Revision of the Nordic Turfgrass Variety Guide
Summary
The first ‘Nordic turfgrass variety guide’ was launched in 2007. It was based partly on the STERF project ‘Evaluation of Festuca and Agrostis varieties for use on Scandinavian golf greens’ (2003-2006) and partly on national testing of turfgrass varieties in the Nordic countries from 1980 to 2005. The guide was a ‘heavy’ publication with 125 pages, about 100 of which were variety descriptions. It was well received, but many users asked for simpler ranking lists similar to those published by the STRI /BSPB in the UK. Another response was that the guide would be more useful if variety descriptions were replaced by general information about species.
When publishing the guide in 2007, it was predicted that it would have to be updated every 3-4 years based on data obtained in the SCANGREEN projects funded by STERF and on SCANTURF, a joint Nordic evaluation programme for all types of turf except greens. SCANTURF is coordinated by Bioforsk and funded entirely by variety entrance fees.
When this project started in spring 2011, it was decided to split the guide into two parts:
- A general Grass Guide to be published in both English and Scandinavian languages at STERF website. This guide would advise on turfgrass species, but not go into detail about varieties.
- Variety ranking lists to be published at STERF website and www.scanturf.com
The Grass Guide was presented in September 2012 and is now available in English, Norwegian and Swedish. Besides agronomic descriptions of 15 cool-season species and subspecies, the guide includes tables that rank the grasses for important aesthetic and functional characteristics and show their recommended area of use. It also contains a grass glossary.
The variety lists that are now available include results from various Scandinavian testing programmes since 1985. Amalgamation has been possible because control varieties were mostly the same in all programmes. Varieties for greens are presented separately for a southern Scandinavian zone including Denmark and coastal areas of Southern Sweden and Southern Norway; and a northern zone including Finland, Iceland and the remaining parts of Sweden and Norway. In contrast, varieties for lawns, fairways and football pitches (SCANTURF) are presented as joint lists for the entire Nordic regions because of fewer test sites and less external funding.
It is the intention to update both the SCANGREEN and SCANTURF lists every year in December as new varieties come to the market and others are withdrawn. The first update was made in December 2012. You can find the lists here!
Category: Turfgrass
Status: Finished
Project period: 1 April – Oct 2012
Fundings (kSEK)
| 2011 | Total | |
| STERF | 82 000 | 82 000 |
| Other sources | 0 | 0 |
| SUM | 82 000 | 82 000 |
Prosjektsammendrag (norsk)
Nordisk sortsguide for gras til grøntanlegg ble lansert i 2007 som en sammenfatning av resultater fra sortsprøving i Finland, Sverige, Danmark og Norge etter 1985. I de fire åra som siden er gått er det kommet til flere nye sortsforsøk, og det er behov for oppdatering av guiden. STERF has bevilget penger slik at denne oppdateringen kan fullføres innen utgangen av 2011. Samtidig med inkludering av nye og utelukkelse av gamle sorter som ikke lenger er for salg i Norden, har prosjektgruppa bestemt at guiden skal forenkles og moderniseres i.h.t. følgende retningslinjer:
1. Den reviderte guiden skal trykkes i STERF layout og med gode, illustrerende bilder.
2. Guiden skal inneholde en kort beskrivelse av aktuelle grasarter for grøntanlegg, herunder sterke og svake sider ved de ulike arter, en side pr art.
3. Guiden skal inneholde en anbefaling av arter og artsblandinger for følgende typer grasdekte grøntarealer i de to hovedklimasonene i Norden:
a. Golfgreener, klippehøyde 3-5 mm
b. Fairwayer, utslagssteder og annen kortklipt plen, klippehøyde 8-20 mm
c. Fotballbaner med stor slitasje, klippehøyde 25-40 mm.
d. Semirough og vanlig hageplen, klippehøyde 30-60 mm.
4. Guiden skal inneholde tabeller med aktuelle sorter innenfor hver art, rangert etter avtagende helhetsinntrykk, for ulike typer grasdekte grøntanlegg i de to hovedklimasonene i Norden. Det skal ikke skilles skarpt mellom anbefalte og ikke-anbefalte sorter.
Totalt antall sider i den trykte guiden bør ikke overskride 30, inkludert bilder.
Prosjektgruppa foreslår at den deltaljerte beskrivelsen av ulike sorter, som utgjorde om lag 90 de 125 sidene i 2007-versjonen, tas ut av den trykte guiden og heller gjøres tilgjengelig i form av en database på http://sterf.golf.se.
Project participants
Trygve S. Aamlid
Head of Research
Norwegian Institute for Bioeconomy (NIBIO), Department for Urban Greening and Environmental Technology, Turfgrass Research Group, Landvik, Reddalsveien 215, 4886 Grimstad, Norway.
About STERF
STERF is a research foundation that supports existing and future R&D efforts and delivers ‘ready-to-use research results’ that benefit the Nordic golf sector. STERF was set up in 2006 by the golf federations in Sweden, Denmark, Norway, Finland, Iceland and the Nordic Greenkeepers’ Associations.
