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The Queensland Gardening Pages

Information & resources about plants & gardens for Brisbane & Qld

Turf Suppliers

This page is intended to provide an easy way for Queensland home owners to find a turf farm or other supplier of turf near them. (If you're such a supplier, please get in touch about Advertising.)

For lawn installation or maintenance service (including lawn mowing), please go to the Lawn and Turf Services page.
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Suppliers of Turf and associated products in Qld

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GARDEN EXPRESS

Garden Express

To check the range of turf grasses and lawncare prducts currently available from Garden Express, vist their WEBSITE


More advertisers needed! If you operate a turf farm that supplies turf to the public, or other retail outlet for turf in Queensland (e.g. landscape supply yard), advertise now.

More Information


Turf is a big investment both finacially and in terms of time and effort, so a little research before you buy will be well worth the trouble. Species readily available in Qld for backyard lawns include:

Digitaria didactyla (Queensland Blue Couch)

Cynodon dactylon (Green Couch)

Stenotaphrum secundatum (Buffalo or St. Augustine)

Dactyloctenium australe (Sweet Smother or Durban Grass)

Besides the basic species, there are many named selections and hybrids of turf grasses on the market. Some are protected by Plants Breeders Rights (PBR). Some may be more suitable for professionally maintained sports fields than domestic lawns. Others may be relatively new on the market, so yet to prove themselves under local conditions.

Some considerations in making your selection may be drought hardiness, heat and cold tolerance, shade tolerance, salt tolerance, invasiness (of garden beds etc), fineness and softness of leaf, resistance to foot traffic, growth rate. Depending on the particular situation, some of these criteria may be more important than others.

When consulting with your turf supplier, explain your needs to help them make an appropriate recommendation for your yard.

News

New solution to the shaded turf problem
A giant moveable tray allows the playing surface at University of Phoenix Stadium (host to the 2008 Super Bowl) to be grown outside and wheeled in for games. Turf cultivation inside stadiums presents special challenges, as this post at The Human Flower Project blog explains: 106 Million Players: Super Turf '08.

Aussie natives may deliver more sustainable turf
Australian native grass species will be considered in a breeding program to select turf grasses that look good with less water and fertiliser. Read more at the University of Queensland website: Turf grass, just add (less) water

More Links

The following links are for general information and research - some information may be inappropriate for local conditions.
Links about general lawn care issues here: Lawnmowing and Lawn Services

WaterWise lawns Contains some suggestions for drought tolerant grasses (recently released varieties might not be included). Environmental Protection Agency, Qld
Maintaining your lawn some basic tips for a water efficient lawn in SE Qld. Department of Natural Resources and Water
Suitable Lawn Grasses for the NT Northern Territory Department of Primary Industry, Fisheries and Mines (PDF) Lawns - Establishment and Maintenance Northern Territory Department of Primary Industry, Fisheries and Mines (PDF)
Water Use & Drought Tolerance in Turf Grasses Update The University of Western Australia
Solar House Project - Bribie Island, Qld, Australia Shows how a turf-coverd driveway that allows traffic without damage to grass was created
ACT Grass Project Research into grass seed germination and establishment, particularly for revegetation purposes
A Word about Lawns Society for Growing Australian Plants Queensland Region, Inc.
Lawns of Australian Grasses The Society for Growing Australian Plants
More on the Lawn Debate Association of Societies for Growing Australian Plants
Sustainable Turf Care Appropriate Technology Transfer for Rural Areas, USA

Queensland Blue Couch
Digitaria didactyla Tropical Forages
Blue couch Better Pastures for the Tropics and Subtropics, Tropical Grassland Society of Australia Inc.
Digitaria didactyla Royal Botanic Gardens & Domain Trust, Sydney
Digitaria didactyla World Grass Species, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew
Digitaria didactyla Willd. Grassland Species, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations

Green Couch
You'll find plenty of other information about this group of grasses on the internet - search using the American common name "Bermudagrass".
Bermudagrass University of Hawaii at Manoa (PDF)
Bermudagrass for Florida Lawns University of Florida
Bermudagrass (Cynodon dactylon) University of Georgia
Bermudagrass Texas A&M University
Discovering John Bidwell: Two Chico State Historians on the Trail of a Pioneer Some interesting information about the history of Bermuda grass in California. California State University, Chico

Buffalo
Stenotaphrum secundatum University of Florida, Center for Aquatic and Invasive Plants
Stenotaphrum secundatum Aquatic, Wetland and Invasive Plants, Florida

Sweet Smother Grass
Dactyloctenium australe World Grass Species, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew
Dactyloctenium australe Tropical Forages (no information on that page but link has been added in case it's updated soon)

Zoysia
The mossy-looking ground cover sometimes seen for sale in garden centres is Zoysia matrella var. pacifica but you will probably see it sold as Zoysia tenuifolia. Zoysias grown for lawns on a larger scale include selected cutivars and hybrids of various Zoysia species. Bear in mind that the exact properties of cultivars referred to in the following links may vary from Zoysia turf varieties currently available in Australia. Performance will, of course, also be affected by local environment.
Zoysia tenuifolia auct. and Zoysia matrella (L.) Merr. var. pacifica Goudswaard information on the taxonomy of this variety from United States Department of Agriculture
Zoysia tenuifolia 'Korean Grass' Living Walls Plant Database, Centre for Subtropical Design, Queensland University of Technology (PDF)
The new kid on the block - the new Zoysias University of Florida (PDF)
Zoysiagrass Texas A&M University
Meyer Z-52 Zoysiagrass - Plant of the Week (Zoysia japonica 'Meyer Z-52') University of Arkansas
Emerald Zoysiagrass in: 1997 Horticultural Promotions for South Central Texas, Texas A&M University
Zoysia matrella (L.) Merrill Grassland Species, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations

Artificial Grass
Developments in artifical grass are making it an increasingly attractive alternative for many, given water shortages in addition to the general work associated with growing and maintaining an attractive lawn. It also makes a grass-like surface possible on concrete, rooftops, indoors etc, where a grass lawn whoul be impractical or impossible.
Artificial Turf Some information about the early development of artificial turf
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