Umer Habib

Citation

Thesis Title
Cold tolerance in warm season turf grasses

Read article at Massey Research Online:

Winter browning under cooler climate is the key limitation of Warm season (C4) turfgrasses. Twelve cultivars of four warm season grass genera (Cynodon, Zoysia, Paspalum, Pennisetum) were established and evaluated for their traits in glasshouse and field at Palmerston North, New Zealand. Detailed morphological study identified a pattern of ecological interest. Cynodon and Zoysia exhibit compound or triplet nodes, with root, branch and internode formation allocated to different leaves. A second phase of the research investigated cold response of four varieties from three different warm season turf species Agridark and Windsor Green (Cynodon dactylon), Sea Spray (Paspalum vaginatum), and Zenith (Zoysia japonica) by exposing to low but non-freezing temperatures. Results revealed that longer exposure with gradually lowered temperature was more lethal than sudden, short exposure. Sea spray exhibited better colour retention during exposure than the other three varieties. Investigation of cold exposure with varying temperature regimes can help to develop area wise recommendations.

Supervisors
Professor Cory Matthew
Dr Andrew Mitchell
Associate Professor Kerry Harrington