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Evapotranspiration and quality characteristics of some bermudagrass turf cultivars under deficit irrigation
Author(s) -
Aydinsakir Koksal,
Buyuktas Dursun,
Bastug Ruhi,
Yilmaz Serpil
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
grassland science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.388
H-Index - 19
eISSN - 1744-697X
pISSN - 1744-6961
DOI - 10.1111/grs.12135
Subject(s) - cynodon dactylon , irrigation , cultivar , evapotranspiration , cynodon , agronomy , environmental science , mediterranean climate , pan evaporation , biology , ecology
This study was carried out to determine the effects of deficit irrigation on evapotranspiration and quality of bermudagrass ( Cynodon dactylon L.) turfgrass cultivars under Mediterranean conditions. Eight bermudagrass turf cultivars ‘Blackjack’, ‘Mohawk’, ‘Princess’, ‘Riviera’, ‘Sahara’, ‘Sultan’, ‘Swi–1044’ and ‘Swi–1045’ were used. Irrigation experiments were conducted from June to October 2008. Experimental plots were irrigated at 7 days intervals, at three levels of irrigation based on the potential evaporation as measured by a Class A pan (Epan) as follows I 1 = 0.50 Epan, I 2 = 0.75 Epan and I 3 = 1.00 Epan. Volumetric soil water content was measured using soil moisture meter before and after irrigation. It was found that the irrigation levels affect sward color, visual quality and leaf firing. Among the cultivars, ‘Swi–1045’ and ‘Princess’ showed the best color and quality while ‘Mohawk’ and ‘Sultan’ gave the poorest color and quality in all irrigation levels. No statistically significant differences between I 1 and I 2 irrigation treatments were obtained in terms of color, quality and leaf firing for bermudagrass cultivars. It is concluded that when the amount of water is limited in arid and semiarid regions such as the Mediterranean, the bermudagrass can be irrigated at a level of 50% of pan evaporation to get an acceptable visual quality with improved water conservation.