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| Zenith zoysia sown by seed,- Darwin |
Yes - it is March 2016 and for those in cooler regions with winter approaching here in Australia, it may or may not be too late for now.
I am a bit ambivalent about "to sow or not to sow" - mainly due to the BOM forecast for the next 2-3 months still strongly forecasting warmer than normal conditions. That augers well for seed sowing, but it will cool eventually.
For areas say Sydney and north, or Perth - provided sowing is before the end of March, it is likely that you could establish an area satisfactorily. For those areas in eg Melbourne, I am more wary. Depends on exactly where you are and if the area does not get all that cool anyway. If not in that group - might be best to wait for spring.
For areas north of Brisbane, or north of Perth, then there is still at least 2 months [ possibly longer]in which sowing /developing a new lawn is likely to be okay. This includes Darwin, Townsville, Port Headland etc. BUT - lawn growth will slow as cooler weather and shorter days develop in June and July. That is inevitable, but growth will pick up sharply from August, with the benefit of the already sown area able to quickly develop as the warmer conditions occur.
We caution about sowing after April in Australia. Technically it is warm enough in the north, but with short days, turf development is quite slow, and a lot of water is needed over the dry periods in the middle of the year. Sometimes it is better to wait until August.
The new turf seed stock is very high quality, with germination near 90% when tested recently. Unfortunately the only variety available is Zenith, with stock of Compadre still unavailable in the USA, and may not be available until much later in the year.
Unfortunately prices have had to increase due to high demand for Zenith in US markets as well as in Asia, and the change in exchange rate between the US$ and A$. Please contact us for more details.
We still have information leaflets on sowing and maintenance available for interested clients.
Care and attention to detail at sowing is important in ensuring a good outcome from using zoysia seed. We also now have more information and advice on weed management issues for seed sown zoysia turf. Not all weed problems can be rectified, but many can be reduced, and often cured. Still the best cure, is a clean seed bed before sowing!
Zoysia from seed offers a great turf with low maintenance and low nutrition demands. It is the turf of choice still in many football [ soccer] stadiums in Asia including Japan, and increasingly on golf fairways and sport fields [eg Thailand, Singapore, Laos, China] around warmer parts of the world. And it can be a great choice for your lawn too.
For more information or seed for your new lawn contact - office@abovecapricorn.com.au [ not set as a link to avoid spamming]
