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Category Archives: University Research

Zoysiagrass Production – Sod Farm Survey

Are you a producer of Zoysiagrass?  If so, we need your help! The goal of this survey is to understand production issues that sod farmers may experience with Zoysiagrass. Researchers from Texas A&M AgriLife, Kansas State University, and Purdue University want to understand sod producer concerns with Zoysiagrass management and gain an idea of the economic impact of those issues that may include abiotic (non-living) and biotic (living) stresses. Your response to this survey will aid researchers in addressing and finding solutions to any issues with Zoysiagrass from the production to the transplant success to the end-user.

The deadline to submit responses is October 22, 2021

Zoysiagrass Survey

Annual Bluegrass Research Sites Needed

The Penn State Turfgrass Program is looking for assistance with a research project focusing on annual bluegrass herbicide resistance throughout Pennsylvania.

John Kaminski (Professor of Turfgrass Science) and Kaiyuan Tang (Ph.D. student) are looking for turfgrass sites in Pennsylvania to collect annual bluegrass plants, and they are currently interested in collecting samples from sod farms, athletic fields, home lawns managed by professional lawn care services, and golf course fairways where herbicide resistance is suspected or in sites routinely treated with herbicides. Collected plants will be screened for resistance to several herbicides and plant growth regulators typically applied to manage annual bluegrass.

The USDA-SCRI Annual Bluegrass Collective is part of a larger initiative involving faculty, staff and graduate students from fourteen Universities across the United States. If you would like to participate in this research project, please complete the brief survey (www.bit.ly/ResistPoa) and/or contact John Kaminski at kaminski@psu.edu.

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2019 NC Sod Production Survey

Original article written by Dr. Grady Miller, NC State University Professor

Researchers at North Carolina State University recently conducted an annual survey to examine inventory and pricing of North Carolina sod. This survey was completed in March, 2019 and a brief overview of the results can be found below along with the original article. Several U.S. states conduct annual sod surveys to assess pricing, demand, and availability and this is North Carolina’s fifth year completing this survey.

Overview

  • Supply of bermudagrass sod is similar to 2018, with most suppliers saying they have adequate supplies for their expected demand in 2019. There still may be some shortages.
  • Supply of zoysiagrass and St. Augustinegrass are expected to be better in 2019 compared to 2018.
  • Shortages for tall fescue and Kentucky bluegrass sod were predicted for 2019.
  • This was the second consecutive year that producers predicted they could have shortages of centipedegrass sod.
  • There are expected price increases for all the turfgrass species in 2019. Of the actual prices reported for early 2019, St. Augustinegrass, zoysiagrass, and centipedegrass had the greatest increases.
  • There was a 10% increase in growers reporting that they grew certified sod.
  • Production acreage has slightly increased over 2018.
  • The primary markets for North Carolina sod producers are landscape contractors.
  • There was an uptick in sales to the sports/athletic field sector of consumers in compared to previous years.

Click the link below for the original article and full survey from NC State Extension:

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2019 Georgia Sod Survey

Original article written by Dr. Clint Waltz, University of Georgia

The Georgia Urban Ag. Council conducted their twenty-fifth consecutive survey of sod producers.  The purpose of the survey was to determine the status of inventory levels and projected price changes for spring 2019.  Seventeen producers participated in the survey, representing farm sizes which were less than 300 acres (9 participants), 300 to 600 acres (3 participants), 601 to 900 acres (2 participants), and more than 900 acres (3 participants).

The survey obtained estimates of the inventory for bermudagrass, zoysiagrass, centipedegrass, St. Augustinegrass, and tall fescue based on estimated sales for the first five months of 2019 as excellent (more than 10% of demand), adequate (equal to demand), and poor (more than 10% shortage).  Pricing information included farm price and price for truckload orders to the Atlanta area or within 100 miles of the farm, all costs were reported as price per square foot of sod.

For the full report and original article from Dr. Clint Waltz, please refer to the link below:

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TPI on program at Third Annual NCSU Turfgrass Research Symposium

Live Streaming

The symposium will be streamed live online for those unable to attend in person. To attend the symposium via streaming, you will need to register online at reporter.ncsu.edu. Please notice that the link for live streaming will be sent out Wednesday, December 5th at 5:00pm EST. You must be registered by Tuesday, December 4th in order to receive the link.

TLI Research Committee Funds 5 Proposals in 2018

The Lawn Institute Research Committee met in Tucson, AZ during the TPI 2018 International Conference & Field Day to review, discuss, and vote on research proposals submitted by university researchers from throughout the world. The committee received 19 research proposals this year focused on items including turfgrass insects, diseases, genetics and plant breeding, turfgrass water use, turfgrass cooling effects, biostimulants, plant growth regulators, and sod harvestability. 

The committee decided to fund five university research projects that have the potential to impact turfgrass producers and the industry throughout the world. They include:

  1. Dr. Matt Elmore, Rutgers University ($2,500)
    1. Turfgrass Pest Control Recommendations Guide, Weed Control
  2. Dr. Lee Miller, University of Missouri ($2,500)
    1. Turfgrass Pest Control Recommendations Guide, Disease Control
  3. Dr. Jay McCurdy, Mississippi State University ($10,000)
    1. Harvest Aids for Improved Turfgrass Shelf Life
  4. Dr. Marco Schiavon, University of California-Riverside ($20,000)
    1. Mapping and Monitoring Turfgrass Cooling Effects
  5. Dr. Ben Wherley, Texas A&M University ($30,000)
    1. Environmental Impacts and Runoff Dynamics Associated with Turfgrass Removal in Urban Landscapes