Bentgrass - Colonial - Turf Grass

Colonial Bentgrass (Agrostis Tenuis; Agrostis Capillaris L)

Origin: Colonial Bentgrass is native to Europe but has been introduced for turf grass use throughout the cool humid climates of the world and has become naturalised in New Zealand, the Pacific Northwest and the New England regions of North America. It is one of the two most utilised Agrostis species.

Qualities: Colonial Bentgrass is a cool-season grass that thrives in cool coastal weather. It is adapted to coastal regions in northern California where it is used for general lawn areas. It does best in cool, humid weather and can tolerate some shade.

Identifying tips: A very fine-bladed, light-green grass. The leaves are rolled in the bud, there are no auricles, and there is a short membranous ligule. Colonial Bentgrass is a soft turf with upright leaves and a dense growth. It spreads by short rhizomes that may give rise to short stolons.

Maintenance: Moderate to high maintenance. It has a low tolerance for heat, salinity, water stress and traffic. It requires frequent irrigation, aerating and dethatching, and a relatively high level of fertiliser. Colonial Bentgrass is slow to recover from moderate wear. ‘Highland’ is a cultivar of Colonial Bentgrass that tends to have a slightly higher tolerance for heat and drought.

Plant Description: Vernation rolled. Sheaths round, glaborous, split with overlapping, hyaline margins. Ligule membranous, 0.4 - 1.2mm long, truncate. Collar conspicuous, narrow to medium broad, may be divided, glaborous, light green. Auricles absent. Blades flat, 1 - 3mm wide, moderately scabrous above and on margins, prominant veins above accuminate apex. Stems erect, slender, tufted, with stolons or rhizomes absent to weak and short. Colonial Bentgrass (Agrostis tenuis) forms and upright, fine textured dense turf under close mowing. The stems and leaves are delicate, fine in texture, and rather low growing with lower internodes being quite short. The low growth habit results in good tolerance to close mowing. Segregation into off-type clones is likely to occur as the turf matures because of the heterogeneity of certain Colonial Bentgrass cultivars. Thus, the overall uniformity and turf grass quality frequently declines.

Plant characteristics:

• Reproduction: Life cycle perennial.
• Creeping: The creeping tendency is minimal since the rhizome and stolon growth of Colonial Bentgrass is either lacking or quite short.
• Propogation: Colonial Bentgrass is propagated by seed. Agrostis tenuis is cross-polinated with a reported chromosome number of 28.

  SR7150 Colonial Bentgrass

• Establishment: The establishment rate is fairly good but the recuperative potential is fair to poor.
• Growth Habit: Bunch-type or with very weak stolons or rhizomes.
• Texture: Fine to very fine.
• Density: High density, may be slightly less dense than Creeping Bentgrass.
• Colour: The colour ranges from a greenish-yellow to a medium dark green.
• Root system: The root system is fibrous, relatively shallow, and annual in nature.
• Useful identifying Characteristics: Creeping growth habit; rolled vernation, ligule smaller than Creeping Bentgrass.
• Uses: Should be used alone. It is used on: golf course fairways, tees, and home lawns in the Northeast and Pacific Northwest (USA).
• Some Cultivars include: Highland; Astoria; Exeter; and Boral.
• Seeding Rate: 0.5 to 1 lb per 1000 sq.ft.
• Propagation: Seed, Sod or Plugs. Seed: Seeds/lb 8,000,000 to 9,000,000.
• Fertility: 1 to 6 lbs. N/1000 sq.ft./yr.
• Light: Sun/shade sun to partial shade.
• Soil: Soil well-drained, moderate acidity.
• Moisture: requires irrigation if rainfall is not adequate; intolerant of heat and drought.

  Brown patch on Colonial Bentgrass

• Mowing height: 1/4″ to 1″. Mow closely to form a dense turf. Mow frequently to avoid scalping injury. Leave lawn unmowed to form an excellent mat for soil stabilisation.
• Fertilise: Fertilise using 3 - 5 lbs. nitrogen/1000 sq. ft. per year during the period of active growth (March - June; September - November - North America).

Special Problems:

1. Cannot stand as much traffic as Creeping Bentgrass;
2. Has disease problems similar to Creeping Bentgrass;
3. Not widely used in the Midwest (USA);
4. Does not have the stress tolerance of Creeping Bentgrass;
5. Intolerant of some herbicides;
6. Prone to thatch development; and
7. May lack uniformity due to heterogeneity of types.

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