Using Two Simulators to Apply Traffic to the 2012 NTEP Tall Fescue Test.

Tall fescue (Festuca arundinacea Schreb.) cultivars are increasingly being established on sports fields throughout the cool temperate and transitional climatic regions of the United States. The objective of this study was to assess the turf performance under traffic stress of tall fescue cultivars and selections in the 2012 NTEP Tall Fescue Test. Three replications of 116 entries were seeded in September 2012 on a loam in North Brunswick, NJ. The test was mowed at 6.4-cm and irrigated to avoid severe drought stress. Traffic was applied as a single strip across each tall fescue plot once a week for eight weeks (18 April to 2 June 2014) and consisted of one pass of both the Rutgers Wear Simulator and Cady Traffic Simulator. Trafficked and non-trafficked strips of each tall fescue were visually assessed for uniformity of turf cover (1 to 9 scale) and fullness of turfgrass canopy (FTC; 0 to 100% scale); digital image analysis was used to determine percent green cover (0 to 100%). Data was analyzed as a 2 (no traffic and traffic) x 116 (entries) factorial strip-plot design. Traffic reduced uniformity of turf cover, FTC, and percent green cover of tall fescue relative to the non-trafficked control. Entries with the best FTC, percent green cover, and uniformity of turf cover after spring traffic were Firebird 2, U43, PPG-TF-135, B23, DZ1, Hemi, PPG-TF-152, U45, W45, IS-TF 330, Falcon V, PST-5GRB, PST-5EV2, Rhambler 2 SRP, PPG-TF-139, RAD-TF-92, W41, PPG-TF-137, PST-5BPO, and PSG-GSD. Analysis of variance indicated a traffic x entry interaction for uniformity of turf cover. Traffic stress did not affect the uniformity of turf cover for Firebird 2, RZ2, and PST-5GRB. Additionally, many differences in uniformity of cover were evident among entries receiving traffic; whereas, few differences were evident without traffic.