Every Aussie enjoys a beautiful Lawn as an addition to their home. After all, the yard is a place where you and your family can enjoy some outdoors time together, and still be in the comfort of your home. But the most overlooked feature is the type of Grass that you have growing in your lawn.
Every type of grass has different features – some have a wider leaf blade, others are more drought tolerant. Choosing the right grass type for your lawn and your lifestyle is the way to choose the best one.
So, as a professional gardening service company, we’re here to help you choose the best grass type based on what you want from your lawn. Let’s take a look at Australia’s most popular grass types and how they compare to one another.
Table of Contents:
- Most Popular Grass Types in Australia
- Sir Walter Buffalo Grass
- Zoysia Grass
- Kikuyu Grass
- Couch Grass
- How to choose the best grass for your lawn
Most Popular Grass Types in Australia
Based on our experience, we’ve noticed that most Australians have one out of four grass types growing on their lawn. The four most popular being Zoysia grass, Kikuyu grass, Couch grass and Buffalo grass.
Sir Walter Buffalo Grass (Stenotaphrum secundatum)
Characteristics
- Durable
- Easy to upkeep
- Soft
- Wide leaf blade
- Doesn’t cause an irritation to the skin
- Cost is A$ 11 per square meter
Buffalo grass is known for the durability and ease of upkeep, however, homeowners have had problems with the wide leaf blade and its scratchiness in particular. Thankfully, the recent introduction of soft leaf Buffalo grass, you can have a durable and easy to maintain a lawn that can take a bit of neglect and still survive.
Some of our favourite buffalo grass varieties are Sir Walter, Palmetto, Sapphire and Matilda.
Sir Walter Buffalo grass is, in fact, Australia’s favourite grass.
Zoysia Grass (Zoysia)
Characteristics
- Durable
- Traffic resistant
- Dense
- Prefers sun but tolerates light shade
During summer, Zoysia has a light to medium green colour. Because of its nature to grow very thick, it tends to develop thatch. That’s why you will have to
For Australia, we’re recommending deep watering in order to form deep, drought-tolerant roots.
A good Zoysia type of grass, like Empire, will cost you around A$ 12.50 per square meter.
Kikuyu Grass (Pennisetum clandestinum)
Characteristics
- Grows well only in full sun
- It’s invasive and it hardly sticks to designated areas
- Cheap initially, expensive to maintain
- Needs to be mowed often
The Kikuyu grass is soft and light green. The most popular variety of Kikuyu grass is the Eureka type. In warm climates, the green colour is maintained year-round, while colder climates, the Eureka Kikuyu grass will keep its green colour until early winter. Cost before installation is starting from A$ 7 per square
Couch Grass (Cynodon dactylon)
Characteristics
- Susceptible to weeds and pests
- Suitable for large areas
- Can handle huge amounts of traffic
Couch grass is an aggressive grower, so it requires a lot of mowing and maintenance to look good. As this grass is highly susceptible to pest infestations you will have to examine it regularly and maintained it.
Couch grass has a fine and soft leaf, making it a
A Winter Green variety of Couch grass will cost you anything from A$ 6 per square meter to A$ 8.
How to choose the best grass for your lawn
Choosing the best grass type for your lawn isn’t an easy job. There are costs of initial installation, maintenance cost and different features of each grass type.
Maintenance
Possibly the most important aspect, the amount of maintenance will be the deciding factor when you’re choosing the grass type for your lawn.
Low maintenance
If you’re looking to do as little maintenance as possible to your lawn and have a good-looking lawn you should plant the Sir Walter Buffalo Grass.
Medium maintenance
Zoysia grass is a perfect variety that you can grow in your front and backyard without spending numerous hours maintaining it. Proper watering results in a lawn that is drought tolerant.
High maintenance
Choosing Kikuyu or Couch grass for your front lawn will require more maintenance than usual. Often, both kinds of grass are planted in large areas with a lot of travel. While they’re fairly easy to grow, both Kikuyu and Couch grass require frequent weeding, mowing and pest inspections. This is why if you have either of two, it may be a good idea to hire a professional gardener.
Budget
The amount of money that you’re willing to spend will direct the type of grass that you’re going to invest in. Given that all four types have similar prices, the cost of maintenance vastly differs.
Of course, the higher maintenance the grass type is, the more money you’ll have to spend to keep it in good shape and free of weeds.
Appearance
Going with darker or lighter shades of green is totally up to you, but it will also depend on the type of grass you’ll choose. For dark green lawns go with Couch grass or Buffalo grass.
For medium to light green lawns the Zoysia grass type is a perfect choice, leaving you with kikuyu grass if you’re looking for a light green coloured lawn.
Need help choosing the perfect type of grass?
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