Poa annua invasion of bentgrass greens: the role of bentgrass quality
Summary: Common sense and experience tell us that the higher the turfgrass quality, the harder it will be for Poa to invade. But until recently, there was very little scientific data available to back up this intuition. Fortunately, we have been able to review data collected from four, multi-year bentgrass variety trials and have confirmed what we expected -- that the speed of Poa invasion is directly related to the quality, or performance of the bentgrass. In other words, generally, the best looking turf had the slowest Poa invasion rates, and the worst looking turf had the fastest Poa invasion rates.
When researchers make turfgrass quality ratings, they are taking a visual measurement that takes into account the color, fineness of the leaf blades, uniformity, and density of the turf. Usually, turf is rated on a scale of 1 to 9, with a 9 representing the best turfgrass quality possible. Although this rating system may appear flawed because it is subjective, it has turned out to be an effective method for selecting improved turfgrass cultivars and also for a range of other applications (Skogley and Sawyer, 1992).
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Investigators: Larry Stowell (PACE Turfgrass Research Institute), Reed Yenny (Mesa Verde Country Club), Ali Harivandi (University of California)
