Zoysia Seed to be Available in Australia Again - Soon

USA suppliers have been unable to supply zoysia seed to Australia for some time, due to supply and availability issues in the USA as well as cleaning difficulties to meet Australian biosecurity requirements.

Recent information is trending positively and fresh quality seed may be available shortly.

At this time dates and pricing not confirmed, but there are hopes it will be later in November 2019.

There is some seed on offer but it is at least a year old and due to pretreatment that is applied to zoysia seed, germination has declined to a level we think is unsuitable for tropical warm /hot conditions , that is..... vigour is lower, which may be an issue in tough conditions.  We prefer to offer more suitable seed to users / clients.

More information as details firm up.

zoysia used in centre median - low maintenance

What A Difference Zenith Zoysia Can Make

The difference is a modest 18 weeks, over a very dry wet season in 2015/ 2016.  Quite startling!

And there was a hiccup or two along the way with some nutritional issues that caused a bit of yellowing - solved with appropriate fertiliser treatment.

The property is in Townsville, north Queensland.

Photos show before and after, plus a close up of the turf density at around 18 weeks.

Could you home benefit from a similar lift?

Please contact us for more information how using Zenith zoysia turf seed could help you achieve a great looking turf area at your property.

Before sowing Zenith zoysia

After 18 weeks -Zenith zoysia turf

Close up of density of Zenith zoysia turf

Zoysia Boost for Golf Courses and Fine Turf in the Tropics - Professional Support

For northern Australia the most effective direction to seek out better options for turf quality and performance might just be to head offshore to Asia.

Enormous improvements  in turf management are occurring in Asia especially Thailand and China, with the emphasis in China on the southern warmer areas, where year round turf growth is possible.  Zoysia is already the preferred grass for many sportsfields used for football in the region.

The stand out grass for Thailand is zoysia - in a number of flavours, while China may require a few options depending on location and altitude, but zoysia is in the species mix.

More recently - early in 2016 - the organisation that is the effective comptroller of all things golf - The Royal and Ancient organisation has been sponsoring a series of seminars around Asia to enhance course management, with a number of distinguished speakers both from within and outside of Asia.

Seminars have been held in Beijing, PRC and in Thailand, both in March 2016.

Both have some relevance to Australia, but the one in Thailand offers better guidance for areas of Australia that are north of  Brisbane or Perth, including Darwin and Cairns.

Zoysia turf gets a big plus for Thailand and may offer a lot of potential for these similar areas in Australia.  And that includes domestic use as well as commercial areas - sportfields, golf courses and other managed grass sites.

Zoysia is strong in a number of areas relevant to current directions of concern for turf management, offering less water and fertiliser use as well as reduced disease incidence.

Zoysia matrella was 22% more efficient in water use and 25% more efficient in N use than couch. It does not require as much water or nitrogen to produce a dense sward and many courses can be operated on much lower inputs.  However, potassium can be often required in areas where clippings are removed.

A case is also made for using tropical carpetgrass in densely shaded areas eg under trees where it continues to show how it is the stand out performer in shade.

A more detailed overview is available here - www.randa.org/Thailand and there are nine free downloads available for those interested in golf course management, with zoysia turf a major discussion point.

These offer some very thoughtful ideas for anyone involved in turf management across north Australia.

And of course we can assist you with professional support, more information and seed of some high quality seeded zoysia varieties - with Zenith outstanding  - which we offer,  a significant part of many of the newer improved sport turf areas in Thailand.  

[Unfortunately Compadre variety is currently unavailable in Australia - maybe it will be later in 2016].

Developing a Zenith football field 2015 at a Darwin school, sown by hydroseeding.

     

Zenith Zoysia Seed - NEW STOCK AVAILABLE

Zenith zoysia sown by seed,-  Darwin

At long last - new stock of zoysia seed is available.

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]

Zenith Zoysia - New 2015 Sowing at Bundaberg Queensland

Zenith Zoysia was used for a new turf area sowing recently at Bundaberg, Queensland.

As a slightly alternative option, sugar mill "mud"was used as a cover and nutrient source and also to adjust pH closer to neutral [ it is alkaline].

Photo one month after sowing in early November.  There was some wash from a storm, hence a few bare areas, but the client is absolutely delighted with the outcome so far.

Sedges were controlled with halosulfuron [ a few different trade names available], and broadleaved weeds with MCPA/dicamba mix [ common trade name is Kamba - M].

Outstandingly, the seedlings are quickly developing strong lateral runners, which will help provide that all important ground cover to protect the surface as there will surely be more storms over the next few months.  Lateral growth is stronger in less dense areas, a great help to soil cover wher eit is most needed.

The area has not been mown but will be in the next couple of weeks and once that happens, expect a further surge in lateral growth.

Zenith zoysia at Bundeaberg, Qld approx 4 weeks from sowing in November 2015.  Copyright - B Cobb and used with permission

Growing Zoysia from Seed in Melbourne

Australians generally are conditioned to having a green turf area in the winter months.  In many other parts of the world you may have a green lawn in the warmer months, but a dry and brown barren area in winter, or possibly the opposite with a green area in the cool winter and dry and brown in warmer summer weather.

It is often possible in most parts of Australia with careful choice of turf species as well as a suitable variety, to have green turf year round.  But there are compromises as often either winter or summer is a bit of a stress time.

There are exceptions with turf adapted to altitude in the tropics often able to handle the winter and summer satisfactorily in Australia, or at least in much of the country, for example - kikuyu grass used as a turf, as well as some varieties of couch eg wintergreen, with both coping with both cool and hot weather.

While zoysia is a great turf from spring through autumn, it may not be ideal where there are cold winters.  It usually turns a lovely straw colour.  It is possible to oversow a winter active grass such as rye or fescue to meet your needs if a green turf is absolutely needed. but leaving it natural is also okay.  It is a relatively short period of several months, and often the weather is not ideal for being outside anyway.

In large cities there are often areas with varying conditions - and cities do tend to be a little warmer than nearby areas outside of the urban conditions, so picking areas where zoysia may remain green or discolour is not always easy.

In late 2014 a modest area was sown to Compadre zoysia in suburban Melbourne.

It did wonderfully well, and by late summer it was thriving.  Come winter........it went a golden straw colour, and is now - springtime in 2015 - rapidly regreening and is expected to once again thrive in the warmer months providing a low maintenance but very functional turf area with low mowing requirements.

Compadre Zoysia turf in Melbourne - Sown late 2014 - photo from 2 March 2015

Sown late 2014, photo in mid October 2015 about 1 year from sowing after 1st winter 

This is exactly what the zoysia areas in China and Korea where the grass is naturalised, do each year -   green up in the warm months yet go dormant in winter.  It works very well.  Summer in both areas is very hot and humid, while winters are cold to very cold.

So remember that zoysia - think Compadre as more suitable, but Zenith is okay too - will be able to grow in Melbourne, but may not be green in winter.  Also remember that winter 2014 was cold, and not all winters are that cold.

[ photo credit - G Speers, Melbourne]

Zenith Zoysia Seed to Develop a New Oval in the Tropics - Part 4 - Maturing the Grass

It always take some time to develop an oval to the stage where it is getting ready to use.

Plants need to thicken and develop a dense sward above the ground surface while also developing their roots so they can effectively resist all the pressures on the grass that occurs during the playing of ball games or anything else planned for the oval  - it has to mature.

There will need to be regular mowing at about a 7-10 day interval - even more frequent in some cases - to help thicken the sward as lateral growth is encouraged, to fill any thin or bare spots.  Fertiliser is applied - normally at about 4 week intervals [ that is about how long normal agricultural type fertiliser can supply nutrients, particularly nitrogen, although other types [ phosphorus, potassium, trace elements] may be available for longer] for about 12 weeks,

Weed control is vital during this phase, to ensure the favoured grass is encouraged and impediments to growth removed.  Disease management and control may also be an issue in some cases.

In the period from around 45 days through to around 95 days after sowing the Zenith Zoysia area had a second application of fertiliser at about 8 -9 weeks [ 56+ days from sowing] and will be due for another at 12 -14 weeks, except this time it will be a slow release fertiliser, better suited to ongoing turf growth and with an availability period of 12 -16 weeks, thus preventing rapid growth, yet continuing to provide adequate nutrition for the turf for many weeks.

Weed control was instituted with several applications of herbicide.  The earlier applied residual herbicide continued to provide annual grass and some broadleaved weed control, but was boosted with two applications of a product that gives excellent knock down, but not very much residual weed control of broad leaved weeds - Kamba -M, applied at around 70 days after sowing and more recently at approximately 95 days from sowing.  Ideally the latter one would have been sooner, but a 48 hour dry period after application is needed for best results - and it continued to rain every few days!  Makes that a bit tricky.  The second application seems to have been very effective.

However, there have been issues with grass weeds.  While some grass weeds can be controlled with selective herbicides, the real culprit has been Bothriochloa spp plants - a particularly hard to control grass weed, and with few options for herbicide use.  The area did have a lot of these plants initially and were controlled with glyphosate before seed sowing, but the residual seed in the ground has germinated around the same time as the zoysia seed and slowly developed into a problem that requires hand removal.  The dense turf as it develops will eventually prevent most, if not all, future germination from the residual seeds, as well as the seed in the ground dying.  But in the meantime seedlings of it have to go...........  Resorting to hand weeding is almost inevitable in fine turf development, but it is labour and time intensive.  And requires many revisits to the same area to ensure it is all gone, as you can often miss small plants.

By mowing at 7-10 day intervals the weedy grass has time to put up a seed head between mowing periods, allowing easy identification, yet if removed in that 6-10 day time frame it is short enough to prevent any more seed development as full flowering has not started.  A real problem also exists in that the same species is all around the outside of the oval, and could easily re reintroduced to the oval area through mowing, especially if careless mowing of the oval surrounds is carried out.  Not an easy situation to rectify.  Although low levels are present initially, good progress in eliminating the Bothriochloa spp on the oval is progressing okay, but may require a few more weeding / mowing cycles, and ongoing vigilance.

Before mowing - 90 days from sowing

Before mowing - 90 days from sowing

Before mowing - 90 days from sowing

Before mowing at 90 days from sowing

before mowing - 90 days from sowing

After broad leaved weed control 98 days from sowing

Very effective broad leaved weed control at 98 days from sowing

At 98 days - Bothriochloa spp - grass weed in dense Zenith zoysia turf - note emerged seed head 7 days after mowing

Zenith Zoysia Seed to Develop A New Oval in the Tropics - Part 3 – Mowing Time

One of the milestone events in any new turf development is the mow………..yes, the first mow.

zenith zoysia coverage at about 6 weeks from sowing

For this site it was 45 days after sowing, and although a bit large we opted for a domestic rotary mower, which allows a bit of a closer check on what is going on with the turf, ease of manoeuvre of equipment, but with a greatly extended time requirement.

The cut went well…………., cutting the area back quite short. No serious problems and a very smart appearance.

The next mow was this past week, at 59 days from sowing, say at 8 weeks, and two weeks after the first cut.  This time however we used a zero turn front deck mower, adjusted to cut short, but not absolutely the shortest, and a fraction higher than the first cut.  We will probably continue with mowing at 10 – 14 day intervals for the next month.

After mowing at 8 weeks note small areas now covering in 

The turf has continued to grow well, and will receive a small fertiliser boost in the next 7 days, weather dependent. 

In the meantime we continue to remove grassy weeds, especially focussing on Bothriochloa spp.  Some are new plants, some are plants around the outer areas of the oval where they have had almost zero competition since the original sowing, and some very large clumps of runners that seem to have recovered from the glyphosate spray.  A big job, but it is almost inevitable with ovals that a major hand weed is needed.  We expect to have to do more over the next few weeks, but at this stage a very substantial number of plants – small to medium sized have been removed.  There is no easy herbicide solution to selectively kill Bothriochloa spp in turf.

A further spray to remove a few remnant legume weeds long with some other broad leaved weeds and some sedges will be needed as weather allows [currently wet and raining most days], and it may be possible to spot or strip spray for these weeds, rather than the entire oval.

The big change is the rapid growth of runners extending laterally in the zoysia.  These runners are very noticeable around the edge of the oval where the sown Zenith was either a bit thin or had not been sown out past the oval boundary.  These areas are rapidly being colonised by the Zenith as new runners spread quickly.

The odd small bare area on the oval is also being covered with these runners, and very quickly too, once they started, which was after the first mow.  Zenith and especially Compadre are well known for excellent lateral growth as is being seen with these new runners now covering the bare spots.

Runners rapidly covering a bare spot on oval

Runners now colonising an area off the edg eof the sown oval

It augurs well for over 95% coverage soon.

Getting close to 95 %cover on many parts of the oval now

Zoysia Seed To Develop a New Sports Oval - Part 2 - Seedlings at Four Weeks from Sowing and Weed Management

While early seedling growth was very good, the dreaded weeds then started to appear!

While herbicides for use on seeded zoysia have been a bit tricky in being able to choose one that had minimum collateral damage to the small zoysia seedling yet was efficacious in removing weedy plants, we decided to use quinclorac [trade name Drive], which will deal with some weedy annual grasses and many broadleaved and leguminous weeds, selectively, without damaging the zoysia seedlings.

Timing is still important...............very important.  It is important to apply Drive in the period of 14 - 28 days after emergence, and in our situation we had major emergence about 8 - 9 days after sowing and we sprayed 25 days after sowing, about 16-17 days after emergence.

Results have been good, with strong control of leguminous and broadleaved weeds, and some weedy seedling grasses.  More work will be needed over the next four weeks to deal with some of the weeds remaining which includes some broadleaved weeds as well as sedges and grasses.

About 4 weeks after sowing we also applied additional fertiliser [ Yara Hydrocomplex ] at a rate equivalent to about 30kg/ha of N.  Included was another approx 10 kg/ha P and 35kg/ha of K and more trace elements and sulfur.

With other species, more fertiliser is used eg couch, but trials have shown there is little additional growth benefit by applying more at this stage to seed sown zoysia, either Zenith or Compadre.  We expect to apply more fertiliser in about another four weeks.

Seedlings are growing well, weeds are mostly dying and the oval is developing steadily.  Yes, there is some uneven seedling distribution, but we did have a very high intensity rainfall event soon after sowing which resulted in washouts, which would have been much worse without the hydroseeding and use of mulch.

Over the past four weeks an early morning irrigation was applied almost every day, along with two very short daytime irrigation periods to boost dampness near the soil surface.  Some might have thought this irrelevant, as there has been quite a reasonable amount of rain - almost daily [ a few days break here and there] but it is essential to keep the surface damp in this initial period, especially as we often had hot sunny days.  Irrigation is now being reduced to three or four times a week, even though we are still receiving an occasional amount of  effective rain. Irrigation will be likely further reduced in coming days, if rain continues.

The next major exercise will be to start light mowing to enhance lateral growth of zoysia and help control any remnant weeds, and to continue with several other herbicide options for ongoing weed management.

weeds dying amid zoysia seedlings after selective herbicide application

close up of zoysia seedlings

overview of oval development at 29 days from sowing- some unevenness, but most areas with high seedling density

close up of dying weeds among zoysia seedlings  - note leaf twisting and colouration

overview of weeds dying at one corner with plenty of zoysia seedlings developing

All photos taken 29 days from sowing.

Zoysia Seed to Develop a New Sports Oval - Part 1 - Hydroseeding

Hydroseeding works very well when you have tough conditions.

A monsoonal burst of more than a week,  over 100mm of rain in less than 2 hours  initially, continued ongoing heavy rain during the week [ more than 250mm], relatively short sunny breaks and lots of heavy cloud..........

Yes, a small amount of washout, but very small areas affected.

And at nine days from sowing when seedlings first appeared ..........was .looking very promising.

A true minimal cultivation operation based around a spray with glyphosate [ Roundup], a quick respray to kill off a few small missed spots after 4 days, hydroseeding with fibre mulch and zoysia seed after 7 days, when all plants were dead.

The recommended option of a short period of irrigation several times each day during sunlight hours was used [3 x 10 mins each time] to keep the surface damp - raining or not, with a slightly longer period early each morning to ensure adequate moisture at the surface - both VERY critical.  This irrigation started once sown, and monsoonal conditions did not start for several days after sowing.  Conditions at sowing were very hot - days around 34-35C, nights at 27-29C.

By day nine it was establishing very well. Yes, a few legume weeds were emerging which can be hand weeded, but will most likely be spot sprayed in a week or so.

There will be more of the story to come in the next two months as it develops.

So far it is a very promising early establishment.

hydroseeding with seed, fertiliser  and mulch 

Completed hydroseeding of oval - green from fibre mulch

seedlings at 11 days from sowing

yes - a few weeds too among seedlings  at 11 days

A bit of washout but still plenty of seedlings - at 11 days

general view at 11 days from seeding -- plenty of seedlings emerged - sun needed to boost growth

Zoysia Turf from Seed Is Worth the Wait

Sometimes a lawn takes time to develop to the stage where you think it is okay.

We often say that a zoysia lawn from seed will take 10- 12 weeks to develop a lawn appearance and be suitable for light use, or even up to 16 weeks, depending on the weather and time of year it is sown, and the degree of agronomic intervention.  We try to have an effective usable grass surface for light to modest use in about this 10 -12 week period, and it is important to actively manage the turf development to achieve this goal - good stand density, adequate fertiliser, weed control, light mowing to encourage spread etc.  

Compadre zoysia in a shaded area sown from seed at approx 20 weeks - north Australia

It is certainly hard to force a zoysia turf to grow a lot faster - more nitrogen fertiliser just does not work, although using slow release nitrogen is the better option.  Do not forget adequate potassium either.  After all, that aspect, of slower and maybe even less growth is one of the benefits of a zoysia turf area once established, and these turf areas can be used for many years.  My own zoysia lawn at home is now about 35 years young........and still doing quite okay, and it receives minimal fertiliser, and mowing.  

In the world of contracting, a period of 16 - 20 weeks is considered a common period for the development of a large turf area eg a playing field, from seed, suitable for sport use.  It is often also the same time as allowed for full development of a sportsfield from laying of the turf to full sod suitable for use - it can be quicker - and often is - but this tends to be the time allowed contractually. 

This is a useful concept to understand.........a turf area from seed will not happen instantaneously to be ready for use [not even if you use full sod at much increased cost - many times the cost of seed establishment!].  Also remember that most golf fairways are sown from seed, although the much smaller greens areas tend to be sod sown.

And there can be a few trials and false starts along the way.

Our common recommendation is to mow off the weeds, especially before they set seed.  The zoysia continues to grow laterally close to the ground, filling in the space, even when a bit shaded by the weeds, and will normally choke out most weeds over time.  In warm regions, summer growing grasses are vigorous and will grow above the zoysia, and sometimes using  a wick wiper treatment of glyphosate carefully can kill them off - but avoid getting herbicide on the zoysia - it is susceptible to glyphosate.

Where broad leaved weeds are the main problem, there are a few herbicide options for use after the zoysia seedlings are well established [ say 3-4 weeks after sowing], both post emergent and some pre-emergent.  Wick wiping can also be useful on taller broad leaved weeds, but a quick mow is often the better option especially if unsure about the correct or suitable herbicide.  

You might have a look at a suite of these you tube videos if not already seen.

All of these are worth watching – Compadre zoysia seed sown - Maryland, USA

www.youtube.com/watch?v=87gICFMkcDA  2012

www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Oj7rjEZ0tY  May 2013

www.youtube.com/watch?v=kxh8rcWp6to   Nov 2014

There is one other in the series which will show up  if you click on any of these.

I thought after the initial sowing it would be a total disaster............but it is successful, albeit not instantaneously.