EFFECT OF CUTTING HEIGHTS ON THE TURF AND PLAYING QUALITY TRAITS OF SOME TURF ALTERNATIVES IN A MEDITERRANEAN ENVIRONMENT

Year 2019, Volume: 24 Issue: 2, 261 - 267, 15.12.2019

Ali Salman Behcet Kır Riza Avcıoglu

https://doi.org/10.17557/tjfc.612708

Cited By: 1

Abstract

Among cool-season turf grasses tall fescue (Festuca arundinacea Schreb.) exhibits the best
adaptation to the Mediterranean Ecologies. Many turf type cultivars of this
drought and heat resistant turf grass have been recently released and therefore
management practices consequently should be adapted. The purpose of the study
was to detect the agronomic and sports field characteristics of some turf type
tall fescue and traditional cool season sports turf mixture mowed at different
heights in a Mediterranean environment and to determine the most favorable turf
grass alternative and mowing regime. The trial was carried out in the
experimental fields of Bayindir Vocational School, Izmir (Turkey), using three different turf
alternatives (Tall Fescue 100%, Tall Fescue 60% + Perennial Rye Grass 40% mixture
and Traditional Cool Season Sports Turf Mixture: Perennial Rye Grass 50%,
Creeping Red Fescue 20%, Chewing's Red Fescue 10%, Sheep Fescue 10%, Kentucky Blue
Grass 10%) under 12, 22 and 32 mm mowing height regime. Visual turf quality, texture and
weed invasion traits were determined and shock absorption and vertical
deformation were also measured as playing quality parameters for a sports turf. 

Turf alternatives of tall fescue except traditional
cool season sports turf mixture showed an adaptation to low mowing height which
increased shoot density and promoted a finer leaf texture. Shock absorption and
vertical deformation traits were significantly affected by mowing heights,
highest value being recorded for the lowest mowing heights. Nevertheless, a
good sports field quality was determined for the tall fescue and tall fescue +
perennial ryegrass plots. The results of the present work showed that tall
fescue, if maintained at low mowing height regime, could provide a dense and
fine textured turf suitable for sport fields with a high visual turf quality.

Keywords

Perennial ryegrass, sports field turf and quality, tall fescue

Supporting Institution

Tübitak

Project Number

112O130

Thanks

Research study (112O130) funded by The Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey (TUBITAK).

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