Morphology and Growth of Bahiagrass at Three Rates of Nitrogen

‘Pensacola’ bahiagrass, Paspalum notatum Flugge, is an important grass in the tropics and subtropics, including large areas in the southern part of the United States. Bahiagrass grows by adding new phytomers each with a bud, internode, node, leaf sheath, and blade and usually a root on each tiller growing at the terminal end of horizontal stolons. Rate of phytomer generation and growth/tiller determines forage production and an understanding of phytomer production and component longivity is essential for its effective management. N fertilization influences tiller numbers and possibly rate of phytomer generation and growth. This greenhouse investigation was concerned with rate of tillering and phytomer production and component growth/tiller over 90‐day growth periods when fertilized with 0, 100, and 300 kg/ha of N. Tiller initiation in bahiagrass was relatively slow, and over the 90‐day period each original tiller produced one new tiller when no N was applied and three new tillers when 300 kg/ha N was applied. New leaf (phytomer) production ranged from 9.5 to 9.8/tiller for the 90 day period; total phytomer production was not influenced by N fertilization level. Leaves lived for 54 to 60 days and on N fertilized treatments leaf blades were slightly wider but no longer than were leaf blades on unfertilized treatments. N fertilization tended to accelerate phytomer development for 40 days following application and to delay it for the following 50 days as compared to that of the no N check.