PURE SPRIG SOURCE: Our greens committee is planning to re-grass next year. How can we select a grassing contractor who will provide pure, good quality bermudagrass for our putting greens? Palm Beach County

ANSWER: Starting 1 January 1996, certification of all Florida crops, including vegetative bermudagrasses, is administered by the Southern Seed Certification Association (1-334-844-4995, 334-821-7400, FAX 334-844-4901, Box 2619, Auburn, AL 36831).

This is a privatization of a program formerly administered by the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. Certified fields of bermudagrasses (e.g., Tifway 419, Tifdwarf, and Floradwarf) are available to consumers.  According to Association Director Dr. Bob Burdett, the goal is to have three inspections per year of all certified bermudagrass in Florida.  You may also contact the Georgia Seed Development Commission (1-706-542-5640, FAX 706-542-9025, 2420 South Milledge, Athens, GA 30605).   What distinguishes certified stock of any turfgrass is that it must be produced from recently planted foundation stock. According to Dr. Earl Elsner, Director of the Commission, Georgia Tifdwarf growers agreed to limit the maximum interval from planting to final harvest of certified fields to 5 years. This is a welcome tightening of policy which should help reduce the occurrence of off-types.  (Seed Certification Agency and Foundation Seed Organizations are listed by the American Association of Official Seed Certifying Agencies.)

The grassing contractor is sometimes not the producer of the sprigs, therefore the purchaser should retain final authority for approving any subcontractor who supplies the sprigs. There are no absolute guarantees that the grass you purchase will not be contaminated. Check the track record of the prospective contractors, examine their recent jobs (particularly those 1-4 years old), explain your concerns, and discuss any acceptable performance standards. Visit the sod farm. Don't expect to see much, however, because the grass is probably mown too tall to detect bermudagrass differences. According to Mr. John Foy, Regional Director for the United States Golf Association (USGA) Green Section, you might become aware of the grower's emphasis on quality and overall management. Foy says that equipment upkeep, field border maintenance, and other organizational indicators reveal general quality control. As an example, Elsner says that it's actually a bad sign if there are no dead spots where contaminants have been killed with Roundup (glyphosate). It would be better to see evidence of correcting a problem rather than pretending that it doesn't exist. But the job doesn't stop at the sprig field.

Superintendents must closely monitor greens during grow-in and immediately remove off-types. The most effective removal is nonselective chemical (e.g., glyphosate) treatment followed in 2 weeks by meticulous mechanical removal, i.e., digging. According to Elsner, off-types can be recognized at different stages. During grow-in of Tifdwarf, and before being brought down to greens height, off-types will be lighter green, faster growing, and slightly taller 3 to 4 days after mowing. After bringing down the greens to 5/32", the off-types will not maintain sod density and will be rather thin. After 1-3 years, the superintendent should look for areas of light green grass; areas in excess of 12" diameter probably came from the sprig field. "Our experience," said Elsner, "leads us to expect that Tifdwarf greens will have off-color spots within 5 years of establishment, regardless of the purity of the planting material." Nevertheless, he believes that with regular and intensive off-type removal, Tifdwarf greens can be maintained in a pure state (uniform color, density, and putting quality) for many years (one example is 30 years).

Please make your greens committee aware that there are substantial risks and costs, present and future, to keep the greens in that condition. Scientists are working hard to develop new technology to understand the problem of off-type bermudagrass, and to help in its early detection and prevention. But I believe that we must never give up the defense of a sharp eye, a bottle of glyphosate, and a long knife.