Performing Department
(N/A)
Non Technical Summary
Turfgrasses have a significant impact on the U.S. economy, while also providing environmental benefits, enhancing aesthetics, and supporting human well-being. However, because of the significant input requirements of turfgrasses the turfgrass industry is facing sustainability challenges. To meet consumers' and environmental demands, North Carolina State University (NCSU), the University of Florida (UF), and the University of Georgia (UGA) have worked independently on improving centipedegrass, a highly desired low-input warm-season turfgrass species with minimal fertilizer and mowing requirements and relatively high resistance to both biotic and abiotic stresses. This proposal leverages the combined expertise of the three abovementioned land-grant universities to select, release, and disseminate new low-input centipedegrass cultivars with improved seed yield, stress resilience, and turfgrass quality that can be deployed at a regional level. Our primary goal is to screen advanced centipedegrass populations from NCSU, UF, and UGA across multiple Southeastern United States locations and pursue cultivar release and licensing for the top performing populations. Additionally, we will assess the yield stability of the parental lines for these populations, ensuring their commercial viability. We will leverage phenotypic and environmental data to provide an indication of the factors of the environment that are important for optimum turfgrass quality and adaptation in centipedegrass. Further, we will conduct on-farm trials with promising populations for increasing breeding stock in preparation for commercial release, and assess their performance under "real-world" conditions and promote "farmer-assisted participatory breeding". Our results will be disseminated through field days and other outreach and extension activities, which will facilitate adoption of these cultivars.
Animal Health Component
0%
Research Effort Categories
Basic
10%
Applied
90%
Developmental
(N/A)
Goals / Objectives
The primary deliverable from this project will be the release of two centipedegrass cultivars: one adapted to the heat and humidity of the southeastern US, and one adapted to the upper boundaries of this region, including the transition zone, where winterkill is a concern. While these parent lines and advanced populations from the NC State University (NCSU), University of Florida (UF), and University of Georgia (UGA) breeding programs are well adapted to their respective states, nothing is known about their ability to perform - in terms of establishment rates, turfgrass quality, drought tolerance, winter survival, and sod quality- on a more regional basis. Therefore, the specific objectives of the proposed work are:Evaluation of advanced populations from the NCSU, UF, and UGA centipedegrass breeding programs in North Carolina, Georgia, and Florida to:Identify populations with superior performance for turf quality and stress toleranceCharacterize the climatic uniqueness of testing locationsContinue evaluation of parental lines at a larger scale at their respective breeding programs to increase breeding stock in preparation for commercial releaseEstablish on-farm trials for best populations to assess their performance under "real-world" conditions and promote "farmer-assisted participatory breeding"
Project Methods
Obj 1:In the first year supported by this proposal, 6-10 populations from NCSU, 6-10 from UGA-Tifton, one from UF, and four commercial cultivars ('TifBlair', 'Santee', 'Covington', and 'Common') will be sown in field trials at six locations in the Southeastern USA: Raleigh, Jackson Springs and Laurel Springs, North Carolina; Tifton and Griffin, Georgia; and Citra, Florida.All field trials will be established as randomized complete block designs with three replicates. Sowing of seed will be performed by hand in the late spring of 2024 at a rate of 0.115 kg per 93 m2 in 1.5m x 1.5m plots with 0.5m alleys in between. Evaluated traits will include: percent green cover, turf quality, turf quality under dorught, recovery from dorught, fall color, spring green-up, winterkill, and sod tensile strentght.Data will be analyzed using a mixed model approach implemented in ASReml-R (Gilmour, 1995; Butler et al., 2023) on a quarterly basis for breeders to be able to check the performance of their lines often. Environmental data will be collected and acquired from weather stations placed at research stations of the respective universities. In addition, soil information will be acquired from the Web Soil Survey (http://websoilsurvey.nrcs.usda.gov/) and previously conducted soil analyses. Phenotype and environmental data will be analyzed using a mixed model approach implemented in ASReml-R (Gilmour, 1995; Butler et al., 2023).Obj 2:In year 1, the parentals of the populations will be planted at the main research station of the respective breeding program. In late spring 2024, plugs of the parental lines will be randomized within a 2 m x 2 m block to ensure equal opportunity for pollination across all parental lines. In late fall, crossing blocks will be evaluated for inflorescence abundance which will be collected visually (1-9 scale, 1 = no inflorescences and 9 = 100% plot cover by inflorescences), and seed yield, which will be assessed after harvesting the inflorescences, drying them, separating seeds from dried biomass, and weighing the seeds. At NCSU and UF, germination tests will be conducted according to Bush et al. (2000).Germination rate and mean time of germination (MTG) will be assessed.Additionally at UGA, centipedegrass seed vigor will be evaluated using a thermal gradient following Grey et al. (2011). Inflorescence abundance, seed yield, germination rate, and MTG will be evaluated for two years in order to quantify the yield of the parental lines on a larger scale and confirm their commercial viability. In addition, activities under this objective will be fundamental to increasing seed stocks of the populations for on-farm and future trials.Obj 3:The preliminary data analysis of the data collected in the first two years supported by this proposal will be used to select the best populations to be planted in on-farm trials. The on-farm trials will be conducted in 1-2 sod farms per state in the year 3. We expect to evaluate the top 4-5 populations alongside commercial control 'Common', the most widely used centipedegrass cultivar. The populations included by each state might vary as NC locations might focus on the more cold-tolerant genotypes. In the spring of year 3, the seed will be sown at commercial rates in 3 m x 6 m strips in two replications depending on seed availability. Plots will be maintained (mowing, fertilization, irrigation, pesticide regimes) using the standard management practices for commercial production at each farm. Percent green cover will be collected monthly May through July through the use of UAS-based imaging to identify populations with higher germination and faster establishment rates. In the fall, commercial sod harvesting equipment will be used to collect sod pieces for quality evaluations. Sod quality evaluations will be performed according to Han (2009) and McCalla et al (2008) as described under objective 1A. Extension personnel at each institution will be engaged during this final stage in order to prepare extension materials highlighting the favorable characteristics of the new releases.