Zoysia Research Articles

Growth-Promoting Bacteria, Silicon Supply and Nitrogen Fertilization in Zoysia Grass Production Area

ABSTRACT One of the alternatives for reducing nitrogen fertilization is the use of plant growth-promoting bacteria (PGPB), such as Pseudomonas fluorescens and Azospirillum brasilense, which can provide a sustainable form of production, with increased profitability for rural producers, because bacteria are a low-cost technology compared to fertilizer. In view of the above, the objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of inoculation with plant growth-promoting bacteria (P. fluorescens and A. brasilense) combined with the supply or not of Si and doses of nitrogen (N) in zoysia grass sod production area. The experimental design was in randomized blocks with 12 treatments arranged in a 3 × 2 × 2 factorial scheme, with four replications, in plots of 9 m2. The treatments were: two inoculations with PGPB (A. brasilense and P. fluorescens) and non-inoculated, combined with two doses of N, with or without supply of Si through fertilization (through the commercial fertilizer known as Potasil). There was an increase in the shoot dry matter with the supply of Si, the standard dose of N and the inoculation with PGPB. The standard dose of N promoted an increase in the content of nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P) and potassium (K) in the shoot of Zoysia japonica. There was an effect of inoculation with plant growth-promoting bacteria combined with the supply of silicon and N rates in the zoysia grass production area, where the use of Pseudomonas combined with the application of Si with 75% of the N dose is recommended.

Effects of foliar silicon and nitrogen applications on winter color retention and spring green-up of zoysia grass

Zoysia japonica Steud. (zoysia grass), with its high drought, shade, and salt tolerance, it is an excellent choice for green areas. However, in regions with subtropical climates, it goes into winter dormancy with a loss of green color and functionality, which is a main barrier to its widespread use. The application of silicon and nitrogen in fall was hypothesized to enhance winter color retention of Z. japonica. This study assessed the impact of fall (late-season) nitrogen (0, 2.5, or 5.0 g/m2 ammonium sulfate) and foliar silicon (0, 3, or 6 mL/L potassium silicate) applications on the winter color retention of Z. japonica grown in the field. The experiment was conducted over two consecutive growing seasons in Antalya, Türkiye. Turfgrass quality, color, chlorophyll content, shoot density, and winter dormancy were all improved by late-season nitrogen application. Overall, two sequential nitrogen applications at 5 g/m2 in fall provided 65% to 100% green coverage with acceptable turfgrass quality during fall and winter, indicating the possibility of maintaining the year-round green color of Z. japonica in subtropical climates. However, the silicon treatment did not affect the winter color retention of Z. japonica. The apparent lack of a beneficial response of Z. japonica to the silicon application might be due to the dose, application methods, and silicon source.

Effect of Salinity on Warm Season Turf Grass Species

The demand for salinity tolerant turf grasses is increasing due to augmented use of effluent or low-quality water for turf irrigation. Fresh water, along with soil Stalinization in many locations, has raised the requirement for salt-tolerant turf grass screening. Physiological responses to salinity and relative salt tolerance of Five C4 turf grasses, two variety ofCynodon dactylon(Bermuda grass), Zoysia matrella (Manilla grass), Zoysia japonica(Zoysia Grass) and Paspalum notatum(Bahia grass) were investigated during the study at Department of Horticulture Sam Higginbottom University of Agriculture Technology and Science, Prayagraj. Turf grasses were planted in plastic pots filled with sand: cocopeat: vermiculite (2:1:1) and irrigated with different concentration of salinity levels (0.6, 5.0, 10.0, 15 dS m-1). Salinity tolerance was evaluated based on leaf length leaf Wirth leaf firing, shoots and root growth reduction, proline content, total chlorophyll content RGB content and relative water content was subjected to analysis of variance. Among the four turf grass species Bahia grass found to be most salt tolerant turf grass followed by Z. matrella while Zosia japonica was least tolerant turf grass against salt stress.

Identification of new cold tolerant Zoysia grass species using high-resolution RGB and multi-spectral imaging

Zoysia grass (Zoysia spp.) is the most widely used warm-season turf grass in Korea due to its durability and resistance to environmental stresses. To develop new longer-period greenness cultivars, it is essential to screen germplasm which maintains the greenness at a lower temperature. Conventional methods are time-consuming, laborious, and subjective. Therefore, in this study, we demonstrate an objective and efficient method to screen maintaining longer greenness germplasm using RGB and multispectral images. From August to December, time-series data were acquired and we calculated green cover percentage (GCP), Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), Normalized Difference Red Edge Index (NDRE), Soil-adjusted Vegetation Index (SAVI), and Enhanced Vegetation Index (EVI) values of germplasm from RGB and multispectral images by applying vegetation indexs. The result showed significant differences in GCP, NDVI, NDRE, SAVI, and EVI among germplasm (p < 0.05). The GCP, which evaluated the quantity of greenness by counting pixels of the green area from RGB images, exhibited maintenance of greenness over 90% for August and September but, sharply decrease from October. The study found significant differences in GCP and NDVI among germplasm. san208 exhibiting over 90% GCP and high NDVI values during 153 days. In addition, we also conducted assessments using various vegetation indexes, namely NDRE, SAVI, and EVI. san208 exhibited NDRE levels exceeding 3% throughout this period. As for SAVI, it initially started at approximately 38% and gradually decreased to around 4% over the course of these days. Furthermore, for the month of August, it recorded approximately 6%, but experienced a decline from about 9% to 1% between September and October. The complementary use of both indicators could be an efficient method for objectively assessing the greenness of turf both quantitatively and qualitatively.

Effects of silica nanoparticles on root characteristics of Zoysia grass and rill detachment capacity in soils treated with hydromulch

It is well known that hydromulching is an appropriate method for controlling runoff and soil erosion. Also, the addition of silica nanoparticles (Nsi) in soil in various ways has been found to be a beneficial technique to improve root characteristics. However, few studies have explored the effects of silica nanoparticles produced from rice husk (as a crop that is exceedingly plentiful in many Asian countries) on soil erosion processes, particularly rill erosion due to overland flow in deforested lands. To fill this gap, this study has evaluated the impacts of root growth induced by silica nanoparticles (Nsi) on the rill detachment capacity (Dc) and erodibility (Kr) in the hydromulched soil samples, compared to the control soil samples in deforested lands of Northern Iran. Dc has been measured by a hydraulic flume under four bed slopes (7.3, 13.9, 18.5, and 23.4%) and five water discharges (0.25, 0.36, 0.47, 0.59, and 0.72 L m−1 s−1) with six replications per experiment. Moreover, after the application of hydromulch on soil surface and the growth of grass, root traits (root diameter, root length, root biomass and root weight density) were measured. The results show that rill detachment capacity was lower (on average −59%) in the hydromulched soil with the presence of silica nanoparticles compared to the untreated plot (P < 0.01). Dc was negatively correlated with the root length, root biomass and root weight density. Conversely, as the root diameter increased, the Dc increased. Rill erodibility, obtained by regressing Dc on shear stress, was noticeably lower (-86%) in the hydromulched soil with the presence of silica nanoparticles compared to the bare plot. Overall, the results of this study confirm that the effects of silica nanoparticles on growth development of root traits and the reduction of soil erosion appear to be impactful, especially on steep slopes.

Vegetative Flow Resistance for Erosion Control Using Grass Species from the Caribbean Region

Vegetative channels convey runoff effectively, prevent flooding, protect soil against erosion, avoid the formation of gullies, maintain adequate water quality, and reduce the generation of sediments. The degree of retardance as a measure of the drag force on the vegetation cover is a crucial parameter for determining resistance to water flow in these channels. This research developed a new procedure to assess Manning’s coefficient and retardance index for vegetation using four Caribbean Area grass species: Bahía Grass (Paspalum notatum), Zoysia Grass (Zoysia sp.), Pangola Grass (Digitaria eriantha), and Bermuda Grass (Cynodon dactylon). The USDA-NRCS Caribbean Area identified 16 species as vegetative lining for waterways and proposed a classification according to the degree of vegetative retardance. The category for these species was developed for use in the Western Gulf Region and required validation for the Caribbean region. A modified universal log law fitted the velocity distributions above the vegetative lining in the experiments. The energy equation for a gradually varied flow, the momentum equation, and Manning’s equation provided a solution for Manning’s coefficient. The procedure allowed us to assign a degree of retardance to the species obtained by comparing Manning’s coefficients with those from USDA-NRCS. Results show that retardance degrees published in the Puerto Rico Erosion and Sedimentation Control Handbook for Developing Areas apply to the species tested in this project. This research identified a new retardance degree for Pangola grass when the plant height is less than 0.15 m. The experimental values for Manning’s coefficient are also recommended for use in overland flow conditions.

High-performance ionic polymer actuators with Triple-layered multifunctional electrodes

Ionic polymer actuators have attracted attention in recent years due to their remarkably large strain under low-voltage stimulation. However, a key challenge for fabricating high-performance ionic polymer actuators is to develop a firm electrode with high electrical conductivity and electrochemical performance. Herein, inspired by the structure of zoysia grass, we proposed an efficient method to prepare the triple-layered multifunctional electrodes capable of low surface resistance (∼3.4 Ω/□), high adhesion (∼328 KPa) and good electrochemical performance for ionic polymer actuators. Through the spraying and impregnation-electroplating (IEP), three functional layers of multifunctional electrodes are obtained, including MWCNTs/Nafion interfacial layer, Ag NWs fixed layer and Ag NWs@Au layer, which respectively contribute to the charge storage in the electrode, high strength and the uniform and fast charge distribution. The synergic effect of these three functional layers maintains a high stability of multifunctional electrodes after being immersed in DI water for 7 days or 1500 bending cycles, and greatly enhances the actuation performance of ionic polymer actuators, resulting in an extreme bending deformation (increasing by 460%). This work represents an important step towards ionic polymer actuators where the synergic effect in electrodes plays an important role in promoting electrochemical actuation performance.

Reduction in soil detachment capacity by inoculation of bacillus polymyxa strain BcP26 in deforested lands

The beneficial effects of rhizobacteria in increasing plant growth, nutrient uptake and rhizosphere soil aggregation are well known. However, few investigations have explored the impacts of these bacteria on soil erosion processes, particularly for the parameters used in rill erosion. To fill this gap, this investigation has evaluated the effects of growth of Zoysia grass roots induced by bacillus polymyxa strain BcP26 on the rill detachment capacity (Dc) and rill erodibility (Kr) in the treated soil, compared to the control soil by a paired sample t-test with six replications for each experiment in deforested lands of Northern Iran. For measuring Dc, a hydraulic flume was used at five slopes (4.3%–38.2%) and five water discharges (0.29–0.69 l m−1 s−1). Three characteristics of roots including the length, biomass and weight density of roots were measured. Dc was lower (on average - 24% for the average slopes) in the treated soil with the bacillus strain (PB) compared to the control soil (AB). Rill erodibility (Kr), obtained by the relationship between Dc and the shear stress, also was significantly lower (−60%) in the PB soil compared to the control soil. A principal component analysis provided a significant combined factor (the first principal component) that revealed an obvious discrimination in rill detachment capacity between treated and control soils. This value of rill erodibility for deforested lands is contributory for modelling purposes of soil resistance to rill erosion. It is concluded that, thanks to the bacillus strain used as one of plant growth promoting rhizobacteria, soil erosion is significantly (at p < 0.01) reduced, and this strain contributes to reduce the risk of soil degradation.

Carbon sequestration by plant species used in green roofs across different periods

ABSTRACT This study evaluated the influence of three plant species and two periods on the amount of carbon stored in the substrate in an extensive green roof. The study was carried out in March and September 2020 at Charles Darwin Business Garage Building, Recife, Pernambuco state, Brazil. A completely randomized design with a split-plot scheme was adopted, with plant species (zoysia grass [Zoysia japonica], inch plant [Tradescantia zebrina], and fountain grass [Pennisetum setaceum]) allocated to plots and the material collection periods (March and September) to subplots. The CO2 and organic carbon concentrations in the substrate were quantified. Thirty samples were obtained from the substrate during each period. No statistically significant difference was observed in CO2 content among species treatments; however, there was a significant difference between the two periods evaluated, with average values of 14.05 and 96.97 mg in March and September, respectively. Therefore, September has the greatest potential for CO2 storage in the substrate. Significant differences were observed in organic carbon concentrations among species and between periods, with average values of 95.05 and 129.22 g kg-1 for fountain grass and inch plant, respectively, and 131.15 and 100.81 g kg-1 in March and September, respectively.

Fertilization of Imperial® Zoysia grass in different substrates compositions

The lawn may receive attention in very different ways. Regarding sports lawns, these are carefully handled from installation to maintenance. On the other hand, ornamental lawns may be treated as a background, especially in civil constructions in which they are the last to be worked. In this case, the soil that remains for its installation is severely compacted and without fertility. In any case, the base for lawn installation is very important and also, fertilization should be taken into account, as if made in wrong way may culminates in excess grass growth which is undesirable, since it leads to increase of cuts, burdening the system. Thus, The objective of this work was to evaluate Imperial® Zoysia grass (Zoysiajaponica) development cultivated in different substrates compositions and fertilizations applications. Grass was planted in black plastic containers. The experimental design was factorial scheme 3×3 (substrates x types of fertilizers) with four replicates. Plots were submitted to three substrate combination: soil; soil + sand (1:1) and soil + sand + soil conditioner (1:1:1). Fertilization application was made using three commercial grass fertilizers incorporated into the substrates (30 g m-2) and one control without fertilizer. At 15 days after planting it was evaluated leaves fresh and dry mass, Falker Chlorophyll Index (FCI) and leaf analysis of N and S. The best result obtained was the cultivation of Imperial® Zoysia grass in substrate formed by soil, sand and soil conditioner without the necessity of fertilization.

Development of lawns in response to applications of imazapic alone or combined with imazapyr

ABSTRACT Successive mowings are the major maintenance cost of lawns. These costs have led to the search for alternatives to mechanical management. This study aimed to determine the effects of imazapic herbicide doses applied alone or combined with imazapyr as a growth regulator of Tifton 419 and Zoysia grasses. The experimental design was randomized blocks with four replicates, and the treatments consisted of four doses of herbicide imazapic applied alone (35; 70; 105 and 140 g a.i. ha-1) and three doses of imazapic + imazapyr mixture (7.875 + 2.625; 15.57 + 5.25 and 23.625 + 7.875 g a.i. ha-1) in two sequential applications on both grass lawns. Visible injury symptoms, canopy height, height and number of inflorescences, and total dry matter of clippings were determined. Applications of imazapic alone or combined with imazapyr effectively reduced all morphological variables of Tifton 419 grass. Imazapic applied alone or mixed with imazapyr provided adequate control of growth and quantity of dry matter of Zoysia grass clippings. Still, with some application doses of this herbicide, the number of inflorescences present in the lawns increased.

Seed Yields and Germinabilities of Zoysiagrass Species, Cultivars and Seed Type Breeding Lines

Seed Yields and Germinabilities of Zoysiagrass Species, Cultivars and Seed Type Breeding Lines

First report of Rhizoctonia solani Kühn AG 2-2 LP in Zoyzia japonica Steud in Brazil

ABSTRACT The use of cultivated grasses in Brazil has grown by 40% between 2010 and 2015, and the species Zoysia japonica Steud, especially the cultivar ‘Esmeralda’, corresponds to 81% of the grass market in the country. The most important disease affecting zoysia grass, known as large patch, is caused by Rhizoctonia solani and occurs in the Brazilian lawns particularly during winter months. The aim of this study was to contribute to the identification and characterization of the anastomosis group of R. solani isolates from lesions typical of large patch collected from ‘Esmeralda’ grass at gardens and golf courses in the states of São Paulo and Bahia, Brazil. All 12 obtained isolates presented dark-brown colonies with aerial mycelial growth, multinucleated hyphae and absence of concentric zonation or sclerotia, and showed their greatest mycelial growth rate at 25°C. In pathogenicity experiments, except three out of R. solani isolates, reduced the growth of zoysia grass. Based on the analysis of sequences of the rDNA-ITS region, the isolates clustered with reference isolates of the anastomosis group AG 2-2 LP. Phylogenetic inference showed that the Brazilian isolates are grouped into two clades that shared the same common ancestral with 96% bootstrap. One of the clades includes only Brazilian isolates while the other one also includes American and Japanese R. solani isolates AG 2-2 LP. This is the first report and characterization of R. solani AG 2-2 LP in zoysiagrass in Brazil.

Effect of Shading and Mowing on the Growth of Indonesia’s Native Zoysia grass in Silty Clay Soil

&lt;p&gt;In general, turfgrass grows well and forms high quality turf under full sun exposure. It is very difficult, however, to grow a warm season turfgrass under shaded condition. Zoysia grass is a popular warm season grass that commonly grow under full sun exposure condition. There are limited information regarding the growth response and turf quality of zoysia grass when grown under shaded condition. This study aims to observe the growth and quality of various zoysia grass local cultivars at different shading intensities and different mowing. This research was carried out using 10 zoysia grass cultivars planted in the rice fields’ vertisol clay with randomized complete block design. The shading used were control, shade-nets with 25% and 65% hole densities. Zoysia grass was fertilized using NPK; 4:1:3 and mowed three times. The results showed that plants without shade, 25% and 65% received on average solar irradiance of 25,141; 12,456 and 3,727 lux. The increase in shade level decreased the shoot fresh weight, dry weight, root dry weight and the plant height. Shading and frequent mowing effected the plant height. Mowing has more effect on plant height in 25% shading than in 65% shading. The increase in shading, in mowed grass showed increased plant height and decreased plant dry weight. Mowing three times can reduce plant height in all shades. The grasses under 25% shading resulted the highest plant dry weight; whereas and shading 65% resulted the lowest. Plant dry weight and uniformity of turf were affected by the cultivars.&lt;/p&gt;

Physiological and transcriptomic analyses reveal the mechanisms underlying the salt tolerance of Zoysia japonica Steud

BackgroundAreas with saline soils are sparsely populated and have fragile ecosystems, which severely restricts the sustainable development of local economies. Zoysia grasses are recognized as excellent warm-season turfgrasses worldwide, with high salt tolerance and superior growth in saline-alkali soils. However, the mechanism underlying the salt tolerance of Zoysia species remains unknown.ResultsThe phenotypic and physiological responses of two contrasting materials, Zoysia japonica Steud. Z004 (salt sensitive) and Z011 (salt tolerant) in response to salt stress were studied. The results show that Z011 was more salt tolerant than was Z004, with the former presenting greater K+/Na+ ratios in both its leaves and roots. To study the molecular mechanisms underlying salt tolerance further, we compared the transcriptomes of the two materials at different time points (0 h, 1 h, 24 h, and 72 h) and from different tissues (leaves and roots) under salt treatment. The 24-h time point and the roots might make significant contributions to the salt tolerance. Moreover, GO and KEGG analyses of different comparisons revealed that the key DEGs participating in the salt-stress response belonged to the hormone pathway, various TF families and the DUF family.ConclusionsZoysia salt treatment transcriptome shows the 24-h and roots may make significant contributions to the salt tolerance. The auxin signal transduction family, ABA signal transduction family, WRKY TF family and bHLH TF family may be the most important families in Zoysia salt-stress regulation.

Temperature, potassium nitrate, substrate, and harvesting time on the germination of zoysia grass seeds

Abstract Zoysia japonica grass has commercial importance to Brazil due to its use in golf courses and football stadiums. The main concern about its commercial cultivation is the unevenness on seed germination as well as the ideal seed harvesting time. Therefore, the objective was to measure the effect of temperature and potassium nitrate on dormancy overcoming, and of substrate and harvesting time on germination of zoysia grass seeds (Zoysia japonica Steud). There were three experiments: 1) temperature and potassium nitrate treatments, with six temperature conditions (constants at 20 ˚C, 25 ˚C, 30 ˚C, and 35 ˚C, and alternating at 20-30 ˚C and 20-35 ˚C), under absence or presence of potassium nitrate; 2) temperature and substrate treatments, with two temperature conditions (alternating at 20-30 ˚C and 20-35 ˚C) and three types of substrates (on paper, between paper, and on sand); and 3) harvesting time treatments, which seeds were obtained by manual harvesting comprising 11 harvesting periods. Seeds germinated more rapidly on the sand and paper, at the alternating temperature of 20-35 °C. The best period for seed harvesting was from 18 to 19 days after ear emergence in the production field.

Evaluation of Selected Large Patch-Tolerant Zoysia spp. for Performance in Kansas

Evaluation of Selected Large Patch-Tolerant Zoysia spp. for Performance in Kansas

Sewage sludge compost in zoysia grass sod production

This study evaluated whether the use of composted sewage sludge in zoysia grass sod production can partially or completely substitute fertilization based on urea. The experiment was conducted on a sod farm located in Itapetininga, São Paulo State, Brazil. The experimental design was a complete randomized block design with five replications and experimental plots of 5 m2 in a 2x6 factorial scheme. The first factor was the method of application (single or split), and the second factor was composted sewage sludge fertilization and two controls (no fertilization and a standard dose of conventional fertilizer). The conventional fertilizer (urea) dose corresponds to 300 kg N ha-1 and the sewage compost doses correspond to 100, 200, 300, and 400 kg N ha-1 . The experiment began with the liming of the total area at 60 days after the previous harvest of zoysia grass sod. Three methods were used to evaluate sod production: soil cover rate, green color intensity, and leaf analysis. At 212 days after the beginning of the experiment, the compost treatment of 30 Mg ha-1 (300 kg ha-1 of N), applied in a single dose, allowed for complete sod formation (100% soil cover rate).

Telhados verdes: uma análise da influência das espécies vegetais na retenção de água de chuva

Com o aumento da população urbana mundial, problemas urbanos passam a ser recorrentes, como por exemplo, as inundações em decorrência da precipitação. Ações que minimizem os impactos ambientais do processo de urbanização passam a ser necessárias, uma dessas ações é a aplicação de telhados verdes, que devido as suas propriedades retém parte da água da chuva e ainda retardam o escoamento dessa água. Alguns estudos demonstram a capacidade de retenção dos telhados verdes, entretanto, sem vincular ao tipo de vegetação. O objetivo da presente pesquisa é verificar a influência da espécie vegetal, utilizada em telhados verdes, na retenção e água de chuva na cidade de Curitiba. Através do estudo em seis espécies vegetais diferentes Bulbine frutescens, Tradescantia zebrina variação Purpusii, Sedum mexicanum, Callisia repens, Arachis Repens e Zoysia tenuifolia. Com esta análise pode-se perceber que existe uma variação de retenção significativa em função da espécie vegetal, sendo que a espécie Bulbine frutescens apresentou o melhor desempenho entre as espécies analisadas.

Analysis of leaf tissue structures between rust-resistant and rust-susceptible Zoysia grass (Zoysia japonica)

The differences of leaf anatomic structures between rust-susceptible and -resistant zoysia (Zoysia japonica) were compared to reveal the physical defense mechanism of rust-resistant zoysia against Puccinia zoysiae. Zoysias were screened in greenhouse and fields of Beijing, Qingdao and Yangzhou from 2009 to 2012. After identified by inoculation test, rust-susceptible and rust-resistant zoysias were transplanted to flowerpots in Shangzhuang test field (Beijing, China) and were divided into indoor and outdoor groups. Leaves in the same position and formed in the same growth period of both rust-susceptible and rust-resistant zoysia strains were chosen for the current study. Wax content, the number and size of stomata, and the thickness of palisade tissue, spongy tissue, upper epidermis and lower epidermis were analyzed. All the anatomic structures of leaves stained with toluidine blue were observed under microscope. Leaf epidermis wax contents of rust-susceptible zoysia in indoor and outdoor groups were 30 and 39% lower than that of rust-resistant zoysia (p < 0.05), respectively. The number of stomata in rust-resistant zoysia was 68% more than that in susceptible ones (p < 0.05). Stomata of rust-resistant zoysia were 45% shorter and 65% narrower than those of rust-susceptible zoysia (p < 0.05). The thickness of spongy parenchyma and palisade tissue in rust-resistant zoysia was significantly higher than that of the susceptible samples (p < 0.05). Cell structure tightness and cell structure looseness of rust-resistant zoysia were tighter than that of rust-susceptible zoysia. Our study provides a histological understanding of the resistance mechanism of rust-resistant zoysia and might be useful for the identification of resistant varieties.