Color assessment of selected lawn grass mixtures

Abstract

AbstractThe three‐year experiment dealt with 12 lawn grass mixtures with different composition of species and varieties. Two sowing rates were applied: N1‐25 g/m2 and N2‐35 g/m2. Lawn colors were assessed in spring, summer and autumn with the visual method, with a 1–9 scale assigning a score to each plot of grass according to the Royal Horticultural Society Colour Chart. It was found that in the spring the mixtures with the highest proportions of Festuca rubra L. and in the summer and autumn those where Poa pratensis L. dominated had the best color. The effect of the sowing rate was studied only in the summer and autumn. On average, the best and darkest color was reported in the spring and summer. The least intense color of the lawns was in the second year of the studies due to weather conditions during that growing period, affecting the level of chlorophyll in plant leaves. It was found that a definite choice of a lawn mixture was extremely difficult and should be preceded by a detailed analysis of local conditions. The species and varieties selected for a lawn should ensure the right color as long as possible during the growing season.