TURFGRASS INDUSTRY NEWS
Twitterverse Flying High on Grass Te Twitterverse was flying high at the end of September with the turfgrass industry retweeting the following quote from 12-year National Football League (NFL) player Von Miller. “It’s time for every single field in the NFL to be grass.” @vonmiller Tat quote, taken from an interview on the Pat McAfee Show on September 29, 2022, captured the preference for natural grass that is widespread throughout the league. Te dialog that followed addressed the body aches players experience from playing on artificial turf—and the increased risks of ankle and knee injuries when “cleats stick” in an artificial turf field. Von Miller is a highly respected player within the NFL. His words have clout. For those who don’t follow U.S. football, here’s a bit of background on Von Miller. “Vonnie B'VSean Miller is an American football outside linebacker for the Buffalo Bills of the National Football League. Miller played college football at Texas A&M, where he earned consensus All-American honors and the Butkus Award. He was selected by the Denver Broncos second overall in the 2011 NFL Draft.”
NCSU Releases Sola™, a New St. Augustinegrass According to press releases from North Carolina State University (NCSU) and Sod Solutions, NCSU announced the release of a new St. Augustinegrass in August. NCSU’s Turfgrass Breeding and Genetics program, under the direction of Dr. Susana Milla-Lewis, has released Sola™ St. Augustinegrass (experimental name XSA 11377). Te grass, which has been evaluated over the past 11 years, had its much-anticipated name revealed at NC State’s 2022 Lake Wheeler Turfgrass Field Day held on August 10, 2022, before hundreds of turfgrass industry and landscape professionals. Sola follows in the footsteps of long-standing cultivar Raleigh St. Augustinegrass from NC State, and adds a number of improvements including aggressive growth, shade tolerance, drought tolerance, and superior sod strength in combination with turfgrass quality. While the new line is comparable to Raleigh in terms of cold tolerance, it possesses a better pest resistance package having better tolerance to chinch bugs and gray leaf spot. “Tis is an exciting day for everyone involved in the research and development of this new St. Augustinegrass cultivar. I am hopeful both growers and consumers appreciate Sola for its many improved characteristics and overall turf quality” Milla-Lewis said. Sola is the second cultivar to be released from Milla-Lewis’ breeding program within the past year. Lobo™ Zoysiagrass was released in November 2021. Select NC sod producers, Sod Solutions, and the North Carolina Sod Producers Association (NC SPA) helped support the development of these grasses by teaming up to form Turf Research North Carolina (TRNC) in 2016. Growers made financial
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contributions over a six-year period to fund the research and development of Lobo, Sola, and other turfgrasses yet to come out of the program. All NC SPA participating growers contributing to the program will have exclusive access to the grasses when they are released. Sola St. Augustine will be exclusively licensed through Sod Solutions for commercial production and marketing. Sola St. Augustine will have limited commercial availability by late Summer 2024. Any sod farms with questions on this cultivar that are interested in plant stock can email Christian Broucqsault at
Christian@SodSolutions.com.
Mississippi State University Releases Celebration Hybrid™ Bermudagrass
According to its press release, Mississippi State University’s Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station officially released Celebration Hybrid™
Bermudagrass (experimental
name MSB 1017) at the 2022 Turfgrass Research Field Day on September 22, 2022, held in Starkville, MS. Te new cultivar is the first release out of the “Celebration X” breeding program, which stemmed from the idea of cross-pollinating industry standard Celebration® Bermudagrass with numerous attractive bermudagrass genotypes collected and maintained over the years at MSU to create new lines (grasses). Te goal of the program was to take the top characteristics of Celebration and develop new grasses with better cold tolerance, a finer texture, fewer seed heads, and less thatch. Tese grasses will be used in home lawns, golf courses, parks, and sports fields across the country and around the world. Te Celebration X breeding program was initiated in 2014 as a partnership between MSU and Sod Solutions, a turfgrass research, development, and marketing company.
STEC Equipment Add Two Dealers Press release announcements report two dealers have been added to STEC Equipment’s Dealer program. An August 12, 2022, release stated that STOTZ Equipment joined in partnership with STEC, “offering the latest in specialty turf equipment innovations” to their customers. STOTZ serves the Southwest and West coast with multiple locations in the following U.S. states: Utah, Idaho, Wyoming, Colorado, New Mexico, Nevada, Arizona, and California. Another release on October 3, 2022, stated, Belkorp Golf & Turf has joined in partnership with STEC “… allowing us to reach our goal of having a larger presence on the West coast.” Belkorp Golf & Turf has seven locations in California. “STEC’s growth mindset is to reach the Southwest and West coast more effectively and efficiently.” Tese partnerships bring STEC closer “in expansion of operations across the U.S.”
TPI Turf News November/December 2022
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