Whose Turf Are You Standing On….Basics of Lawngrass ......‘Empire’ •Sod Solutions (1999)...

Turfgrass Species and

Cultivar Selection

Laurie E. Trenholm, Ph.D.

Urban Turfgrass Specialist

University of Florida

Whose Turf Are You Standing

On….Basics of Lawngrass

Selection and Maintenance

Laurie E. Trenholm, Ph.D.

Urban Turfgrass Specialist

University of Florida

Warm-Season Turfgrasses

• Bahiagrass

• Bermudagrass

• Buffalograss

• Carpetgrass

• Centipedegrass

• Seashore Paspalum

• St. Augustinegrass

• Zoysiagrass

Bahiagrass

• Grows by rhizomes

• Grows in bunches

• Likes acidic soil

rhizome

Bahiagrass (Paspalum notatum Flugge)

• Advantages

– Good drought tolerance

– Low fertility requirements

– Low maintenance

– Tolerant of sandy, acidic, infertile soils

– Establishes from seed

Bahiagrass (Paspalum notatum)

• Disadvantages – Produces abundance of

seedheads

– Open growth habit encourages weed competition

– Susceptible to mole crickets

– Coarse stems are difficult to mow

– Not wear tolerant

St. Augustinegrass (Stenotaphrum secundatum Walt Kunze)

St. Augustinegrass

Advantages

– Best shade tolerance of warm-season grasses, but varies within species

– Good salt tolerance

– Tolerant to wide range of soil pH

– Establishes quickly from sod

– The “standard” - we know how to manage it!

Disadvantages –Only grows by stolons (aboveground)– no underground protection

–Requires water

–Poor wear tolerance

–Forms excessive thatch

–No chinch bug tolerance currently

–Loss of herbicides for grassy weed control

St. Augustinegrass

Common St. Augustinegrass Cultivars

• Bitter Blue

• Captiva (dwarf)

• Delmar (dwarf)

• Floratam

• Palmetto

• Seville (dwarf)

Floratam

• Used in majority of home lawns in FL

• Released in early 1970s

• Initially had chinch bug resistance – currently does not

• Has large, wide leaf blades and wide stolons

• Mow at 3.5-4”

Palmetto • Lighter green and shorter growth

• Claims that it has “excellent drought, shade, cold etc. tolerance not backed by research

• Not as widely grown as 10 years ago

Delmar and Seville • “Dwarf” cultivars – mow at 2-2.5”

• Best shade tolerance – 4-6 hours of sun daily

• Better cold tolerance in Delmar

New St. Augustinegrass Cultivars

• Captiva (dwarf)

• Classic

• Sapphire

13

Captiva St. Augustinegrass

• Dwarf variety (mow 2-2.5”)

• Better shade tolerance than Floratam

• Improved tolerance to chinch bug damage

• Water and fertilizer requirements similar to other St. Augustinegrass cultivars

Classic St. Augustinegrass

• Good cold tolerance

• Good shade tolerance

• Claimed to be more drought tolerant and to have a denser root system

• Claimed to have good heat tolerance

15

Sapphire •From Sod Solutions www.sodsolutions.com

•Claims good shade, drought tolerance

•Claims reduced fertilizer and water

•Deep green color

Older Zoysias

• Slow growing, lengthy establishment

• Nematode issues

• Disease more prevalent than some other species

• Coarse leaf texture

• Prone to thatch

18

Newer Zoysias

• Slow growing, but much faster than older varieties

• Nematode issues – generally not as damaging as on older varieties

• Disease more prevalent than some other species

• Coarse leaf texture

• Prone to thatch

19

Japonicas vs. Matrellas (“coarse” vs. “fine”)

Japonicas

• Higher mowing height (2-2.5”)

• Rotary mower

• Medium shade tolerance

• Medium traffic tolerance

• Low N users

• Disease susceptibility

Matrellas

• Lower mowing height

• Rotary or reel

• Better shade tolerance

• Better traffic tolerance

• May need higher N, use dependent

• Disease susceptibility

20

Japonicas vs. Matrellas (“coarse” vs. “fine”)

Japonicas

• El Toro

• Empire

• JaMur

• Meyer

• Palisades

• UltimateFLora

Matrellas

• Cashmere

• Diamond

• Emerald

21

‘El Toro’ (japonica) • University of California (1986) • a.k.a. “Toro” • Poor turf quality in the north, but good in the transition

zone and the south • Good winter color with good winter hardiness • Coarse leaf texture • Fast recuperative potential and establishment rate • Less dense and less thatch • Fair shade tolerance • Excellent drought tolerance and very good salinity

tolerance • Does well in high pH soils • Moderately resistant to most insect pests

El Toro

Empire Zoysiagrass (japonica)

‘Empire’ • Sod Solutions (1999) • Poor turf quality in the north, good in the

transition zone, and very good in the south • Blue-green leaf color • Slower vertical growth and establishment than

some other species • Fair winter hardiness, slow spring green-up

(nitrogen dependent) • Reduced maintenance zoysiagrass • Salinity tolerance largely unknown • Adapted to Florida’s sandy soils

– Consistently good performance in Florida

Empire Zoysiagrass

• Low-growing, dense

• Very responsive to nitrogen

• Shade tolerance similar to Floratam

• Hunting billbug pests

• Susceptible to large patch -disease management is a critical factor in maintaing zoysiagrasses

• Tends to get thatchy

• Nematode tolerance?

this slide Courtesy Brian Schwartz, UGA

‘JaMur’ • Bladerunner Farms (1996) • a.k.a. “Jack Murray” • Poor turf quality in the north, fair in the transition zone,

and good in the south • Medium to coarse leaf texture • Dense canopy • Poor winter hardiness • Adapted to a wide range of soil conditions • Quick establishment rate • Fast recuperative potential for zoysiagrass • Good shade, wear tolerance • Salinity and drought tolerance very good • Pest tolerance largely unknown

Jamur

‘Meyer’ (japonica) • USDA – USGA (1951)

• a.k.a. “Z-52” or “Amazoy”

• Most cold-hardy zoysiagrass cultivar

• Very good quality in north and transition zone; poor in south

• Deep green color

• Medium leaf texture

• VERY slow to establish

• Very dense once established

• Good drought and salinity tolerance

• Less shade tolerant

• Susceptible to infestation from mites, sod webworms, hunting billbugs, mole crickets, and nematodes

Meyer

Fayetteville, AR

‘Palisades’ (japonica) • Texas A&M University (1996) • Poor turf quality in the north, good in the transition

zone, and very good in the south • High density • Medium-coarse textured leaf • Quick growth rate and recuperative ability • Good winter hardiness • Lower water use requirement • Very good salinity tolerance • Moderate pest tolerance • Good shade tolerance • NOT PRODUCED IN FLORIDA

this slide Courtesy Brian Schwartz, UGA

Austin Golf Club, this slide Courtesy Brian Schwartz, UGA

UltimateFlora

UltimateFlora

• UF release

• Finer leaf texture than some other japonicas (including Empire)

• Few seedheads noted

• Deep green color

• Fast grow-in

‘Diamond’ (matrella) • Texas A&M University (1997) • Poor turf quality in the north and transition zone, with very good

turf quality in the south • Fine to dwarf leaf texture • Slow growth rate • Very dense • Excellent shade and salt tolerance • Excellent color retention • Excellent sod strength • Scalping tendency • Poor winter hardiness • Good resistance to the tawny mole cricket, but susceptible to

tropical sod webworm and zoysiagrass mite damage • Use in areas with poor water quality, excellent salinity tolerance

this slide Courtesy Brian Schwartz, UGA

Shaded tee box at the Country Club of Birmingham

‘Emerald’ (matrella) • Georgia AES – USGA (1955)

• Excellent turf quality in the south

• Deep green color with fine texture and good density

• Widely adapted

• Good shade tolerance

• Good winter hardiness

• Good drought and salinity tolerance

• Moderately slow growth rate

• Thatch build-up may be a problem

• Moderately resistant to most insect pests

this slide Courtesy Brian Schwartz, UGA

The Big Myth With Turfgrass– Water Use!

45

Turfgrass Water Use Rates • Dr. Michael Dukes and team

• Compared water use (ET) of 4 warm-season grasses

• Final report not available yet, but synopsis:

• Water use ranking under well watered conditions (high to low):

– Bahiagrass

– Empire and Floratam were about the same and LESS than bahiagrass

46

Deficit Irrigation Research

• Glasshouse research , Ph D student project

• Objective to look at different grasses under deficit irrigation rates over time

• Maintained grasses at 100, 80, 60, or 40% ET

• Floratam, Palmetto, Sea Isle 1, Empire, Argentine bahiagrass

• Wide range of physiological measurements as well as visual ratings

Average Quality

4

4.5

5

5.5

6

6.5

7

100 80 60 40

Argentine

Empire

Floratam

Palmetto

Sea Isle 1

Deficit Irrigation as % ET

Photosynthesis Rates

4

6

8

10

12

14

16

100 80 60 40

Argentine

Empire

Floratam

Palmetto

Sea Isle 1

Deficit Irrigation as % ET

Bottom Line on Irrigation

• All warm-season species need about the same amount of water to stay green

• Responses vary under water deficits

• Recovery varies between species

• Do not let perceived water use influence your choice of a grass

52

Fertilization of Lawngrasses

53

Current UF/IFAS Fertility Recommendations

(lbs. N 1000 ft-2 yr-1)

St. Augustinegrass:

North FL: 2-4

Central FL: 2-5

South FL: 4-6

Current UF/IFAS Fertility Recommendations

(lbs. N 1000 ft-2 yr-1) Zoysiagrass*:

North FL: 2-4

Central FL: 2-5

South FL: 4-6

For japonicas, approximately 3 lbs N 1000 ft-2 yr-1 adequate – more increases disease

Current UF/IFAS Fertility Recommendations

(lbs. N 1000 ft-2 yr-1)

Bahiagrass:

North FL: 2-3

Central FL: 2-4

South FL: 2-4

Fertilization Timing

• North Florida – 2-4 x/yr during growing season (April-Sept)

• Central Florida – 2-5 x/yr during growing season (April-Oct)

• South Florida – 3-6 x/yr (year-round)

57

Questions About Turfgrass?

• letr@ufl.edu

• http://hort.ufl.edu/yourfloridalawn/

• http://turf.ufl.edu

• http://fyn.ifas.ufl.edu/

Thank you for your interest!

58