in the field, we are constantly evaluating what we do and pushing ahead with new innovative products and research. I see TifTuf as a great opportunity for us to do that.” Mr Lumsden said.
Further testing, evaluation and analysis will continue over the next 12-24 months.
For more information on TifTuf Hybrid Bermuda (Couch Grass) or to find a local supplier click here.
The Evolution of the Home Lawn
Where did the idea of a ‘lawn’ come from?
The humble Aussie lawn that we know today has evolved through many years of cultural and environmental factors and changes to our way of life. The effects of globalisation in introduced grass types, lawn maintenance techniques, and the emergence of modern suburbia as we now know it, have all played a part in the history of lawns.
Although lawns have not always been a luxury accessible to all, modern-day technologies and new farming methods have paved the way for the lawns of today. Providing a place where families can congregate, where friends socialise, and where the many lifestyles and sporting activities take place.
Where did the history of lawns start?
The history of lawns as we know them today began with old European Estates. In these estates, lawns mainly consisted of chamomile or thyme, rather than grass. These lawns were popular as they had a relatively low growing height allowing groundsmen to spot danger or visitors before arrival. Some of these lawns were maintained by livestock, however many were hand-cut by workers using a scythe.
As these lawns took a lot of time and effort to maintain, they mainly belonged to the wealthy. These elegant gardens entwined with lawn areas became a symbol of status and continued to become more elaborate over time. It wasn’t until the innovation of lawnmowers and grass cutting mechanisms, that lawns really started to increase in popularity.
The First Lawn Mower
The first lawnmower in history was designed and created by Edwin Beard Budding in 1830. Budding was inspired after seeing a machine in a cloth mill and saw the potential for a similar concept to be used for cutting grass. The mower he designed was built from iron and had a similar design to cylinder mowers that we see today. The machine was quite heavy and took a bit of effort to use but worked well at cutting grass.
When Budding was first testing his invention, he would only test his machine in the darkness of night to avoid suspicion from his neighbours. Budding saw great potential for his invention. He soon teamed up with John Ferrabee to finance a patent as well as the cost of manufacturing. Little did they know their invention would help reshape the history of lawns.
The Modern Residential Lawn
The idea of the modern residential lawn we know today was influenced by Abraham Levitt, a property developer in the United States. Mr Levitt and his sons pioneered mass production and low-cost housing after World War II. Mr Levitt realised that it was through the landscaping of lawns that home depreciation could be offset. Every house in Levitt’s development of over 17,000 homes had a lawn.
As the popularity of lawns began to boom, more turf varieties became available. Developments in lawn maintenance products including fertilisers, and herbicides also helped lawns become easier to maintain.
Grass Types in Australia
With the growing popularity of sporting games such as lawn bowls and golf in America, people wanted to find new and better surfaces to play on. This sparked interest in new grass varieties and organisations began to conduct research into superior options. It’s through this investment in sports turf that new varieties gradually became available for use in domestic lawns too.
Couch grasses have been a popular choice for Aussie backyards due to their high drought and wear tolerance. Kikuyu grass, originally from the highland regions of East Africa and named after the Kikuyu tribe. Kikuyu has remained a popular choice due to drought tolerance, high wear, and their rich colour.
Some varieties of zoysia are native to Australia. Over time, other varieties of zoysia have been introduced from parts of South East Asia. These grasses are a popular choice due to their drought and wear tolerance.
Buffalo grasses have not always been a popular choice in Australia. This was because they would lose colour in winter and had a scratchy and coarse leaf. But in the last 20 years or so, buffalo have risen in popularity since the introduction of soft leaf buffalos like Sir Walter DNA Certified.
With incredible new turf varieties like TifTuf Hybrid Bermuda and Sir Grange Zoysia now available, we look forward to what the future has in store for the Aussie lawn to come.
How do I stop seed heads coming back?
In recent months conditions have been a bit all over the place in many areas. This has led to some unusual reoccurences of seed heads, so let’s take a look at why this might be happening on your lawn and what you can do about it…
What are seed heads?
Most common lawn types in Australia produce a sterile seed head, meaning they can’t be spread by seed, only through sprigs or runners. Although going to seed in most cases isn’t a bad thing for your lawn, it doesn’t look great or feel soft underfoot.
The seed head cycle can vary greatly due to climate and stage of growth but are a natural part of the seasonal cycle. As a rule of thumb, the cycle will last for between 4 and 6 weeks.
Why has my lawn gone to seed?
Normally when a turf variety goes to seed, it’s due to one of the following two main reasons:
- It’s under stress from something, usually a lack of water, nutrient, or a change in weather. If you have seed head, aerate, fertilise and water the lawn deeply if you haven’t done so in the past 6-8 weeks.
- It’s occurring naturally, coinciding with seasonal change – in most varieties occurring just once or twice a year at a specific time of year.
In these situations, if your lawn has been fertilised recently and has sufficient moisture in the soil, the seed heads should stop appearing on their own within 4-6 weeks.
If there has been a dramatic weather change, it will stop seeding once conditions have gone back to normal or once the plant has adjusted.
But some of you may have found that this hasn’t been the case recently. This is likely because of the inconsistent temperatures and weather conditions. You have probably found recently one day you are wearing shorts, the next jeans, the next its raining all day – or all of these in the same day!
Your grass finds this inconsistent weather very stressful and it can’t quite relax and settle into normal growth. This presents itself in seedhead production, a sign of this stress.