Turf Prices

For those of us in the eastern states i thought it might be helpful to have a list of turf prices (prices beneath description and per sq mtre):

Palmetto Softleaf Buffalo 6 Stars
The very best lawn, lush green, excellent colour retention in cold weather, soft to walk on,fungus disease resistant, 85% shade tolerant, weed resistant.
Per sq. mt.

$6.50

Shade Master Softleaf Buffalo 5 Stars
The most popular Buffalo, soft to walk on, good looking, fungus disease resistant, 85% shade tolerant.

$4.00

Empire Zoysia 5 Stars
Very low mowing frequency, water efficient, low thatching, shade tolerant, hard wearing, medium leaf width.

$6.50

Santa Ana Couch 5 Stars
Low maintenance, low mowing frequency, superb looking, shade tolerant, hard wearing, a truly beautiful lawn.

$3.00

Greenleas Park Couch 4 Stars
The hardest wearing turf on the market. Looks great. Low maintenance, shade tolerant, fine leaf structure. Used on playing fields, golf tees, bowling greens, etc. The more traffic the less mowing.

$3.00

Kikuyu 2 Stars
A vigorous growing grass. Commonly used domestically or commercially. Retains colour well in most conditions. Will not tolerate shade or excessive dampness. Frequent mowing in summer months.

$3.00

From:

http://www.allclassturf.com.au/varieties.htm

You can add about $4 pm for Melbourne prices. I managed to get Palmetto for $9 pm on special instead of $10.50 - 11pm for Sir Waler / Palmetto

thanks loretta!

That's great loretta

I do beg to differ with the couch maintenance descriptions of that web page from experience but good post none the less.

I've noticed that few people here seem to grow by seed. For $50 you can seed a HUGE area and the stuff just shoots up. Really not much effort at all. Is water the problem ? I just can't see the need to get turf when seed is so easy - you just need to wait a few weeks for it to thicken up.

I can see the advantages of turfing with kids and pets...but agreed the next grass area will probably be seeded due to lots of $ wasted on turf.

Edit: Re-read my post, take the "with" out of the first part of that sentence and I think Child Services and RSPCA might pay me a visit...

Good point re seeding. I guess for me I was thinking that since we will have a brand new house with just dirt that turf would give it an instant "done" look. I have tried to seed grass in the past and had very little success in getting a nice lawn but maybe that was just me not doing it properly.

the trick with seeds is keeping them moist until they sprout. if they dry out for even a few hours the seed will die.

when is the best time to seed? is it getting too hot or doesnt it really matter?

Yes, I would say it is getting too hot where you are for seeding grass, in particular that to my knowledge you have severe water restrictions . Anyhow, with my gardening experience it is best to seed grass and plant anything for that matter, in Med climates after the first autumn rains.

Maggie

for those interested in seeding lawns it is important to know that the grass types are in a large majority of the cases very different types from the roll on turf types. Ryes and fescues are the prodominant varieties.

There is really only one brand I would ever recomend to use when it comes to lawn seed and that is Munns. Why? Because the germination rate of what you get in the box is about the highest on the market. If you pay a little extra for a Munns seed with 80-95% germination rate compared with the multitude of cheaper lawn seeds that have 60-75% germination rate you will work out that there is a reason why you pay less. It is also good to know that the Munns seed quality is the best you can get on the "retail" market in Australia. There is no sand mixed into the seed either to bring the weight up like some do. (blood and bone has this too). I rarely recommend seed for WA coastal areas with all the billions of bloody coastal brown ants we have (They will have a field day on the seed ). Seeds are an excellent option elsewhere though. Especially in shadey areas and even I forget that sometimes . Munns sun'n'shade is a ripper. The great thing about the seeded varieties of lawns/ grass is that they don't spread. they mostly are clump forming grasses that will have very deep roots and enjoy being kept cut longer so they tend to be more water efficient. They don't respond to being cut by turf cutting machines like the roll on varieties we get.

A very worth while way to get a true waterwise and low maintenance lawn that won't cost the earth in anyway. 3-6weeks will see a result and after 12months you'd swear it been there years.

The photo on the front of the box of Munns arid was taken in Adelaide and has been looking magic for many many years.

Also the best thing about Munns is that it is a small SA family owned business. Nearly every other is now owned and run by large multinational fertiliser companies or similar.

Fu Manchu the guru.....

Im just about to go to the local landscape supplier to order some soil as i will be seeding on the weekend. They offer a "top soil" as well as an "under turf" do you think there would be much different between the two.

appreciate it

FuManchu

I've decided not to bookmark everything you post anymore...neh...I just go to your profile now and look at "all posts by FuManchu"...because you sprinkle gems of information everywhere...

Yep, Fu Manchu is THE MAN!!!!!!!!!!!

Never fails to provide!!

There's lots of folks on here that know stuff about other topics too.
I mean if it wasn't for Michelle I would be wearing blue pants and a red shirt with orange socks
lots of landscape hardscaping gurus here too thanks to everyone for a team effort.

Oh...is that wrong...hmm must check wardrobe!

Hey Fu, if you generally recommend Empire Zoysia which seed of Munns would you recommend?

All the grass in my place gets full sun at least part of the day, and there are some small areas that are shaded about 80% of daylight hours. The rear of my place is facing ever so slightly north east, not perfect north facing. Reason some of the grass gets shade at 80% is because of trees and neighbor houses.

I really like GREEEEN grass, and am used to American style lawns:) I am in Sydney fairly close to the coast. Our place gets a decent amount of rain throughout the year.

I will have subsurface irrigation coming from the rainwater tanks.

Thanks!

Greg

good stuff Greg. subsurface irrigation is the best thing It won't save water but it does deliver water more effectively.

For your needs you could use Munns Arid in the sunny areas and munns sun'n'shade in the shadey spots. or just use the sun'n shade over the whole area.

I've seen a great plant based dye you can spray on your lawns to make them look lush! An american invention that is especially being used on foreclosed homes the banks are trying to sell!