Stolon Development in Four Turf‐Type Perennial Ryegrass Cultivars

Abstract

Core Ideas We demonstrate the presence of stolons in all studied cultivars. ‘Sienna’ showed more stolons than ‘RPR’ in terms of length and weight density. ‘Sienna’ reached higher stolon weight, but not length, density than ‘Pizzaz 2’. Stolons were formed in April after the establishment, and rapidly increased in June. The lower seeding rate favor production of stolons and their growth in diameter. Perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne L.) is known as a non‐creeping, bunch‐type species. However, several studies documented the occurrence of a ‘stoloniferous’ or ‘rhizomatous’ habit in this species. This research aimed to study the stolon development in creeping (‘Sienna’ and ‘RPR’) and non‐creeping (‘Apple SGL’ and ‘Pizzaz 2’) type cultivars of perennial ryegrass seeded at three rates (10, 20, and 30 g m−2). Plots were seeded in September 2015 and from December 2015 to July 2017, two core samples (8 cm diameter and 5 cm depth) were collected from each plot every other month. Stolon length density, weight density, and average diameter were estimated, and the specific weight was calculated. Our results demonstrated the presence of stolons in all the tested cultivars. The cultivar ‘Sienna’ showed the highest stolon production followed by ‘Pizzaz 2’ and ‘Apple SGL,’ whereas ‘RPR’ displayed the lowest. The cultivars started to produce stolons in the spring of the first year after establishment, reached the highest level in late summer and maintained production until termination of the study. The lowest seeding rate favored stolon production and their growth in diameter as it produced the highest length density, specific weight, and average diameter.