Mowing Requirement and Cost to Maintain Bermudagrass is Influenced by Cultivar Selection and Trinexapac-Ethyl Use

The average 18-hole golf course is predominantly comprised of rough areas, which are often maintained at a mowing height comparable to commercial, residential, and sports turfgrass areas. If the mowing frequency of these turfgrass areas were reduced without compromising aesthetic value by using cultivars with inherently slow vertical growth combined with plant growth regulators, the labor hours, fuel, and budget allocated to turf maintenance could be vastly decreased. The objective of this research was to determine if bermudagrass (Cynodon spp.) cultivar selection and trinexapac-ethyl (TE) use can significantly reduce the mowing events required to maintain bermudagrass at a 1.0-inch height with mowing frequency based on the one-third rule without compromising turfgrass aesthetics. Field research was initiated at Woodruff Farms, Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College, Tifton, GA on 11 Apr. 2011. Factors included year (2011 and 2012), month (July and August), bermudagrass cultivar [improved common types (C. dactylon) as well as hybrid crosses (C. dactylon × C. transvaalensis) and monthly applications of TE applied at a rate of 0.125 lbs of a.i. per acre compared to an untreated control. In 2011 ‘Discovery’ bermudagrass treated with TE required the lowest number of August mowing events to maintain the turf at a 1.0 inch height, followed by Discovery without TE and ‘Tifway’ treated with TE. In 2012 Discovery and ‘TifGrand’ treated with TE required the lowest number of mowing events. In 2011 and 2012 ‘Celebration’, ‘Patriot’, Tifway, and TifGrand without TE, as well as ‘DT-1’ with or without TE required the greatest number of mowing events. In 2011 turf quality of Celebration, TifGrand and DT-1 was reduced by TE applications, while in 2012 the quality of these cultivars as well as Tifway was reduced by TE applications. The visual quality of Discovery bermudagrass was not affected by TE application; however, this cultivar produced some of the lowest quality ratings with and without TE. If turf managers began utilizing slow growing bermudagrass cultivars coupled with TE use to decrease mowing frequency requirements, substantial reductions in labor hours and fuel consumption would be observed; however, reduced mowing frequency was associated with lower turf quality, and TE applications increased the maintenance budget of all the cultivars in this study.