Fine fescue

Check out our team’s latest efforts in educating the public about our work!  We have several upcoming presentations to share.

Dr. Chase Straw is giving two presentations at the Mid-Atlantic Turfgrass Expo.in Fredericksburg, VA on Wednesday, January 22, 2020.  The first presentation is Sensor and Mapping Technologies for Precision Irrigation on Golf Courses and the second presentation is Sports Field Performance Testing: Trends and Future Applications.

By Florence Sessoms

Cool-season turfgrass seed production in Minnesota is localized in Roseau and Lake of the Woods counties in northern Minnesota. Perennial ryegrass is the primary turfgrass being produced for a total of 55,000 to 60,000 acres. Perennial ryegrass is intercropped with spring wheat to allow a better survival during the harsh winter months present up north. Also, the presence of another cash crop, such as spring wheat, allows the farmer to get some income from the field in the first year while the grass is establishing as described in Figure 1.

2019 Data

All links below are .pdf files

• Management of 2019 Trials

Creeping bentgrass

• 2014 Creeping bentgrass NTEP green

Kentucky bluegrass

• 2017 Kentucky bluegrass NTEP

Perennial ryegrass

By Ben Blackburn

There are many different factors that can influence the aesthetic value of a lawn.  Color, texture, and shape have an impact on how people see and interact with a given turf space.  There has been a lot of research done on the relationship between the aesthetic value of a space and how humans perceive and react to the space.  Findings show that certain aesthetics can evoke many different emotions in people, as well as increased energy and mental health.  These results are particularly interesting because the subjects often were affected subliminally and were not always aware that it was happening.  

By Dominic Petrella

It is a common misconception that turfgrasses respond the same to neutral and foliar shade conditions. However, this is not true, and even some of the best turfgrasses for shady areas exhibit contrasting growth under these different types of shade. Let’s define the two types of shade:

Check out our team’s latest efforts in educating the public about our work!  We have a video, an upcoming Minnesota legislature address and three articles.

Water Irrigation Audit - a video from the city of Woodbury, MN features Dan Sandor demonstrating how to conduct an irrigation audit on a home lawn.

Chase Straw will be addressing members of the Minnesota legislature on October 17, 2019 advocating for benefits to golf course superintendents who implement water conservation strategies.

By Yinjie Qiu

With about 450 species, fescues (Festuca L., Poaceae) are a large and diverse genus of perennial grasses (1). Fescue species are distributed mostly in temperate zones of both the northern and southern hemispheres, but most commonly are found in the northern hemisphere (2). Several of the fescue species are commonly used as turfgrass.

Check out our team’s latest efforts in educating the public about our work!  We have a research report, new research results and a newspaper article.