My husband feels that he know has the writers knack, so he threw this together for me. Tony the Turfman performs lawn installations and cares for lawns after they are installed so he knows what he is talking about, but is his style as good as mine? Let’s see…
Green is good

How many times over the last 30 years have we heard the term “GO GREEN”? Now mostly it is in reference to us all being more environmentally friendly. Using our GREEN bags, converting to GREEN energy, and of course the “GREENIES”.

I think that the most important and obvious green is the one right under our feet, our lawns!

And it never hurts to have a financial benefit as well as health benefits. Qld has recently completed some surveys that prove people are willing to pay up to 15% extra for a home that has a green, tidy lawn out the front. In most cases that is $40,000 benefit. Nice for a bit of grass that you mow once in a while.

But how do we get and maintain that green lush grass in our homes?

All locals know that the sand we have here in Caba is not the most ideal for wonderful gardens and thriving, lush grass. We do however have a very high rainfall and access to quality local soil. Knowing this, I have some great tips as to how to improve on what we have.

Now some of us are lawn fanatics, those that are out everyday weeding their lawns, hand cutting the edges, always having the best looking lawns around. And good for them. People with the time and energy for such things should hold their head high. And for the rest of us with busy lives, family and work commitments, what are are options?

Like my car, once every year I do a big service on my yard, A grease and soil change if you will. This, combined with some seasonal feeds and a little love and care keeps my turf running smoothly, looking good, and functioning the way I want it to. Lets start with coming out of winter into spring.

About now the days get longer, and weather gets warmer and we tend to venture outside again. Ahh the joys if spring. We take that big breath of fresh air, filling us with excitement!and then we cast our gaze across our lawn. Winter has taken its toll, especially the late cold followed by extreme heat.

Rain appears unlikely at the moment ( although I have my fingers and toes crossed for it to come) but, when you see it coming, throw out some organic fertiliser (blood and bone, dynamic lifter or rooster booster) across the top of your lawn and let the rain wash it in,( this will wash the fertiliser in and get rid of the smell as well). But as there is no real rain at moment, put out the fertiliser onto your lawn in the morning and water well in. Why in the morning? well a couple of reasons – firstly the grass is at its most receptive to accept water and food at this time. Secondly the smell is terrible, and most people are off to work ( no cranky neighbours). And if you have kids, give them a hose in the afternoon to finish it off. This will cool the grass down, the kids down, probably the dog, and maybe even the washing.

Like all living things grass needs plenty of water. Don’t wait until your lawn is brown and crunchy, then it’s too late. Watering should be done as you see the grass start to shrivel. But water is too expensive! I hear you say. It doesn’t need to be expensive. Using the Australian sprinkler is a time honoured tradition but use it sparingly(10 mins an area).
A great everyday tip-
washing machine water is great for your lawn, as is other grey water in your home. Get a hose and run it out!

And then for the major service for the year.if you have very poor, impoverished soil, top dressing is great. Again spring is a good time, but whenever you have the time and energy is great too. Top dressing is getting some good nutrient rich soil, (grab a fistfull of it and squeeze, if it sticks together it is good, again it should smell BAD) and spread it evenly across your lawn so that the leaves are popping through. Just before rain is a great time to do this as well, but water if you need to. The nutrients are driven into the root base giving the grass a great big hearty feed. Top dressing also gives you the chance to fill in any of those little holes or divets in your lawn and level your yard up.

Green is good. Green is healthy. Green is financially worth while. Green is Grass and grass is good.

Your lawn has the potential to be so much more than that thing you mow , it can be your entertainment area, your relaxation spot, the backyard stadium where games of vital importance are played and a safe haven for your family. Make it green, make it lush, sit back and watch the grass grow – relax.

Well its been a real community time at Coastal Turf this month. We have gone to Pottsville Beach Public School to supply and help install over 700sqm of gorgeous green grass, Bogangar Public School to spread the green, and Casuarina Hockey Club to Green their hill with Wintergreen Couch. I love working with community organizations. People are always excited about getting new grass, but when its an community organization, you get lots of really excited people who are keen to work. I suppose its because they have been working hard and long to get to the point of grassing an area, which is usually the final step, and People can finally see all their hard work put to use.  I have done my fair share of BBQ’s for schools and sporting clubs, and I’m sure that I will be doing more over the years, so I understand that when you fund raise and fund raise, its great to finally see why you stood at that BBQ for hours.

 

At Pottsville School it was great to see Mums, Dads, Teachers, kids, and community volunteers come into the grounds and install some grass so that the kids have now a lovely soft green patch to enjoy their summer on.

 

At the Hockey Club, Tony said that the look on the Hockey Club members face was a smile as wide as their face. And his smile was just as large when he talked about it. It is definitely rewarding when you install any lawn and see the smiling faces, but in large numbers it can bring a tear to your eye.

Chat soon

Sare

PS hope your school holidays are going well. 🙂

Over the past couple of weeks I have been working with Craig B the president of the Pottsville Public School P&C to green up around their new amazing exciting Cola (for those without kids at school that Covered Over Learning Area – or shaded play area). And we have taken the dirt to Gorgeous Green. I must say that the kids , parents and teachers that I worked with on Thursday were a fantastic group of people. The kids never wore out and with Pride in their step, they installed their new grass. The parents, some who had never installed grass before took to it with great gusto, and the look on the helping teachers face was fantastic as they saw their dirt filled play ground transform into a green lawn of joy (one little boys comment. I loved it!).

Here are the before pictures….

And more importantly the during and after pictures….

From all of us here at Coastal Turf, we hope that every child at Pottsvillle school enjoys the grassed areas, that the teachers can relax a bit more knowing that the kids are playing on soft grass, and the Parents congratulate themselves for such a great job. I know that I am a little sore and tired today. But I bet those kids are going strong today still. Itching to go out on the grass and play. Sorry guys not until after the holidays…

Chat soon all

Sare

I know that I tend to prattle on about how great Qld Blue Couch is, but I really do love the grass. I love its dark colour, its easy going nature, and super soft feel under foot. I love that even after months of no winter rain, it still is looking dark green in peoples yards. And my love has been spreading. All the way from our little farm at Cabarita Beach, down to the ocean views in Vaucluse in Sydney.

I recently went down to see how my babies were doing. And see for yourself?

 

Its green fluffy and the owners as well as the landscaper is very happy with the grass. So am I. Look at that. Our grass from our little farm all the way down with Harbour Bridge views. I think our grass can almost say its been everywhere.

Coastal Turf can get your grass to your door stop, no matter how far away you are or how hard you think your location is. I will get the grass to you. Especially if its our baby Blue.

Chat soon

Sare

PS Next week we are off to Pottsville School to returf their oval. Watch out for us there and more exciting photos

 

Grass really is an amazing plant. It pumps more oxygen back into the atmosphere for us to breath than any other plant per square meter. Without grass we would all be gasping a bit, and feeling a bit miserable.

I think that is why so many sports are played on grassed areas. From young to old, from soccer to football, to baseball, to hockey, to Lawn bowls, to tennis, golf, cricket; we play sport outside on grass. And each one played on the right grass for the right conditions. I know that running around gives us all that endorphin rush, but I think aesthetically the green landscape also makes us feel, Happy, for want of a better word.

Our little farm is on the east coast of Australia on the border of NSW and QLD. A Perfect place in the world really I think. But recently I was given the opportunity to head over to WA to check out their similar conditions to ours and what they do about it. I learned so much.

I went to the WACCA! It was amazing and we got a little tour involving the grass. Wintergreen, Greenleaf Park, Couch. I leaned so much about where our grass goes and how and what it gets used for.
And how to use sandy soils to our advantage. And I can tell you, I certainly had a smile on my face looking at this grass.

Chat soon and give me a call and I will regal you with fun grass WACCA stories

Sare

 

 

A recent chat with a lady down the Shops, (I totally know. I am becoming one of those chatty women at the shops. Now that Caba has its own little shopping district, I can’t go to the shops in daggy clothes or take my kids in PJs anymore. Too many people recognize me and want to stop and chat) about how she would never consider getting REAL grass for her house because she has two largish dogs. A Labrador and a strange big fluffy dog. Both lovely active dogs. I questioned her on her reasons and she simple said that they will kill anything.

I then said that really, you need the right grass for the right area. At Coastal Turf we have 7 different varieties of REAL grass and all have their different uses and needs. Couches need lots of sunlight, but Wintergreen is so strong that even Footballers and their stud boots cannot kill it. Buffalo’s like shade, but because they grow in several layers, can take a bit of a beating. Carpet grass is robust and doesn’t mind the sun but prefers the shade. And I have always found that if the nutrient levels are there and the water is there, the grass will grow.

 

So dogs and Grass do mix, and really do save you a lot of cleaning. But  like all plants, Grass needs food, soil, and sunlight to grow. And by looking after your 4 legged family members you are also looking after yourself and the environment as well. A real win win win situation.

 

Chat soon

Sare

 

The kids and I went to a local Tweed Shire park this week and had a great time before soccer training. Afternoon tea seems so much nicer outside on the grassy hills at the park than at home inside. And fortunately for us, on Tuesday the wind had not started up yet. It was wonderful to have the kids outside running around and great to see a park that was mostly grass land for kids to run on. So many of us are getting smaller yards and that means less grassed areas at home for our kids to play on, but as a bonus less for us to mow too.

 

We weren’t the only ones at the park after school either, there were heaps of kids walking home from school who stopped and had a wonderful play either on the equipment, but mostly on the grassed area, having a quick game of “footy” on the way home, a tag game running the grassed hills, learning a few cartwheels from friends on the soft grass, and so many other games.

 

At first I must admit I was a little surprised at how much all these kids stopped and played at the park before going home, but then I remembered when we were kids playing with our neighbours outside for hours too. I am sure there are kids playing games inside too, but there are so many who given the opportunity want to be outside running, jumping, cartwheeling, and PLAYING on the grass outside.

 

So lets keep giving them this opportunity. Lets keep our parks GREEN with grass, and parts of our yards soft green and fluffy for our kids to play on. And even hey, why not I might even go outside myself and try my luck at a cartwheel. But I think I will definitely give it a go on the Qld Blue Couch paddock, as it is soo super soft and fluffy at the moment. It loves its full sun that we have been having for a while now, and has its great dark green winter colour. I can’t emphasis enough the soft fluffiness of the Qld Blue Couch. Just the thing for a mother to embarrass herself in front of her kids trying to show them how cool I am, I mean SHE is,  by doing a quick few cartwheels this afternoon. But if like the certain she (or really me, Everyone knows it is me going out there to embarrass myself but have a good time doing it) and you don’t have a Farm with a lovely soft fluffy Qld Blue Couch, give us a call and we can get some Soft Fluffy Green Qld Blue Couch to your place. Don’t feel you have to cartwheel on it. But at least the opportunity is there….

Chat soon

Sare

Hasn’t the sun coming out again been a lovely welcome reminder of where we live? Seeing and feeling the warm sun again is marvelous. We even had a stop off on the weekend to the beach. It was still way to chilly for me to swim, but just being outside was wonderful.

Its almost as if the world has brought spring in a bit quicker this year. Its warming up, and as I was taking a stroll on Saturday afternoon around the back of the farm, I found our escaped chicken with 14 babies. At the Jet Sprint track behind the farm, there are 2 Rebel Roosters who walk around the track. And I think my wondering chicken may have visited these rebel Roosters and come back with 14 babies. No wonder there has been no eggs.  So babies are coming early as well, as if its an early spring. And with Spring thinking that it is already upon us, all those people who have been putting off installing your new lawn NOW IS THE TIME! Spring is perfect for new installations as its not to hot for you, and not finger numbingly cold either. Perfect for the installer. For the grass, its a great time too, because you wont need to water your newly installed lawn as heavily now as you will need to in the hotter months. And by the time that Summer comes, and Spring comes in with the calender, your new lawn will be established. Especially if you install a Qld Blue Couch lawn, the most drought tolerant lawn. Or a Palmetto Buffalo lawn that requires half the watering and mowing of any other Buffalo grass. Put some effort in now and relax in the warmer months.

Chat soon,

Hopefully not with the noise of 15 chickens in the background

Sare

I had the very fortunate event yesterday of my mother in law and father in law coming down for Grandparents day at my kids school and then asking if my husband and I would like to meet up at the local pub for lunch. I love pub lunches, they are always delicious. The catch up was wonderful as we hardly ever get to see them. And while I was at the Cabarita Beach pub – the Beach Bar, I thought I would just take a quick pic of our Empire Zoysia there.

 

As you can see the area is quite shaded and as you can imagine being a grassed area next to a pub its very well used. And its very green. My kids think that I am crazy taking pictures of grass, but there was also A LOT of pictures of them yesterday as well. Happy grandparents day!

 

Chat Soon

Sare

Today I have been spending a bit of time with my Empire Zoysia. Doing some bonding if you will. Well really I have been neglecting the Zoysia at my house. I haven’t mowed it all winter, and I don’t think I will even try until Spring. Its lovely dark rich colour and soft soft leaves make the best sitting ground around my Strawberry patch at home. My strawberry patch is growing some mulch (really grass clippings and other things the kids and I found) and it is in a bit of a shadey area so in winter it gets little to no sun and in summer its still shaded by the shed. And both my strawberries and my Zoysia love it. I must admit to having a little secret weapon for growing them both though….

It is letting my washing machine water flow over the area. Not that this winter, or summer we have needed that extra water. and I don’t know if it does anything, but the grass loves it, and I love that I have a soft area in the shade to sit, and kneel while I attend my strawberries (or really what I mean is kneel and eat as many as I can before the kids see I am there and want to share my strawberries. And then having a soft place to play wrestle with them while we “fight” over who gets that big gorgeous delicious strawberry). Actually I think that the Zoysia patch is calling me now, and of course those strawberries…

Chat Soon

Sare