WA Turf Industry E-News

A New Year in WA Turf.

16th January 2024

Welcome to the very first WA Turf Industry E-News

Happy New Year 2024 everyone. We hope this sees everyone going really well. Looking after yourselves, with just the right amount of work and business happening, whilst getting the work/life balance right.

We are delighted to present you with the WA Turf E-News in lieu of a hard copy magazine. In the spirit of sustainability, we thought that we would trial this form of communication and gauge the receptiveness to it. We will aim to get this out to all STA (WA) and TGAWA members every two months, mid-month. We will however share crisis and important news on a one off basis as required in this same manner. Each edition will be uploaded to the Sports Turf Association (WA) website for your future reference. The Turf Growers Association WA will provide a link back to the STA (WA) website news page for interested parties.

We would love to hear from you if you have a newsworthy story, a yarn, quality photos of jobs well done, movement on the station, case studies, advertorials, events or occasions to share. Please don’t hesitate to send these to our Executive Officer, Eva Ricci at eva.ricci@turfwa.com.au for inclusion in the next edition. We would also appreciate your feedback, and any other input along the way.

We would love you to share this e-news with your teams/employees by onforwarding this digital newsletter. If you prefer though for them to receive the e-news directly, please just send through email addresses and we will ensure that they are included on the list. Don’t hesitate to share your new contact details too, if you move from your current place of employment. These can be shared with Eva at the above email address, and also with STA (WA) President Tony Guy at president@sportsturfwa.asn.au and Andrew Thomson our Memberships Officer at andrew.thomson@spraymow.com.au for STA (WA) members. TGA WA members can contact Eva directly.

Valued industry sponsors, please forward news and adverts to share, to Eva also. We will allocate this according to your sponsorship level as per the magazine advertising agreement. Please refer to your sponsorship benefits here https://www.sportsturfwa.asn.au/sponsorship-information/ .

We are looking forward to sharing pertinent, helpful and interesting information with you all into the future. You will be our eyes and ears on the ground, we will be relying on you all out there on the turf, to share news and stories with us, so that we can ensure that the E-news remains interesting and usable. We meanwhile, will bring to you, local and national news and updates regarding OH&S, biosecurity, government policy and changes, and more with each edition. We do promise not to flood your email mailboxes!

We look forward to your feedback.

Take care and keep on turfing.

Eva Ricci

WA Turf Industry Executive Officer

M: 0422 120 990

Are you interested in starting a Carbon Farming project?

The Carbon Farming team at DPIRD will help you kickstart your carbon farming project. Taking the 2-minute survey helps us understand your needs and how we can assist. Take the carbon farming survey here

Interested in starting a carbon farming project, but want to know more?

Farmers are encouraged to attend our workshops to meet members of the Carbon Farming team. This workshop will help farmers understand a little more about carbon farming and how the Carbon Farming and Land Restoration Program (CF-LRP) can assist them to start their own projects. Read More

Working safely in the heat in WA

The Occupational Safety and Health Act 1984 requires employers to provide and maintain, so far as is reasonably practicable, a working environment in which workers are not exposed to hazards. This applies to any risk to safety and health, including illness from working in heat. Read more

On Wednesday 6th March, the WA Turf Industry will celebrate International Women’s Day.

Eva is organizing an event that will be both special and exciting. Let’s just say for now that it involves close up encounters with wildlife and good food. All women working in our industry and allied industries are invited to attend. The theme for IWD 2024 is Count Her In: Accelerating gender equality through economic empowerment. The theme recognizes that women’s economic empowerment is central to a gender equal world. More to come very soon. Save the date!

As part of the Women In Turf series over the coming year, we asked Alison Waters from the City of Cockburn to share her story as a woman in the sports turf sector. Its a great read, and a very honest sharing. You can read Alison’s story here

Alison Waters Interview

Polyphagous shot-hole borer – A Biosecurity nightmare.

Polyphagous shot-hole borer (PSHB) Euwallacea fornicatus is a beetle native to Southeast Asia. The beetle attacks a wide range of plants by tunnelling into trunks, stems, and branches.

PSHB has a symbiotic relationship with a Fusarium fungus, cultivating it inside the tree as a food source for the beetle and its larvae. In susceptible trees, the fungus kills vascular tissue causing Fusarium dieback and tree death.

Establishment of this pest in WA would have significant impact on amenity trees, native vegetation, and the fruit and nut tree industries.

Wicket soil clay has been sourced over many decades from along the Harvey River in the Waroona area. Roy Abbott the highly acclaimed Curator of the WACA used the clay sourced from the Waroona area for the internationally famouse wickets going back to the ‘60s of further.

In 2013 the Waca Australia v England wicket was reported to be suited for fast bowling due to the wicket preparation.

The same clay is now called CULBURRA CLAY and is used at the WACA and stadium and distributed through the state to make great wicket pitches.

Curators and consultants regularly make site visits to Muir’s property Culburra Downs.

Culburra Clay conducts many soil samples so that site selection will meet required standards.

Chem Centre is the appointed laboratory for all clay test analysis.

Recently, wicket soil has been supplied to Dubai Sports City and further enquiries have been made from overseas countries for the famous wicket soil.

You can order your cricket wicket soil here

The Annual STA (WA) Presidents Breakfast 2024

Will be held at Kings Park on Wednesday 21st February 2024, at 7am at the Pines BBQ Area, Fraser Ave, Kings Park. All STA (WA) and TGA WA members are welcome to attend this event. A formal invitation will be issued shortly by the President of the Sports Turf Assn (WA), Tony Guy.

Save the Date!

The first STA (WA) committee meeting will be held on Tuesday 23rd January 2024 at 3.30pm at 21 Ballantyne Rd, Kewdale WA.

Members are most welcome at these meetings. If you are interested in attending, please let our Secretary, Richard Gainsford know by email r.gainsford@mcson.com.au

Sting Nematode Certification program

Local Government Authorities, private schools, Botanic Gardens, State Government departments, Managers of private and public open spaces and Sporting fields can now be assured that turf provided by accredited turf farms will be sting nematode free.

The accreditation regime is both rigorous, and transparent. All specified measures and requirements must be undertaken prior to sign off by the Turf Growers Association WA’s Executive officer. These include specific testing procedures and protocols, sampling qualification and criteria, procedures to mitigate, transportation requirements, and managing sting on farm. Read more

Catch TGAWA Chairperson Darren Kirkwood on “All the Dirt” Podcast

Episode 214 : Talking Lawns with Darren Kirkwood.

Darren Kirkwood is the chairperson of the Turf Growers Association Western Australia and shares with Deryn Thorpe some tips on growing healthy green lawn for community. Everytime we get a chance via podcast or interview to lift the image of turf, we take the opportunity up. You can listen to the interview online.

Enjoy!

Listen Here

Staying safe at Work – Local fines for unsafe workplaces

Vegetable business fined $15,000 after worker’s arm caught in conveyor

Ellement Bros Pty Ltd (trading as Ellement Produce) pleaded guilty to failing to ensure that dangerous parts of a machine were securely guarded and was fined $15,000 over an incident in which a worker’s arm was injured.

Media release

Cardboard box company fined $275,000 over finger injuries

A cardboard box company in O’Connor has been fined $275,000 (and ordered to pay $8500 in costs) over an incident in which a worker had parts of two fingers severed.

Visy Board Pty Ltd pleaded guilty to failing to provide and maintain a safe work environment. Media release

Fall armyworm in Western Australia

The fall armyworm (Spodoptera frugiperda) is a plant pest that can damage a wide variety of crops. The larvae predominantly feed on crops and pastures from the Poaceae (grass) family, in particular maize, but also sorghum, forage grasses, turf grasses, cereals and rice. The pest can also feed on non-grass crops such as cotton, peanuts, vegetables and some fruit crops. Fall armyworm is known for its ability to disperse and migrate long distances, which enables it to exploit new habitats and expand its range.

The Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development (DPIRD) is conducting surveillance on the spread of fall armyworm across Western Australia.

Fall armyworm was first detected in Western Australia in Kununurra, in the Kimberley region, in March 2020. It has been located in traps as far south as the Gingin/Bindoon areas since then.

“LAWN IS NOT THE ENEMY” Damien Postma, Water Corporation Jan 2024

Eva was recently interviewed on the ABC regarding how to “Bring a brown lawn back to life”.

This interview has been aired twice in one week on the ABC Radio. It was aired a second time after the Water Corporation’s Manager for Demand Delivery, Customer & Community Relations, Damian Postma spoke on air about Perth’s water usage. We have obviously had impact with regard to our messaging about the importance of lawn a major player in natural green spaces, private and public, because, Damian was very adamant that lawns should not be viewed as the enemy when we are talking water usage here in WA. In fact, he had no hesitation in reiterating the importance of lawns in providing health and cooling benefits for community.

You can listen to part of Damian’s interview and the full interview with Eva by fast forwarding to the 1 hour 37.53 minute mark of the stream at this link