Evaluating Zoysiagrass-Tall Fescue Mixtures in the Transition Zone.

Water conservation is increasingly important when selecting turfgrasses. Zoysiagrass (Zoysia japonica), a C4 grass, is more drought resistant than C3 grasses. However, there is some resistance to use zoysiagrass in lawns and golf courses due to its extended dormant period when turf is brown. Our overall goal is evaluate methods for establishing a perennial mixture of seeded zoysiagrass and tall fescue (Lolium arundinacea), a C4 grass, which could improve stand performance and add winter color. The objective of this study was to evaluate mowing height, and tall fescue seeding rate and time for establishment of a mixed stand with seeded zoysiagrass. Plots were arranged in a split-plot design at the Rocky Ford Turfgrass Research Center in Manhattan, KS. Mowing height (1.9 or 5 cm) was the whole-plot treatment factor and tall fescue seeding rate and time were arranged in a two-way factorial in sub plots. ‘Compadre’ zoysiagrass was seeded in all plots at 49 kg pure live seed (PLS) ha^-1 in June 2015. ‘Corona’ tall fescue was seeded in sub-plots at 98, 195, or 390 kg PLS ha^-1 either in June 2015 with the zoysiagrass seed, or in September 2015 into established zoysiagrass. In mid-November 2015, percentage green coverage in the mixtures ranged from 17% to 45%, whereas a monostand of ‘Meyer’ zoysiagrass had only 11% green coverage. Percentage of tall fescue in the mixture was determined in December, when zoysiagrass was fully dormant. Seeding tall fescue with zoysiagrass in spring generally resulted in poor tall fescue establishment, regardless of rate.  Conversely, seeding tall fescue in autumn into zoysiagrass mowed at 1.9 cm resulted 51% tall fescue incidence on grid counts and 5.7% green cover for digital image analysis, respectively, the highest of all treatment combinations. Overall, seeding tall fescue at 390 kg ha^-1 in September into established zoysiagrass and mowed at 1.9 cm provided higher levels of green coverage the first autumn following seeding compared to other treatment combinations.