Late each summer, when California drought conditions reach their peak, the University of California, Riverside holds a Turfgrass and Landscape Research Field Day. Dr. Jim Baird and his team highlight their research findings, providing current and innovative technology for golf superintendents, researchers, and industry folks.
Due to the uniqueness of the climate in the region and the infrastructure, the research conducted at Riverside facility is highly important for the advancement of drought mitigation and maximizing the use of resources in golf courses and lawns. This climate is ideal for turfgrass water management studies related to issues such as localized dry spot (LDS), salinity, and rapid blight disease. Here are a few highlights from the presentations at this year’s field day that stood out to the Exacto team.
Localized dry spot (LDS) occurs when soil becomes hydrophobic (water repellant) and loses the ability to properly absorb and retain water. LDS occurs most commonly on putting greens, when high amounts of undecomposed organic material (thatch) are present, and under deficit irrigation. At UCR, Dr. Baird’s team recreates the phenomenon in putting greens by limiting creeping bentgrass irrigation to hand watering only.
Wetting agents, also known as soil surfactants, have been successfully used to prevent the onset of LDS on greens. These types of studies evaluate the performance of newly developed sprayable products to prevent the development of LDS. Treatments were applied every two weeks and assessments such as soil volumetric water content, dark green color index, visual ratings, and image analysis of measure turf cover were taken biweekly.
Six of Exacto’s T&O wetting agents and moisture management products including Lateral were tested and all showed great ability to prevent LDS.
Saline soil issues from low rainfall become exacerbated by the inevitable use of non-potable irrigation (reclaimed) water, a challenge faced by most golf course superintendents in California with annual bluegrass putting greens. Leaching and modification of soil physicochemical properties can help alleviate salinity stress.
Rapid blight (Labyrinthula terrestris) is a terrestrial slime mold that affects turfgrass in California and at least 10 more US states. The symptoms rapidly develop as water-soaked patches, eventually forming large dead areas. In California, rapid blight is most severe on Poa annua greens in combination with elevated sodium chloride due to low-quality irrigation water and/or lack of rainfall. Fungicides such as pyraclostrobin, trifloxystrobin, mancozeb, penthiopyrad, fluazinam, and chlorothalonil may provide control of rapid blight.
Salinity research area and reservoirs of saline water for study irrigation
This study consists of 5,400 sqft of USGA putting green that has been maintained since 2019. The plot is irrigated with highly saline water (per classification of USDAARS Salinity Laboratory) to simulate an extreme, yet realistic irrigation salinity for turf in California. It’s important to highlight the effort and resources involved in recreating a putting green area where salinity and rapid blight are concurrent and homogenous. Without it, unbiased research would not be feasible.
Dr. Baird has tested a variety of products including seaweed-based products, fungicides, soil surfactants and microbial based products formulated by various chemical companies. The study was evaluated using visual ratings, dark green color index, image analysis for turf cover. Overall, conditions imposed by salinity and disease pressure were hard to overcome, but slight improvements were observed with products that offered better plant nutrition.
For areas with arid conditions, even warm-season grasses that are built to handle more adverse conditions can struggle with drought stress. In this study, warm-season grasses such as kikuyugrass, bermudagrass, zoysiagrass, seashore paspalum, and St. Augustinegrass are screened for tolerance to saline water. The objective is to identify drought tolerance and improve sustainability in turfgrasses to extend the use of these grass species through plant breeding.
Screening study for drought tolerance turf species
The warm season turfgrass breeding program was re-established at the University of California, Riverside (UCR) in 2012 and is an integral part of this study. The main goal of the turfgrass breeding program is to create new and improved genotypes of grass species.
Turfgrass systems are complex and interconnected, with interactions between soil properties, irrigation water, turf species selection, and biotic and abiotic stress factors that influence turf growth. As an industry, we collectively manage all of these factors in the face of increasing environmental challenges. As water availability and water quality continue to be constrained in the future, research focused on sustainable management of urban and suburban landscapes is more important than ever. The research taking place at the University of California, Riverside is extremely valuable to turfgrass and landscape managers, and it is answering key questions that will face us in years to come.
More Information:
University of California Riverside Turfgrass Research & Extension
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