![]() ![]() Many fescues and ryegrasses have a bunch-type growth habit while Buffalograss, Creeping bentgrass, St. These features are important components of many turfgrasses because they allow them to tolerate and recover from stresses such as traffic, divots, drought, or injury from insects or diseases. Rhizomes are below-ground lateral stems while stolons are above-ground lateral stems. However, in addition to these tillers many species of grasses also have secondary lateral stems called rhizomes or stolons. All turfgrass species have this ability, and it is one of the primary features that allow them to produce dense turfgrasses from single seeds. In addition to leaves, the turfgrass crown also has the ability to produce tillers. ![]() Turfgrass Plant Morphology and Identifying Features Other characteristics of leaves listed in Figure 1 that can be useful in identifying turfgrass species include vernation, ligules, auricles, and collars. The blade is the unfolded or unrolled part of the leaf while the sheath is the lower portion of the leaf, which attaches it to the rest of the turfgrass plant. As long as vegetative growth continues, newly formed leaves will continue to be formed at the crown and will replace older leaf tissues as they are mowed off of the plant.Īs these leaves emerge, they form into two parts the blade and the sheath. This is a region of actively dividing cell tissue that results in the growth of turfgrass leaves, which occurs near the soil surface. Turfgrasses tolerate mowing because of the position of their growing point at the top of an un-elongated stem called the crown. In order to properly identify each of these species it is first important to understand basic turfgrass morphology and growth as well as how this may impact identification and selection. While many of these turfgrass species share similar characteristics, there are distinguishing factors among each species that often make them unique. These often serve as perennial ground covers in home lawns, athletic fields, golf courses, roadsides, etc. However, there are also at least 12 species that are widely used as turfgrasses. Many of these species serve as a source of food, forage, biofuels, soil and land conservation, and ornamentals. There are over 10,000 species of grasses in the Poaceae family and over 700 species of grasses found in Texas.
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