Germination Timing and Percentages Among Bentgrass Cultivars.

Creeping bentgrass germination rates can be an important factor when trying to rapidly establish mature turf stands on golf courses. The objective of this study was to elucidate differences in germination timings among various bentgrass (Agrostis) cultivars. Two laboratory experiments were conducted to assess germination timing and percentages of 16 cultivars of creeping bentgrass (Agrostis stolonifera L.) and 2 cultivars of velvet bentgrass (A. canina L.). All experiments were conducted at The Pennsylvania State University located in University Park, PA. The first experiment was designed to assess the germination of 18 bentgrass cultivars in a sand-based medium under controlled conditions. All cultivars were seeded into 2.5 cm diameter conetainers at 400 kg of seed per ha. Seeded conetainers were placed in a container filled with 2.5 cm of water to allow for even moisture and set in an incubator at 20C with a 12 hr light/dark cycle. The experiment was arranged as a completely randomized design with four replications. Germination was rated on a 1-9 cover rating where 1 = no germination present and 9 = optimum turfgrass density. A second experiment was designed to assess germination timing of the aforementioned cultivars on water agar. Petri plates were seeded with an average of 104 seeds of each cultivar, sealed with parafilm and completely randomized in an incubator set to 20C under constant darkness. Each cultivar had a total of four replications. Plates were assessed daily for bentgrass germination and germinated seeds removed. Both experiments were repeated twice. Cultivar germination was observed 3 to 4 d after incubation in both experiments. On petri plates, the cultivar ‘Pure Select’ had the greatest percent germination by day 3 with 55 and 62% germination in experiment 1 and 2, respectively. Across the two experiments, cultivars ‘Tyee’, ‘007’, ‘Penncross’, ‘Pure Distinction’, and ‘SR1150’ had the next greatest percent germination.  At the end of the petri plate study, percent germination ranged from 15 to 96% across all cultivars. Cultivars with the highest percent germination included ‘Penn A4’, ‘Pure Select’, and ‘Pure Distinction’ which ranged from 87 to 96%. Few differences in turfgrass density were observed within bentgrass seeded into the sand-based medium.