Effect of different fungicides and microbial fertilizers on the turf performance of perennial ryegrass and tall fescue

In this thesis, three separate studies including `Bio-Fertilizer Experiment-1', 'Bio-Fertilizer Experiment-2' and 'Damping-off Disease Trial' were conducted. Damping-off Disease Trial and Bio-Fertilizer Experiment-1 were carried out at Uludag University in 2008 and 2009 while location A of the Bio-Fertilizer Experiment-2 was set up at the University of Connecticut (USA) in 2010 and the same experiment was repeated in location B at Uludag University in 2011 and 2012. In both Bio-fertilizer trials, different strains of bacteria were used in addition to nitrogen and phosphorous fertilizers, and their effect on turfgrass color, development, quality, clipping yield as well as the number of bacteria in the soil and uptake of nutrients were determined. In disease trial, perennial ryegrass was treated with chemical fungicides, biological fungicides, plant activator and extract. The efficacy of the treatments in managing the damping-off disease in turfgrasses was investigated and their effects on the turf growth and performance were determined. The results of the trials can be summarized in general as follows; the bio-fertilizers, plant activator and extract were not found to be as effective as nitrogen fertilizers. Phosphorous fertilizers such as bio-fertilizers did not show the desired effect on the growth and turf quality. There was no significant difference between perennial ryegrass and tall fescue in terms of the turf performance although tall fescue gave higher clipping yields. Based on our results, we recommend monthly applications of 5,0-7,5 kg nitrogen per decare to achieve desirable turfgrass growth, yield, quality and turf performance depending on many factors such as plant species, soil structure, climate and growing conditions. In addition, it was difficult to control and predict the possibility of damping-off disease epidemics, Chemical and biological fungicides, which were applied for control of damping-off disease, prevented turfgrass from infection at only low levels and hence, could not achieve effective disease control. We conclude that tested fungicides may provide, inconsistent results in managing this disease.