Stress Response Characteristics Facilitated by Endophytes in Commercially Available Perennial Ryegrass, Tall Fescue, and Fine Fescue Cultivars in Oregon (2022-23, $20,000)


Plot Preparation—Trenching for installation—View two


Endophytes are natural fungal symbionts of many important turfgrass species, including perennial ryegrass, tall fescue, and fine fescues. Endophytes provide several benefits to turfgrass, such as mediated disease resistance, drought tolerance, and insect predation tolerance. However, a current, comprehensive record of endophyte presence in commercially available cool-season turfgrass cultivars is not available.


Endophyte persistence from seed to established turfgrass can be difficult. Endophytes will often perish during the process of seed harvest, storage, distribution, and plant establishment. Turfgrass stress and environmental conditions once the plants are established can also diminish endophyte populations. An assessment of endophyte after turfgrass establishment would be useful to show which variety-endophyte combinations are most viable and easy to maintain.


Plots are ready for research


Rhizosphere samples for microbial community analyzes will be collected seasonally from individual plots with a standard 1-inch (2.54-cm.) corer. In this part of the project, researchers will analyze potential changes in microbial structure and function of the microbiome of turfgrass and general soil microbes as a response to treatment with effluent water. Results will help define “healthy” turfgrass microbiomes (when analyzed with fresh water), and identify changes associated with the use of impaired water sources over time.


Potential benefits include enhanced use of wastewater and development of Best Management Practices (BMP) for homeowners and landscapers when reclaimed water is used to irrigate turfgrass, and ultimately decreasing fertilizer use. Studying turfgrass microbiome will lead to a deeper understanding of soil-water-crop dynamics and can lead to better acceptance of turfgrass as a ‘healthy’ environmentally friendly crop, where microorganisms are alive and active and could interact with the surrounding environment. Moreover, better understanding of bacteria and fungi and their function on the soil and their interactions with the host could potentially lead to development of biocontrol treatments.


Finally, comparing endophyte status and populations to available turfgrass data (germination/establishment rates, color, quality, drought tolerance and traffic tolerance) collected from a large number of commercially available turfgrass cultivars also would be advantageous in determining which endophytes can be used to improve turfgrass management.


Objectives Te objectives of this project are to


1) Identify endophyte presence and type in large scale fine fescue, tall fescue, and perennial ryegrass cultivar studies at Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon, and


2) Correlate endophyte presence with response variables (establishment, visual quality, visual color, drought tolerance, and traffic tolerance) collected from these cultivar studies.


Tis will be done by exploring endophytes present in 25 fine fescue cultivars in the 2022 Alliance for Low Input Sustainable Turfgrass (A-LIST) Fine Fescue trial. Fine fescue quality and drought tolerance will be compared to endophyte presence and type for this study.


Researchers also will explore endophytes in the 2016 NTEP Perennial Ryegrass Trial in Corvallis, OR. For this portion


TPI Turf News September/October 2022 27


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