Buffalo vs. Kikuyu Grass – Which Is the Ultimate Winner?

Image Source: https://aviewturf.com.au/kikuyu-grass/

In any typical Australian lawn, you will find the most common turfs available in Australia, like Kikuyu and Buffalo. These are the two most prominent varieties in every property with a garden or a lawn. Both these types are popular for their distinctive features and characteristics. This factor hardens the selection process, but we have developed the blog post to guide you in choosing the right one based on your requirements.

COLOUR AND APPEARANCE – KIKUYU GRASS AND BUFFALO GRASS

In terms of overall appearance, these two grasses are completely different. One grass type has a light hue, while the next one boasts dark green colour, and this makes them two different sides of a spectrum. Eureka Kikuyu grass, in particular, offers the perfect sun-kissed look with its light shade. Sir Walter DNA-certified buffalo grass is another option known for its excellent colour retention properties.

DURABILITY FACTOR – BUFFALO Vs KIKUYU

Eureka Kikuyu grass is known to resist high traffic very easily due to its medium coarse leaf. Also, it is highly resistant to all kinds of wear and tear experienced after children and pets have spent hours playing on it. Kikuyu grass is known as a stable turf due to its reliability and strength.

Sir Walter buffalo grass and palmetto grass are equally tough competitors in terms of self-repairing. Just like the Kikuyu turf, buffalo turf will also bounce back easily upon getting damaged.

HEAT AND DROUGHT TOLERANCE – BUFFALO Vs. KIKUYU

Australian weather is the biggest challenge for any grass, and the hot weather can dry any turf in a few days. This is where Kikuyu and palmetto grass can be beneficial, as they are incredible performers in drought-like conditions. Eureka Kikuyu can retain its colour all year round due to its deep root system that delivers water from deep inside the soil. Sir Walter and palmetto are also known for great wear tolerance properties, and they can manage to survive even during the hottest and driest summer season.

PERFORMANCE – BUFFALO Vs KIKUYU

If you are searching for the best-performing lawn, buffalo and Kikuyu grass are the answers. However, Kikuyu grass will require more maintenance and hence, it is ideal if you have adequate time for maintenance. The good news is that Kikuyu is known for its weed and pest resistance, and these factors will not influence the quality at all.

Advantages and Disadvantages of Using Kikuyu Grass

Picking suitable grass is a challenge for property owners, mainly when there is a never-ending range available in the markets. Upon seeking suggestions from turf suppliers, you will get Kikuyu grass as the top answer. It is a popular option in Australian gardens, as it has a very aggressive growth and has the quality to adapt to a range of conditions. In this blog post, we will learn some key characteristics of Kikuyu grass, but let us first understand what this grass is.

Source: https://aviewturf.com.au/kikuyu-grass/

WHAT IS KIKUYU GRASS?

Kikuyu grass is an exciting turf option available to the people of Australia. It is known as one of the hardest and most cost-effective options available in turf supplies Sydney. This grass is a part of the poaceae family and was imported from Belgian Congo. In the beginning, it was not a very much trusted option in terms of lawn grass but yes, it was acknowledged for its medicinal benefits. The juice of kikuyu grass has blood clotting qualities that can reduce excessive bleeding really fast.

KEY CHARACTERISTICS OF KIKUYU GRASS

There is a long list of advantages of using Kikuyu grass. One thing you have to keep in mind is that it grows really vigorously and thrives really fast.

Here is a small list of the advantages and disadvantages of using Kikuyu grass.

ADVANTAGES:

Kikuyu grass has strong, deep roots, which makes it incredibly resilient.

This variety of grass repairs incredibly quickly.

It is ideal for areas with lots of foot traffic.

It is great for gardens with children or pets.

This grass is incredibly drought tolerant, needing little supplementary water. 

The deep roots also make it great for erosion control.

Kikuyu grass produces an ocean of bright green – becoming the envy of your neighbours.

DISADVANTAGES:

It tends to turn yellowish during the winter, which some growers don’t like.

It’s an incredibly aggressive grower.

It can become invasive and affect other plants.

Kikuyu is not shade tolerant and will die off quickly when not receiving sufficient daily sunlight.

Maintenance and Look after Related Guidelines for Kikuyu Grass

 With the advancement of the summer season, property owners start thinking about lawn care and preparing a lawn. Most of them rely upon Kikuyu grass, as it is an ideal grass for Australian conditions. If you already have this grass installed on your lawn, you will have to maintain it as per the guidelines of the turf supplier. Yes, there are several guidelines that these professionals offer to ensure that you maintain this turf well and prolong its life significantly. Some summer lawn care tips are discussed here in this post.

KIKUYU GRASS CARE IN SUMMER – LAWN CARE TIPS

MOWING REGULARLY

One top tip related to Kikuyu turf maintenance in summer is related to mowing regularly. Experts recommend mowing this grass almost every week to prevent it from spreading in areas where it should not be. Regarding mowing, turf suppliers always recommend mowing with the catcher and never leaving mulch in the lawn.

FERTILIZER APPLICATION GUIDELINES

Regarding fertilizer application, turf suppliers and vendors recommend fertilizing lightly while using slow-release lawn fertilizer. This fertilizer application is recommended lately because you are not going to mow the grass every second day. Watering should be done heavily and infrequently if there is no rain. To maintain the lawn further, you should grab a bag of river sand to fill in the divots and bare patches.

CLASSIFICATION 

Just like several other recreational turfs and grasses, Kikuyu grass is also classified as warm-season grass, and an important thing to know is that warm-season grasses are totally different from cool-season grasses in the way they grow. Cool-season grasses grow from seed with a single stem, but warm-season grasses grow by runners. Examples of cool season grasses are dry grass and fescue variety. On the other hand, warm-season grasses grow with above-ground runners known as stolons, and then there are rhizomes as well to help them succeed at a breakneck speed. Couch grass and Kikuyu grass are the two best examples of warm-season grasses available in Australia.

Small Information-rich Guide for Kikuyu Grass

Having a lush green lawn in front of your property is possible only when you maintain the turf as per the recommendations of the turf installation team. Another method is using Kikuyu grass, that is a lovely and budget-friendly grass, to enhance the look of your lawn. People who have never used this turf are confused about using it. 

This post will act as a guide for them to help them know this grass and stay confident while using it.

WHAT EXACTLY IS KIKUYU GRASS ?

Kikuyu grass originated from east Africa, but it is currently widely spread in Australia, New Zealand and southern California, USA. This is a hot-weather grass that has the capability to resist frequent drought periods impressively. This particular feature makes it a popular choice among homeowners in Australia. Some incredible features of this grass are – 

• It has extraordinary regenerative powers not seen in any other turf. 

• If damaged, it can recover on its own and also from severe frost conditions.

• It will stand tall in any weather conditions. 

• Even the hottest summer days will fail to demotivate this grass due to its strong and deep root system. 

• The deep root system is also responsible for controlling erosion on steep banks. 

• This grass has broad shaggy leaves that can reach up to 40 mm in length and 5 mm. 

• It is known for upholding its lust green colour 365 days a year.

• Last but not least, this grass is budget-friendly, easy to maintain and safe for kids and pets.

GENERAL KIKUYU GRASS MAINTENANCE TIPS

As far as maintenance is concerned, there is no rocket science involved and whatever steps are there, you can be assured about DIY maintenance. For example -you will just have to water Kikuyu grass correctly, and in terms of watering, experts recommend staying very careful during the first two weeks of installation. Coming to the mowing process, you will find Kikuyu turf dealers recommending cutting them short from 2-5 cm in length. 

Fertilizer application is also essential to keep this grass healthy for a long time. Fertilizers used for this grass should be slow-release products with high levels of nitrogen and phosphorus. The application method includes applying fertilizer in the early spring and then in the initial weeks of the autumn season.

Interesting Facts That You Should Know About Kikuyu Grass

A number of factors have contributed in making Kikuyu grass immensely popular in Australia, but there are some who oppose and say that there are other better turfs too. There is no doubt about the same and in fact, there is an entire range of turfs, but all of them are better in different ways. 

The people of Australia love this turf because of features like rapid lush green growth, drought hardiness, resistance to wear and ability to survive gardener neglect.

If you are planning to get this turf installed, continue reading this post, as we have determined some top facts, features and characteristics of this Kikuyu turf that make it so popular in Australia.

KIKUYU GRASS CHARACTERISTICS-

• This grass was first brought to Australia around one century back in 1920s and at that time, it was categorised as a "pasture grass" for cattle.

• It was the native of Kenya and later in the 1960s, it saw transformations and later, it became the top grass in the Australian Continent.

• The modern-day variant of this grass is not as aggressive as the former Kikuyu grass of the early days and at present, it’s very sterile.

• This turf experiences really good quality and lush green turf throughout the winter and summer season. 

• This grass is better than others because it puts down deep roots.

• It can thrive really-really well in the hot weather conditions and because of disease-resistant properties; it stays immune through the summer season.

• Kikuyu grass has broad coarse leaves (25 to 40 mm long and 4 to 5 mm wide) and hard runners.

• Because of having really aggressive growth rate and self-repair properties, this makes it a very economically available Kikuyu turf.

• Kikuyu is renowned for its vigorous growth in most conditions and although it is not a shade loving grass it will tolerate some shade.

• Growing the turf requires preparation, but not too much and mainly includes spraying, rotary hoeing, and levelling. 

People may know also : Two Top Types of Turfs in Australia and Their Best Features

Questions To Ask To the Turf Installation Experts

Getting a turf installed is a serious thing and something that you should never take for granted. This means that right from choosing the turf to getting it installed, you have to be attentive all the time and this goes for every kind of turf like Kikuyu grass, buffalo, wintergreen and so on. 

A main part of the process is choosing the right kind of turf installation experts and for this; you can ask the following questions to the shortlisted installation agencies.

Question 1: 
How Long Have You Been In Business?

The first question should be regarding their experience and how many years they have spent in the business. The reason is that installing these turfs like Kikuyu grass and others require expertise and this only comes with the installation expert spending more and more time in the industry. 

For this reason, it is advised that only the most experienced installation agency that has spent lots and lots of years in the field and installed all kinds of turfs and grasses.

Question 2: 
Where Is The Turf Grown?

To get the best out of the installation, experts and also the turf buyers, you need to ask where they grow their turf. Different places where turf is grown has a different impact on the quality as well as the life of the turf and in this connection, experts recommend using locally grown Kikuyu grass. The reason is that locally grown grass will have better power to resist oddness offered by local weather conditions and thrive successfully. A legitimate supplier will be happy to show you exactly, where their turf is grown if you care to look, so be sure to ask the question.

Read also : Kikuyu Grass Important Maintenance Tips

Question 3: 
How Is Your Turf Transported And Stored?

Once the turf is selected, its important to question about its transportation and also about the upkeep and maintenance of the grown turf and mainly about keeping it fresh for as long as possible. Rolling them in cylindrical form is a completely wrong way of its storage and if the installation team is doing so, you should correct them. Ideally, the turf should be cut fresh and immediately transported in refrigerated semi-trailers to the turf fridge or to the buyer straightaway.

Kikuyu Grass Important Maintenance Tips

Ask any vendor about your choice of low-maintenance and lush green turf, you will find them giving the answer in the form of Kikuyu grass. But often people get it wrong that it is entirely maintenance-free and couldn’t take care of the turf and all the money goes waste. The fact regarding the same is that just like other turfs, this one also requires maintenance and whatever steps are to be taken in this regards have been discussed here in this post. 

All these steps when taken in the recommended manner would make this turf lush green in your lawn and continue to look like same for a long time.

Getting to Know Kikuyu Grass-

Some top characteristics of Kikuyu turf or Kikuyu grass-

• It has a thick and strong root system 

• It has a network of thick, brown roots and they add volume to the turf

• Kikuyu grass is really impressive in terms of draught tolerance

• Definitely, it is very low maintenance turf and upon completely grown, will require watering just once per week

• The growth rate as well as expansion of the turf is really fast

• In the absence of timely mowing, this grass will quickly covert the entire area of the lawn

Maintenance Tips for Kikuyu Grass-

Watering-

• As said above, this turf can be watered once every seven to ten days during the summer season.
• In the rainy season, this duration could be increased further

Fixing Kikuyu Lawn-

• Upon seeing brown and dry patches, the first step is discovering the reasons behind them and in most cases, soil compaction is the reason.

• If bare patches are present, you will have to focus on improving the quality of the soil.

• This can be done very easily by aerating and fertiliser application on the area.

• The steps mentioned in the line above should never be carried out during the rainy season.

• Remember that for this turf to thrive quickly and well, you’ll have to arrange proper sunlight for the same.