same entries like Regenerate, 4th Millennium SRP, Rebounder, Titanium LS, MET 1 and Tor again performing well in the Northeast where brown patch (Rhizoctonia solani) was active. Eight Transition Zone locations had many of
the same top performers as the Northeast locations, with the addition of entries such as F-711, Raptor II, Amity, Avenger II and Technique. In the Midwest, some significance was noted at four locations: Ames, IA, West Lafayette, IN, Urbana, IL, and Mead, NE. A few entries that performed well at all four locations include Regenerate, 4th Millennium SRP, Raptor III, W41 and MET 1. Conversely, locations in the South and Southeast generally noted small entry differences with anywhere from 50-75 percent of all entries performing statistically similar to the top turfgrass quality scorer in 2013-2017 average.
Tolerance to stresses such as traffic, shade,
drought and brown patch are being evaluated throughout the testing period. Grey leaf spot (Magnaporthe oryzae) is also being noticed more on tall fescue, and for the first time, it was evaluated on this trial. Data collected at our Raleigh, NC, location in 2017, although interesting and with good separation among the scores, was not statistically significant. Intensive traffic was applied on the tall fescue
trials at North Brunswick, NJ, Knoxville, TN, Blacksburg, VA, and University Park, PA, over two to five years of the testing period. Statistical differences among entries were not large, but some entries did seem to migrate to the top of ground cover or quality ratings, depending on the location. Entries that consistently performed well in most years at Knoxville, TN, include Falcon IV, Grande 3, Rebel V, Hemi and Ares. In three years of traffic evaluations at Blacksburg, VA, Raptor III, MET 1 and Fayette finished in the top 5 to 7 of all entries each year. Two years of data were collected at both University Park, PA, and North Brunswick, NJ, with smaller statistical differences and no clear performance trends evident. Shade tolerance is an important trait necessary
for many species, but particularly for tall fescue, which can be used throughout the landscape. Shade tolerance evaluations conducted in Carbondale, IL, demonstrated the large statistical differences with Rowdy, Valkyrie LS, Screamer LS, 4th Millennium SRP, Firecracker SLS, Meridian, Titanium 2LS, Traverse 2 SRP and Trinity in the top turf quality statistical group. Data from Logan, UT, on a trial where irrigation
is reduced, showed moderate statistical significances with separation of the top 50 percent of entries. Fayette, IS- TF 272, Firewall and 4th Millennium SRP earned the highest overall quality scores at the Logan, UT, reduced irrigation trial site. Also at Logan, UT, in a separate study, rhizomes
were counted and crown spread was evaluated to answer consumer questions about tall fescue and its ability to cover
TPI Turf News July/August 2019
holes and damaged areas. Tree years of measurements yielded no statistical differences among any new or older entries of tall fescue on these characteristics. Brown patch is typically the most prevalent
disease on tall fescue, and as is typical, many locations noted and rated the disease over the trial period. However, also typical is the varying response among entries. Tere are no evident trends where an entry may perform well at one site but not at another. We feel that many strains of brown patch exist and conferring resistance to these different ‘races’ or strains is difficult. One trend that does seem evident is that in past trials, Ky-31, the 70-year old forage cultivar turned turfgrass, always showed better brown patch tolerance compared to many newer entries. However, in this trial, Ky-31 finished in the bottom one-third of all entries for brown patch data collected at nine locations, indicating that maybe breeding has finally conferred enough tolerance or the ability to better resist this disease in new entries.
Perennial Ryegrass Perennial ryegrasses are occasionally used in
sod mixtures because of positive attributes such as fast germination, better establishment under low and high temperatures and traffic tolerance. A new trial of perennial ryegrass, established in 2016, consists of 114 entries, of which most are new experimentals. Second year data from this trial (2018) is now available on our website. Like 2017, data from 2018 did not show
large entry differences when averaged over Location Performance Index groups. Entries such as DLF- 236/3554, PPG-PR 421 and Gray Wolf finished in the top statistical group for turf quality in both LPI groups. When analyzed by geographic region, several entries, including Gray Wolf, PPG-PR 420, DFPS-236/3544 and Alloy had turf quality ratings in the top statistical groupings for all regions. Data was also analyzed by three management
regimes. High, medium and low maintenance schedules (A, B and C) approximate a golf course fairway, athletic field and home lawn, respectively. Several of the same entries that performed well in the different geographic regions also performed well under all three maintenance regimes, including PPG-PR 421, Slugger 3GL, Homerun LS, and DLFPS-236/3548. Other entries that finished in the top turf quality statistical group under all three regimes include Xcelerator and Furlong. Drought tolerance was tested at Logan, UT, again
in 2018, alongside a standard irrigation trial regime. As in 2017, statistical differences were not large among entries, but BSP-17, PPG-PR-370, PPG-PR 421 and Savant scored high in both normal irrigation and drought trials. Other entries that performed well under the drought scenario include DLFPS-236/3540, PPG-PR 331, Silver Sport and UF3.
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