Thirty-four pure varieties and nine seed blends/mixtures were evaluated on USGA greens at NIBIO Apelsvoll and Reykjavik GC in the northern zone, and NIBIO Landvik and Sydsjælland GC in the southern climate zone of Scandinavia. The trials were cut to 3-5 mm 3 times per wk and managed according to good greenkeeping practice. Plots were evaluated monthly and species, varieties within species and seed blends/mixtures were ranked, first for decreasing turf quality, second for increasing winter damage and third for increasing susceptibility to diseases. The evaluation showed that the following varieties, in the order listed, can be added to STERF’s list of recommended varieties for greens: (Table se below).
Other findings in the project were as follows:
• Poa annua spp. reptans ‘Two Put’ was tested, but not recommended.
• Poa pratensis tolerated cuttng to 5 mm but produced coarse putting surfaces. It is not an alternative for greens except at northern sites with extreme winter conditions.
• Evaluation of seed blends of F.rubra ssp. commutata ‘Musica’ and F.rubra ssp. litoralis ‘Cezanne’ showed that the optimal seed weight ratio of the two subspecies for fescue greens is 75/25 in the northern zone and 50/50 in the southern zone.
• Evaluation of L.perenne, P.trivialis and P.annua (‘Two Put’) as nurse grasses to speed up (re)establishment of A.stolonifera after winter-kill resulted in a recommendation of P.trivialis + A. stolonifera in the northern zone. Use of P.annua ‘Two Put’ as a nurse grass was not recommended in either zone. Use of L.perenne should also be avoided except in the most winter-tough areas where there is no doubt that it wil die during winter.
• Evaluation of mixtures of F.rubra with A.stolonifera or A.canina in comparison with the more traditional mixture of F.rubra and A.capillaris showed F.rubra + A.stolonifera to have certain advantages, such as less disease, less Poa annua invasion and less height growth. This mixture warrants further investigation on Nordic golf courses.
