Seashore Paspalum –The Environmental Turfgrass

 

“A new grass for a new era”. That is how Robert Carrow and Ron Duncan describe seashore paspalum. And in this book, which deals solely with seashore paspalum, the two authors provide an extensive look into this impressive and increasingly attractive turfgrass species. The 21st Century has already brought about significant changes within the turf industry, particularly from an environmental standpoint where closer scrutiny of pesticide, fertiliser and irrigation practices has become prevalent.

Water quality and quantity issues have and will result in major shifts in turf to the utilisation of treated effluent of varying quality. Seashore paspalum provides an alternative grass of comparable texture and quality to the hybrid couchgrasses that can tolerate effluent, brackish and seawater blends.

Use of variable quality water resources subsequently changes management strategies. Choice of salt-tolerant grass cultivars becomes an increasingly important consideration, since selecting salt-sensitive species can double management costs.

In this book, Carrow and Duncan outline the basic science, history, and management protocols for seashore paspalum, presenting information from three basic perspectives;

• Specific scheduling of regular maintenance practices (fertilisation, irrigation, pest control, mowing);
• Specific industry use (golf courses, athletic fields, lawns and landscapes, sod production); and
• Specific environmental stress situations (use of effluent water, sites using seawater or those affected by salt water intrusion, acid soil, complex soils, environmentally sensitive wetland sites.  

The authors hope the book will establish a precedent within the turf industry regarding information packaging and providing an operational manual for turf managers when new cultivars are released for industry use.