Turfgrass Water Use, Drought Resistance and Rooting Patterns in the Southeast

摘要

Due to the large acreage in urban areas, irrigation of turfgrasses can be asignificant factor in community water needs. For the seven most commonly used turfgrasses in the Piedmont region of Georgia, the objectives of the study were (1) to quantify the seasonal evapotranspiration (ET) rates, (2) to determine spatial rooting patterns, (3) to define relative overall drought resistance of each turfgrass, and (4) to develop crop and pan coefficients for each grass for irrigation scheduling purposes. Turfgrasses used were: Tifway bermudagrass, common bermudagrass, common centipedegrass, Raleigh St. Augustinegrass, Meyer zoysiagrass, Kentucky-31 tall fescue, and Rebel II tall fescue. The study was conducted on a sandy clay loam at Griffin, Georgia under normal management conditions for each grass.