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TifSport
Certified Bermuda
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Traffic
Tolerance |
Shade
Tolerance |
Drought
Tolerance |
Maintenance |
Dormant
In Winter |
|
Excellent |
Poor |
Excellent |
High |
Yes |
 TifSport
was developed by USDA/ARS geneticist Dr. Wayne Hanna at
the University of Georgia Coastal Plains Experiment Station
in Tifton, Georgia. This is the same breeding program
initiated by Dr. Glenn Burton, the program responsible
for Tifgreen, Tifdwarf, TifEagle and Tifway 419, the longtime
standard for sports fields, golf courses, commercial landscaping
and home lawns. Partly in response to worries over the
genetic vulnerability of Tifway, partly as a safeguard
against pest and disease problems and partly in search
of greater cold tolerance, Dr. Hanna and his team set
out to develop a new Bermudagrass that was superior to
Tifway. And far superior to the common Bermudas now posing
as Tifway in many areas.
As Dr. Hanna puts it, "We identified a number of
characteristics that we felt were key for athletic fields
and golf courses, as well as high end landscapes and lawns.
We wanted a grass with superior color, cold-hardiness
and disease resistance. We also felt that rapid recovery
from injury was vital, so we concentrated on turf density,
turf strength and turf quality. And last but not least,
TifSport had to be able to tolerate frequent lower mowing
heights. In short, TifSport had to be able to recover
quickly from day-in-day-out abuse. Excellent cold-tolerance,
color, texture and density. Improved pest tolerance. Earlier
spring green-up. Aggressive establishment.
After sixteen years of evaluation, we can document that
TifSport will perform to the standards it was bred for
and we've got the research to back it up. It ís
also protected by a USDA patent. And as a further safeguard,
TifSport can only be grown and sold as genetically certified
sod or sprigs and only by a licensed member of the
Tift 94 Growers Association. If you're looking for a certified
Bermudagrass that can stand up to the stress and demands
of big-time sports, to the wear and tear of football and
soccer cleats, to the punishment of baseball spikes, relax,
you've found it - TifSport. It's what many experts are
calling the new standard in sports turf for the 21st century
.
Compared
to Tifway 419
- Superior
Cold Hardiness
- Darker
Green Color
- Genetically
Uniform
- Superior
turf quality at lower
mowing heights.
- Mole
Cricket non-preference
TifSport
Certified Bermuda Maintenance &
Calendar
This
calendar of suggested management
practices is designed to assist
those in the seasonal care of your
bermudagrass lawn. Location,
terrain, soil type and condition,
age of the lawn, previous lawn
care, and other factors affect turf
performance. For these reasons, the
following management practices and
dates should be adjusted to suit
your particular home lawn
conditions.
March
through May
Mow
the lawn when it first turns green
in the spring with a reel mower set
at 3/4 to 1 inch or a rotary mower
set as low as possible without
scalping. Mow before grass gets
taller than 1 1/2 to 2 inches. Then
practice grasscycling. Grasscycling
is simply leaving grass clippings
on your lawn. Glass clippings
decompose quickly and can provide
up to 25 percent of tire lawn's
fertilizer needs. If prolonged rain
or other factors prevent frequent
mowing and clippings are too
plentiful to leave on the lawn,
they can be collected and used as
mulch. Whatever you do, don't bag
them! Grass clippings do not belong
in landfills.
Fertilization
Apply 1 pound of nitrogen
per thousand square feet several weeks after the grass
turns green. Submit a soil sample to determine nutrient
and lime requirements. In the absence of a soil test,
use a complete nitrogen-phosphorus-potassium (N-P-K) turf-grade
fertilizer with a 3-l-2 or 4-1-2 ratio (for example, 12-4-8
or 16-4-8). (Contact your county Cooperative Extension
center for details.) Apply lime if suggested.
To
determine the amount of product
needed to apply 1 pound of'
nitrogen per thousand square feet,
divide 100 by the first number in
the fertilizer ratio. For example,
for a 16-4-8 fertilizer, divide 100
by 16. The result is 6.25 pounds of
product per thousand square feet.
Irrigation
Water
to a soil depth of 4 to 6 inches.
Probe with a screwdriver to
determine moisture depth.
Bermudagrass needs a weekly
application of about 1 to 1 1/4
inches of water. On sandy soils it
often requires more frequent
watering, for example, 1/2 inch of
water every third day. It is often
necessary to irrigate an area for 3
to 5 hours to apply 1 inch of
water. (It requires 640 gallons of
water to deliver 1 inch of water
per thousand square feet.) Because
clay soils accept water slowly,
irrigate just until runoff occurs,
wait 1/2 hour until the water has
been absorbed, then continue
irrigating until the desired depth
or amount is obtained. A dark
bluish gray color, footprinting,
and wilted, folded, or curled
leaves indicate that it is time to
water. Proper irrigation may
prevent car reduce pest problems
and environmental stress later in
the summer.
Weed
Control
Apply
preemergence herbicides to control
crabgrass, goosegrass, and foxtail
by the time the dogwoods are in
full bloom.
Apply
postemergence herbicides in May as
needed to control summer annual and
perennial broadleaf weeds such as
knotweed, spurge, and lespedeza.
Products containing two or three
broadleaf herbicides usually
control several different broadleaf
weeds in a lawn more effectively.
Be sure the product is labeled for
use on bermudagrass. Apply
postemergence herbicides only when
weeds are present, and wait until
three weeks after the lawn becomes
green. (See Extension Service
publication AG-408, Pest Control
Recommendations for Turfgrass
Managers.)
Insect
Control
Check
for white grubs and control them if
necessary.
Thatch
Removal
Vertically
mow in May to remove the thatch
(layer of undecayed grass) after
the lawn becomes green if the
thatch is more than ½ inch thick.
Renovation
Replant
large bare areas using sod or
sprigs (3 to 5 bushels per thousand
square feet). Common bermudagrass
can be seeded using hulled
bermudagrass at 1 to 2 pounds per
thousand square feet. (See
Extension Service publication
AG-69, Carolina Lawns.)
June
through August
Mowing
Follow
the March through May mowing
guidelines.
Fertilization
Apply
1 pound of nitrogen per thousand
square feet every 4 to 6 weeks
using the March through May
fertilizing guidelines.
Irrigation
Follow
the March through May irrigation
guidelines.
Weed
Control
Apply
postemergence herbicides as needed
to control summer annual and
perennial broadleaf weeds such as
knotweed, spurge, and lespedeza.
Crabgrass, goosegrass, dallisgrass,
nutsedge, annual sedges, and
sandbur can be controlled with
postemergence grass control
herbicides. Two or three
applications 7 to 10 days apart are
required for effective control.
Apply herbicides only when weeds
are present, the grass is actively
growing, and the lawn is not
suffering from drought stress. (See
Extension Service publication
AG-408 Pest Control Recommendations
for Turfgrass Managers.)
Insect
Control
Follow
the March through May insect
control guidelines. August is the
best time to control white grubs
because they are small and close to
the soil surface.
Thatch
Removal
Vertically
mow to remove the thatch if it is
more than 1/2 inch thick. Thatch
can be removed monthly if the lawn
has sufficient time to recover.
September
through November
Mowing
the lawn following the March
through May guidelines until
several weeks before the first
expected frost. Raise the mowing
height 1/2 inch as winter
approaches if the lawn will not be
over seeded. Mowing height is
usually raised in mid- to late
September in the Piedmont. Mowing
height of lawns in the western and
northwestern areas of the piedmont
may be raised one or two weeks
earlier, whereas mowing height in
the south central and southeastern
regions may be raised one to two
weeks later.
Fertilization
Apply
no more than 1/2 pound of nitrogen
per thousand square feet in
September, four to six weeks before
the first expected frost. Use a
low-nitrogen, high-potassium
fertilizer such as a 5-10-30, or
supplement a nitrogen
fertilizer
source with 1 pound of potash (K2O)
using 1.6 pounds of muriate of
potash (0-0-60), 2 pounds of
potassium sulfate (0-0-50), or 5
pounds of sul-po-mag (0-0-22) per
thousand square feet.
To
determine the amount of product
required to apply 1 pound of potash
per thousand square feet, divide
100 by the third number in the
fertilizer ratio. For example, for
a 6-6-12 fertilizer, divide 100 by
12. The result is 8.3 pounds of
product per thousand square feet:
Irrigation
Follow
the March through May irrigation
guidelines. Dormant bermudagrass
may need to be watered periodically
when warm, windy weather prevails.
Weed
Control
Apply
preemergence or postemergence
herbicides as needed to control
winter annual and perennial
broadleaf weeds such as chickweed
and henbit. Preemergence herbicides
do not control existing perennial
weeds. Apply postemergence
herbicides only when weeds are
present. Do not apply herbicides
designed to control annual
bluegrass if the lawn is to be
overseeded with ryegrass. (See
Extension Service publication
AG-408 Pest Control Recommendations
for Turfgrass Managers.)
Insect
Control
Follow
they March through May insect
control guidelines.
December
through February
Mowing
Mow
overseeded bermudagrass at 1 inch
before the grass gets taller than 1
1/2 inches. Recycle nutrients by
not collecting the clippings unless
they accumulate heavily on the
surface. Dormant bermudagrass that
has not been overseeded need not be
mowed.
Fertilization
Do
not fertilize bermudagrass that has
not been overseeded. For overseeded
bermudagrass, apply 1/2 pound of
nitrogen per thousand square feet
in December and February. In the
absence of a soil test, use a
complete
(N-P-K)
turf-grade fertilizer with a 3-1-2
or 4-l-2 ratio (for example, I2-4-8
or 16-4-8).
Irrigation
Dormant
bermudagrass may have to be watered
periodically to prevent
desiccation, especially when warm,
windy weather prevails. Watering is
particularly important for lawns
that have been overseeded.
Weed
Control
Apply
broadleaf herbicides as needed to
control weeds such as chickweed,
henbit, and hop clover. Selective
herbicides can be applied in
November or December to lawns that
have not been overseeded to control
annual bluegrass (Poa annua) and
several winter annual broadleaf
weeds.
Related
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