In the 1990s the Melbourne cricket ground in Australia commissioned a research project to evaluate native couches and their characteristics.

The study provided information on drought tolerance, colour, wearability, and winter recovery. From the research, two varieties were selected, they were named Legend and Bosker. Legend was established on the historic cricket oval and has gone on to be one of the most widely used summer grass varieties in sports venues, parks, commercial and residential areas throughout Australia.

Eden Park was looking at an alternative to the historically used Rye grass surface for its future grounds. In conjunction with MCG and StrathAyr, two small trays of the two varieties were brought into New Zealand through our national Agriculture & Fisheries Department.

Legend was the last grass to be introduced to New Zealand. Since its introduction the quarantine rules have changed and grasses cannot be imported.

After a long period in government quarantine Legend was released and Recreational Services went on to generate these into two hectares of turf in 2000, at their turf farm in Mangatawhiri.

Eden Park’s confidence in these varieties saw it utilized in the redevelopment of their main ground in 2002.

The market for couch in New Zealand has been slow due to our traditional use of cool season grasses and our comparatively wetter climate meaning drought and water shortages are nowhere near the issue they are in Australia.
However there are some drought-prone and coastal areas where couch has been very useful and some other areas where, due to our mild winters and low frost count, properly managed couch provides an excellent alternative to cool season grasses.

The biggest challenge is changing New Zealanders’ perception that grass should be green in winter. We do this by extolling the benefits of couch in summer and turn the dormancy factor into a benefit by highlighting the low maintenance of the grass in winter (especially good for home owners).

As a result, It is now growing in popularity throughout New Zealand and is becoming well known as the grass variety to have.

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