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Foliar Nitrogen Uptake Following Urea Application to Putting Green Turfgrass Species
Author(s) -
Stiegler J. Chris,
Richardson Michael D.,
Karcher Douglas E.
Publication year - 2011
Publication title -
crop science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.76
H-Index - 147
eISSN - 1435-0653
pISSN - 0011-183X
DOI - 10.2135/cropsci2010.06.0377
Subject(s) - biology , cynodon dactylon , urea , nitrogen , agronomy , fertilizer , agrostis , agrostis stolonifera , poaceae , nitrogen fertilizer , botany , chemistry , biochemistry , organic chemistry
Foliar fertilization often comprises a significant portion of the total annual N applied to putting greens. This study was initiated to evaluate the efficiency of this practice under field conditions. 15 N‐labeled urea was used to quantify seasonal uptake of foliar‐applied N by creeping bentgrass ( Agrostis stolonifera var. L. palustris (Huds.) Farw. ‘Penn A1’) and hybrid bermudagrass ( Cynodon dactylon (L.) Pers. × C. transvaalensis Burtt Davy ‘Tifeagle’) managed as putting greens. Urea was spray‐applied monthly, May through September, at rates of 0.5 and 1.25 g N m −2 Both species absorbed urea rapidly, with 24 to 67% of the fertilizer N entering the foliage within 1 h following treatment; peak foliar absorption was generally observed at 4 h after treatment. Percentage of foliar uptake was significantly reduced at higher application rates for both species. In addition, absorption of urea‐N by foliage of both species was affected by month of application and year. When averaged across all sampling times and N rates, foliar absorption percentages were similar between the two species, ranging from 36 to 69% for creeping bentgrass and 38 to 62% for bermudagrass. Overall, foliar absorption efficiency was variable and there were no consistent seasonal trends associated with these differences.