Different Grasses on the Greens

Many will notice our greens look like a patch work quilt, this is due to the many different species of grasses we have on our greens.  Over the almost 100 years of our greens existence, the greens have evolved into what they are today through grass selection or the strongest survive selection.  All of the different looking patches on the greens, such as visible in the picture above, are a strain of Poa Annua.  This grass has been around forever and is the main intruder or weed in any green setting.  We cannot remove poa so we manage it the best we can and can obviously make it work well in our green setting.  The older perennial type poa's like we have, actually are a better putting surface than most bentgrass cultivars on the market today.  The problem with poa is that it produces seed heads and can impede smooth ball roll.  We time the application of growth regulators in the spring to inhibit or eliminate the seed from forming.

Mike O'Neill
GCS