Our new Turf Production Manager Ryan takes some time to answer some important lawn related questions. Get to know a bit more about Ryan, his role and the all important songs the outside team play when harvesting your new lawn!
Hey Ryan!
You’re about 6 months into your new role as Turf Production Manager, what is your favourite part of the job so far?
I love finally being on the other end of the process of all things turf! I spent years preparing and laying it as a landscaper in Adelaide, so it is great to be so involved in growing and preparing it for all our customers all around South Australia. My favorite part of the day would have to be the time I’ve been spending learning the Robomax (automatic harvester). It takes a large amount of concentration and brainpower to work.
And what’s your least favourite part?
My least favorite part would have to be after a big day of harvesting the lawn how full my pockets get with dirt. When we are cutting you don’t realise but sometimes, I can come away with 3-4 cup fulls of dirt from my pockets which makes an absolute nightmare for my washing machine at night.
What’s something about turf production that would surprise most people?
I think the one thing that would surprise people about turf production would be the amount of effort you need to put in to make sure the ground soils are specific to the different varieties. We get soil testing done every 2 months to make sure we are on track with what the soil and turf needs. If we don’t get this done we might have issues with the turf down the track.
What song would be the perfect theme tune for your morning harvest on a good day? And on a day where things just don’t go right?
Green, green grass by George Ezra is played through the radio on a perfect harvest morning which obviously speaks for itself. When we are having a really bad day, we choose out of a variety of different movie soundtracks (The Moana soundtrack is normally the outdoor teams favorite to blast out over the UHF).
You harvest 4 different varieties every morning, which lawn is your favourite from a harvest perspective and why?
My favorite lawn to harvest would be the Sir Walter Buffalo, The Turf Farm has been growing it ever since it started some 20 years ago so after years of maintenance and fertilizer plans it always looks so nice, lush and long. I also enjoy maintaining it, after you whipper snip and mow it, always looks so neat and tidy.
And which is your favourite that you would put in your own home?
The Sir Walter Buffalo, I am personally not a fan of the thinner leaf varieties like the TifTuf. I have laid almost all varieties in my time in landscaping and I think Sir Walter is the best for colour, feel and drought tolerance. It is also the easiest to lay and maintain afterwards in my opinion.
If turf could talk, what do you think it would say to you most often?
If it could talk, I reckon it would be a toss-up between “Water Me!’ or ‘Feed Me!’. Turf is very simple to look after, if you take these two simple points in to account you will have a fantastic lawn.
You have previous experience as a landscaper, what do you think is the most important thing to include or think about when creating a great garden?
After all of my years landscaping, I think the biggest and most important thing to include would be irrigation. People seem to think that watering by hand would be an easier and more cost-effective route, but it ends up giving your lawn an inconsistent water which makes your lawn look patchy and unhealthy.
If you could design a “dream turf” with magical properties, what would it be able to do?
If there was a lawn that survived without any water at all it would be an overnight sensation! Watering is always a big area to focus on when the lawn is installed so if you take this out you could save people so much money on irrigation/ water bills.
If you could teleport to any lawn in the world right now, where would you go?
It would be a toss-up between the Chateau de Versailles or Buckingham Palace. I have not experienced these lawns, but I have heard they are some of the best maintained and manicured in the world.
Have you ever had turf-related dreams (or nightmares)?
I haven’t had the pleasure of a turf related dream or nightmare yet, but I look forward to the days that they happen. We are working on the turf consistently throughout the year and there is always something popping up, so I am sure that it’s only a matter of time until I have a dream/nightmare.
After a long day harvesting lush instant lawn, what’s the one thing you look forward to most when you get home?
It depends on how the cut went in the morning! If we had a really bad day with breakdowns I would go home and relax and try not to think about work until the next day. If we had a really good cut day I normally go home and work on my lawn and gardens with a cold beer in my hand.
Thanks Ryan for your time!
If you have any questions you want to ask Ryan or any of our team, you can contact us anytime, we love to chat to you!
