Zoysia matrella - Manilla Grass - History in North Australia

The first known widespread use of Zoysia matrella in northern Australia seems to be in Darwin at the Roman Catholic Cathedral in about 1963.  The church still has extensive areas of Z.matrella around the buildings with the Smith St frontage in very good condition, and at the adjacent residential buildings, although some areas are somewhat degraded from poor maintenance, low nutrition and ingress of weeds. The weedy grass Chrysopogon acidulatus has been a significant invader in some areas, as have a few other taller perennial grasses.

It seems that the material was sourced from the Philippines by a CSIRO rice agronomist/ breeder [ECB “Butch” Langfield] who spent considerable time at IRRI at Los Banos in the early 1960s as part of rice variety assessment, but along the way became intrigued by the turf common at IRRI as well as in parts of Manilla where it was used as turf.  The exact source is unknown.

However, it did come to Darwin through quarantine and was provided to the Bishop of Darwin during the building of the Cathedral in 1962-63, where it was planted.  The house site occupied by Butch Langfield at Humpty Doo CSIRO village also had a full Zoysia matrella turf area on the large house block by 1967.

The author developed an early interest in Z. matrella turf after seeing these areas and then found Z. matrella was present over a small area at the first house owned in Darwin [1968] and subsequently developed to plant the entire allotment.  The origin of the small patch is not definitively known but had been planted by the original house occupant, presumably from the Catholic Cathedral – it seemed to be the only place where it was grown.  Material was provided to others between 1968 – 1975 to start zoysia lawns, and by 1976 also used to plant another entire suburban allotment where a new house was built after Cyclone Tracy [and zoysia is still present as the turf on the lot].  

As far as is known, no commercial sod producer of zoysia was active in Darwin or anywhere else in the NT or Australia prior to this time, so use and movement was based around a few local enthusiasts who saw Z. matrella as a superior turf to the local strain of a very itchy Paspalum notatum also non commercially distributed as required between households.

An upsurge of interest in turf and garden activity occurred following Cyclone Tracy, and planting material was readily supplied to neighbours and colleagues.  The same materials were also supplied to the Department of Primary Industry at Berrimah Farm for turfing a large area around a new building there at around this time [1975 – 78], and propagation and herbicide evaluation trials carried out.   

Availability and use of slow release fertiliser from the late 1990s has also been an important cultural improvement for this relatively slower growing turf species, allowing steady but low levels of particularly nitrogen and potassium with reduced “surge” growth. 

Reduced problems with lawn grubs has also been noted with Z. matrella in the NT in comparison to most other local turf species with both leaf silica levels and use of slow release nitrogen possible beneficial factors.  It is also non-itchy to bare skin eg if laying or sitting on the turf.

Movement of the Z. matrella material seemed to transfer into the commercial arena in the late 1970s and the 1980s, capitalising on the early local success with Z. matrella with interest from a number of local nurseries who began using it for domestic landscaping projects and selling the product to householders, albeit in a modest way as plugs, not as full sod rolls.

The local type around Darwin which superficially appears morphologically close to Emerald, is now quite widespread, but several turf sod growers now also commercially supply other named lines including X japonica types mostly since the mid-1990s to meet local demand.

It is commonly known locally just as zoysia, not the more widespread common name Manilla grass.

Zoysia matrella lawns Legislative Assembly Darwin overlooking the harbour

The local zoysia was the turf of choice for the immediate areas around the new Legislative Assembly Building when constructed from 1990 [completed 1994] and the iconic site for this zoysia type is now on the Speakers Green outside the Great Hall of the Legislative Assembly overlooking Darwin Harbour. 

Zoysia CAN Grow Tall

In the tropics when the weather turns from dry to wet.........it can get very wet, and stay that way for many weeks

Even zoysia can grow to a tall sward, under those conditions.

Look at the Zoysia matrella shown here being cut with a residential model rotary mower.

About 8 weeks plus since it was cut and the weather was very monsoonal, and with the near constant rain it was just not possible to get the area cut..........but it had to be done.

As soon as a weather break occurred it had to be mown.

So with the mower on a moderate height the lawn was cut.  Once to get the top growth down and then a following cut in a day or so to lower the cut again.

Not ideal and there will need to be some further mowing soon.  BUT even  if zoysia is neglected and grows tall [ was about 150mm high] it can be resurrected successfully.

For most situations, especially in a normal residential area, mowing at 15 -30mm is normal, using a rotary mower.  Better lawns can be cut lower, but a cylinder mower is preferred once cutting below about 15 - 20mm. 

Tall zoysia - needing to be cut

Zoysia matrella - Maybe Still the Best Turf for the Tropics

Zoysia matrella has been around quite a long time as a premier turf in the tropics. Available only in vegetative material, and often more expensive due to slower growth on turf farms. This alone sometimes puts potential users off, and they switch to another turf type.

Using a zoysia matrella turf will save you money. Slightly more expensive to install initially, whether as turf sod, plugs or as sprigs, the savings accrue once it is installed. Less mowing, fewer disease issues, lower fertiliser needs, lower irrigation demands [ not the lowest, but near the lowest] are some of the tangible factors that swing the balance towards this type of turf, and in fact, most of the zoysia varieties. Some of the less tangible factors are noted below as well.

The preferred mowing option is to use a cylinder mower - it gives the best result. An ordinary rotary mower is satisfactory, particularly if not cut at a low height, and many homeowners use that type, as well as many commercial operators. Most commercial hire companies have verticutters or dethatchers for hire.

Relatively few varieties are available and one that is still among the better types is the interspeciifc hybrid commonly known as Emerald. It is a fine leaved, dense turf, and resistant to weed invasion once a dense cover is established.

The form available in Darwin is close to Emerald, but never verified as to what if any variety, although it has been around the region for at least close to 50 years. It is highly shade tolerant, especially if you leave the turf a little higher, is not itchy when sitting on the turf or children rolling or playing on the area without a shirt on, or playing rugby. Very wear resistant too. And with modern slow release fertilisers, thatch is considerably reduced.

Thatch control is an ongoing management requirement. But on a very high profile public area in Darwin where we are advisors, the area which is well fertilised, is only dethatched at most once a year, and was not done at all for the first 6-7 years. Regular dethatching does help improve performance in all zoysias, and removes the puffiness.

The following photos are actually at our home, with the turf a bit longer than normal, but hey...........it has not been mown for about six months! Yes......definitely overdue, especially for someone working in the turf industry.


It is a great turf option.