Evaluation of Native and Adapted Grass Species and Their Management for Turfgrass Applications in the Intermountain West

As cities in the Intermountain West continue to grow, water conservation becomes increasingly important. A substantial amount of municipal water is applied to turfgrass. Many lawns are low traffic ground cover and do not need to be the same high quality as a typical Kentucky bluegrass lawn. This study was designed to evaluate mixes and monostands of native and adapted grasses for their potential as low input turf. Twentyfive mixes and monostands were planted in four replications at Greenville Experimental Farm to be evaluated for color, quality, and cover/uniformity at two nitrogen levels (44 and 88 kg N/ha/yr). Color was evaluated using a hand-held chlorophyll meter and digital analysis of photographs. Quality was evaluated using a visual rating scale of 1-9 by a trained evaluator. Cover and uniformity were evaluated using digital analysis and the point-quadrat method. Sheep fescue had the highest visual ratings with ratings near or above 7 for all six months. Tall fescue had ratings no lower than 6 for all six months. Blue grama had ratings at or above 5 for 4 of 6 months. Western wheatgrass and blue grama+western wheatgrass mix were rated at or above 5 for 5 of 6 months. Visual ratings were well correlated with other methods of evaluation. In most cases there was not a significant difference between nitrogen treatments. Native and adapted grasses/mixes appear to be a good substitute for cool season, high input grasses in some turfgrass applications