Important information for home owners in Sir Walter Winter Care Instructions for Cold Climates Melbourne | Canberra | Tablelands Area

Sir Walter’s popularity and resistance to extreme weather conditions has seen it become a popular choice in extreme cold climates as well.

Following the recent drought and on-going water shortage, people in cool climates have realised that it is environmentally irresponsible to use cool season green in winter grass types such as Tall Fescue, Kentucky Blue and Tye Grass, as they are non drought tolerant lawns.

The recent drought has seen many traditional cool season lawns simply disappear, research has shown that cool season lawns are no longer a sustainable choice for Australian climates and that "Brown is Green" meaning that a lawn suc as Sir Walter that loses some colour in the middle of winter is far more environmentally responsible that using a cool season green in Winter grass for the following reasons:

Sir Walter can have poor colour over winter months in severe climates (Canberra, Southern Highlands, Victoria, and Southern Tablelands) due to frost, snow and winter severity.

Sir Walter will however use about 60% less water than cool season grasses.

Sir Walter will survive temperatures down to -15c.

Sir Walter uses a fraction of the fertilizer that cool season lawns require.

Sir Walter is very resistant to grub attack unlike Fescue / Rye / Blue grass lawn that do require constant use of nasty grub insecticides.

Recent times have proven that if we go through severe droughts, owners of cool season lawns are often up for thousands of dollars to replace their dead non drought tolerant lawns, despite wasting a stack of water on them during dry periods. Most Sir Walter owners never need to water their lawns after establishment and at the return of rain their Sir Walter lawn soon greens up and looks good again. Its a Lawn for Life.

To ensure optimal lawn performance in these regions, we recommend the following actions take place, particularly if you are installing a lawn between April and September. Most of this recommendation will lead to a much better lawn in any Australian climate, however in cold climate disappointing results can occur if they are not followed.

1) A good base prior to laying turf is most critical in a cool climate, a minimum of 100mm of a good quality turfing soil is required, and for optimum results 150mm is recommended.

2) Spread Sir Turf Launcher over the site at a rate of 30 grams per m², this is a combination of both a high quality starter fertilizer and “Moisture Magnets” Premium Water Storage Crystals to give your new lawn the best possible kick start, this is available from your local supplier or online at www.sirwalter.com.au

3) Apply sand at half a cubic metre per hundred square metres (5mm) to very lightly top-dress the newly laid area always ensuring that there is some leaf showing, however making sure no turf area is completely covered. This will help keep heat within the soil and give some protection from frost.

4) Wash sand through thoroughly after laying, and keep sand moist for the first four weeks.

MAINTENANCE

1) Water in thoroughly after laying, monitor moisture to ensure that the turf does not get too wet or dry out at any stage, this is best done by visually inspecting the underside of the turf to ensure it remains moist, maintain this up until the lawn has achieved full colour and has had its first mowing

2) Mow only on highest level (if needed) prior to spring. Only take a maximum of one third off the leaf each time you mow, mowing during its first winter will usually only be required to tidy up any germinated weeds that may have blown in.

3) Remove any leaves from the lawn as they fall, this should be done twice a week.

4) Do not lay Sir Walter in wet, extreme shade or traffic areas during winter, minimise traffic and keeps large dogs off new lawn areas during its first winter.

5) Apply Sir Walter Lawn food every 3 months; in extreme cold climates fertilizing at Easter just prior to winter is very important.

Remember Sir Walter in a cold climate will:

a) Use 66% less water than Tall Fescue.

b) Will only require a fraction (if any) of the pesticides and herbicides that a cool season lawn such as Fescue, Bluegrass or Ryegrass require.

c) Be unlikely to be wiped out by grub attack (unlike cool season turf)

d) Provide a lawn for life, not short term like most cool season lawns

A little bit of extra work at the beginning will pay big rewards for the life of the lawn.