Transcript Turfgrass Identification - Georgia Agricultural Education

Selecting Lawn
Grasses
By: Matthew Flanders
Dr. Keith Karnok
Dr. Frank Flanders
Importance of a Lawn
The lawn and other
landscape
components should
complement the
house and provide a
pleasant area for
family activities.
Importance of a Lawn
Sound establishment and maintenance practices
will improve the appearance of your lawn.
Importance of a Lawn
Unkept Lawns reflect the people who live there
and are unappealing to the neighborhood.
Selecting Turfgrasses
The first and most important step is to choose the
proper grass species.
The characteristics
Building
of your site should
be considered when
selecting a turfgrass.
Grasses will not
grow in incorrect
conditions without
any regard to your
effort.
a Good Lawn
Selecting Turfgrasses
Do not make the assumption that all grasses are
alike. There are several grasses to choose from
and they require various conditions and
treatment for good growth. They also differ in
appearance. Color variation is easily seen here.
Selecting Turfgrasses
A homeowner should
become familiar with
the turfgrasses
adapted to his/her area
and then select a
species based his/her
personal preference
and the environmental
requirements of the
species.
Warm Season vs. Cool Season
• Turfgrasses for Georgia can be divided into two
categories, warm season and cool season.
• If you live south of Atlanta and Athens you
should not consider a cool season grass because
of stress from summer heat and drought.
• The warm season grasses generally can be
grown all over the state, but with the exception
of the North Georgia mountain areas.
Types of Grasses
Warm Season Grasses
• Common Bermuda
• Hybrid Bermuda
• Centipede
• St. Augustine
• Zoysia
• Bahia
• Seashore Paspalum
Cool Season Grasses
• Tall Fescue
• Fine Fescue
• Rye Grass
• Kentucky Bluegrass
Cool Season Grass Characteristics
• Cool season grasses as the name implies, grows
best during the cool part of the year; fall, winter
and early spring.
• They are recommended only north of Atlanta
and Athens area.
• If properly managed the grasses will remain
green all year.
• The major problem of cool season grasses is the
lack of heat tolerance.
Types of Cool Season Grasses
•
•
•
•
Tall Fescue
Fine Fescue
Rye Grass
Kentucky Bluegrass
Tall Fescue
• Most heat tolerant
cool season grass
• Easily established
from seed
• Very economical
Tall Fescue
The biggest
problem of fescue is
that it doesn’t
spread and becomes
clumpy and spotty.
It lacks rhizomes
and stolons to fill in
bare ground in the
landscape.
Tall Fescue
Reseeding is recommended each fall to
reduces the gaps between clumps.
Tall Fescue
• Should be mowed to about
3 inches.
• Shorter mowing will stress
the grass especially during
summer.
Tall Fescue
• Very Coarse Texture
• Wide Leaf Blade
• Unappealing to some
Tall Fescue
Poorly managed fescue lawns quickly
become unattractive.
Fine Fescue
• Not widely used in
Georgia
• Less heat tolerance
than tall fescue
Fine Fescue
Tall Fescue
Fescue
Varieties of fine fescue are being researched and there is
promise of heat and drought tolerant varieties for the
south.
Kentucky Bluegrass
• Most popular
lawngrass in the
Northern United
States
• Limited to only the
northern part of
Georgia due to poor
hear tolerance
Kentucky Bluegrass
• Medium
Textured
Grass
• Found
commonly in
mixed stands
with fescue
Kentucky Bluegrass
The boat shaped leaf tips readily distinguish
Kentucky Bluegrass.
Ryegrass
• Two types: Annual and
Perennial
• Not usually grown in
Georgia as a single grass
lawns.
• Used mostly to overseed
dormant warm season
grasses for winter color.
Cool Season Grass Mixes
• Sold commonly in Georgia.
• Suitable for Georgia in or
north of Athens or Atlanta
or if your lawn has a variety
of conditions such as sun
and shade or dry and wet
• Usually more expensive
than single grass seed
• There may not be any
advantages over a single
grass lawn.
Warm Season Grass Characteristics
• A major disadvantage is that they become dormant and
turn brown in the winter.
• They can be overseeded with ryegrass to provide green
color in the winter.
• Grow during late spring, summer and fall.
Types of Warm Season Grass
•
•
•
•
•
•
Common Bermuda
Hybrid Bermuda
Centipede
St. Augustine
Zoysia
Bahia
Warm Season GrassesVegetative Reproduction
Most of the finest
grasses are hybrids
and must be
reproduced
vegetatively. This
can be slow if
sprigged or plugged
and expensive if
completely sodded.
Bermudagrasses
• Most popular warm season grass
• Most adapted grass to Georgia
• Can be mowed at short desirable lengths
Bermudagrass
• Selecting and breeding of bermudagrass has been
present since 1950.
• The University of Georgia Coastal Experiment
Station in Tifton has been a leading producer of
successful cultivars.
Bermudagrass Seed Heads
• Seeds are most
abundant on
common bermuda.
• A very unattractive
characteristic.
• Hybrid breeds have
been selected for
their lower number
of seed heads.
Four Groups of Bermudagrass
• Common (Arizona Common)
• Improved Common or Seeded- have better
color, density, or traffic tolerance than
common bermuda, depending on the type.
• Hybrid- produces sterile seed and can only
be propagated vegetatively. Has a finer leaf
blade than common.
• Ultradwarf- relatively new, they are selected
for their low mowing height. Used mostly for
golf greens.
Common Bermudagrass
• Distinguished by its coarse texture and open
habit of growth.
• Most widely used lawngrass in Georgia
• Grows very easily
• Can be reproduced by seeds
Bermudagrass
The difference in texture of the finer hybrid bermuda
and the more course common Bermuda can be seen here.
Bermudagrass Hybrids
Hybrid bermuda grasses can be very beautiful if
given the extra care that is required.
Bermudagrass Hybrids
Bermudagrass Hybrids
Tifgreen 328 is best used on golf greens, but can
be used on lawns.
Bermudagrasses for Lawns
Tifway 419 is the most popular hybrid bermuda
used for lawns. It is also well suited for golf
fairways and football fields.
Bermudagrass- Ultradwarf
• Used only for golf greens
• Selected for their close mowing ability
• Have a high maintenance requirement
Bermudagrass Characteristics
• Bermuda is commonly confused with Zoysia
• The leave angles are different for the two
species. Bermuda leaves are at 45º angles,
while Zoysia leaves are at 80 º angles.
• Zoysia is also much stiffer and spindly to the
touch than Bermuda.
Zoysiagrass
•
•
Provides a neat and
clean appearance.
A slow grower
•
Cannot be grown
from seed
•
Zoysia sod is
expensive and the
sprigs grow slow.
Zoysiagrass
Zoysia can spread by stolons and rhizomes,
shown here, as does bermuda.
Zoysiagrass vs. Bermudagrass
Zoysia and bermuda
are difficult to tell
apart. Bermuda
leaves, on the right,
stand at 45º angles to
its stems. Zoysia, on
the left, has leaves that
stand at about 80º to
its stems.
Zoysiagrass
Hybrid Bermuda
Zoysiagrass
Zoysia makes a beautiful lawn but grow slowly
and requires a lot of extra care. It can be grown in
light shade, unlike bermuda.
Zoysiagrass
These plots were planted at the same time, ten months
ago. The zoysia has not spread as well as the bermuda.
Meyer Zoysia
The most widely used cultivar. Is known for its
improved growing rate.
El Toro Zoysia
The El Toro variety is a high quality hybrid. This fine
textured grass has a low growth habit, attractive color
and high density. However, its cold tolerance is less than
other varieties of Zoysia.
Emerald Zoysia
• Very fine leaf texture
• Poor cold tolerance
Centipedegrass
• Low Maintenance
Required
• Easily and
economically
established from
seeds.
• Less mowing and
fertilizer needed
than other grasses
Centipedegrass
• Ability to grow in the
sun or shade
• Poor cold tolerance
• Yellow-green color is
unattractive to some
homeowners
Centipedegrass
• Coarse
Texture
• Opposite
leaf
arrangement
• Single stem
seed head
Centipedegrass- Tifblair
Tifblair is a more cold tolerant variety of centipede,
making it more suitable for North Georgia.
St. Augustinegrass
Very popular in the Coastal Plains Region of Georgia
but also grown successfully in the Athens-Atlanta
area.
St. Augustinegrass
Has large flat stems and wide coarse leaves. Lacks
seeds, so must be propagated vegetatively. A very
aggressive grass that spreads rapidly.
Centipede
St. Augustine
St. Augustine is sometimes confused with centipede. Centipede
(right) which has a narrower leaf and whose leaves are opposite
on the stem. St. Augustine's leaves (left) are alternate on the
stem and are much taller.
Bahiagrass
Not usually recommended as a lawn grass, with the
rapid production of unattractive seed heads being the
most objectionable trait. Bahia is used mostly where
quality is not important, such as roadsides and ditches.
Seashore
Paspalum
• Recently developed in
Florida
• Tolerates poor soils
• High salt tolerance (Can
even be irrigated with
ocean salt water!)
• Highly suitable for
coastal regions
Seashore Paspalum
• Used mostly on golf
courses near the coast
• Can be mowed to an 1/8
inch height but ½ to 1 ½
is recommended.
Seashore Paspalum
• Seed heads grow
quickly, however
not enough viable
seed is produced
to be effective.
• Vegetative
propagation is
used with stolons,
rhizomes, and
sprigs
Selecting a Grass
• Matching the proper
grass to a site can be
confusing.
• Remembering all the
characteristics of
each grass is difficult
for a beginner.
• Find a grass that best
suits your situation
Shade Tolerance
Rating
Grass
Excellent
St Augustine
Good
Zoysia
Tall Fescue
Fair
Centipede
Poor
Kentucky Bluegrass
Bermuda
Shade Tolerance
If the area is
in deep shade,
you should
consider using
a suitable
ground cover
or mulch.
Wear Tolerance
Wear tolerance refers to the traffic or use of the grass.
Areas that receive a lot of hard use, such as
playgrounds and lawns where children play need a
high wear tolerant grass like bermuda.
Rating
Most Tolerant
Least Tolerant
Grass
Hybrid Bermuda
Common Bermuda
Bahia
Tall Fescue
Kentucky Bluegrass
St. Augustine
Centipede
Drought Tolerance
Drought can be a real problem during the
summer in Georgia unless an irrigation system is
installed. Assuming no irrigation bermuda and
zoysia would be the best choice.
Rating
Excellent
Least Tolerant
Grass
Bahia
Bermuda
Zoysia
Tall Fescue
St. Augustine
Centipede
Low Temperature Hardiness
A more critical factor in North Georgia. The
colder winter temperatures can severely harm or
even kill some warm season grasses.
Rating
Excellent
Very Poor
Grass
Kentucky Bluegrass
Tall Fescue
Zoysia
Bermuda
Centipede
St. Augustine
Bahia
High Temperature Hardiness
A bigger factor in Central and South Georgia. Cool
season grasses will suffer greatly in the summer.
Rating
Excellent
Very Poor
Grass
Bermuda
Bahia
Zoysia
Centipede
St. Augustine
Tall Fescue
Kentucky Bluegrass
Adaptation to Georgia
Grass
Region(s)
Bahia
Central and South
Bermuda
All
Centipede
Central and South
Kentucky Bluegrass
North
Seashore Paspalum
Central and South (Coastal)
St. Augustine
Central and South
Tall Fescue
North
Zoysia
All
Maintenance
• Generally, the higher
quality lawn grasses,
require the most hours of
maintenance.
• Low maintenance grasses,
such as centipede, reduce
time working on the lawn.
• Grasses are best cut with a
reel mower as seen here,
although they may be too
expensive to be practical
for homeowners.
Choosing a Lawngrass
With a little study of the
characteristics and
requirements of various
turfgrasses and a
decision about what you
really want in a lawn,
the puzzle of “Choosing
a Lawngrass” can be
solved quite easily.
References
Emmons, Robert. Turfgrass Science and
Management. 3rd Ed. Albany, NY: Delmar.
2000.
University of Georgia College of Agriculture
and Environmental Sciences “Turfgrass."
Georgia Commodities. 2001.
http://www.griffin.peachnet.edu/caes/turf
(11 Nov 2002).