Tifton Turfgrass Breeding

Homeowners, turfgrass managers, sod producers, and city planners benefit from turf through soil erosion control, water filtration, recreation, and aesthetic value. Ever-changing stresses challenge the sustainability of established turfgrass stands. The development of reduced input turfgrasses through plant breeding could offer an attractive alternative as irrigation, fertilizer, and pesticide prices rise or become less available. Turfgrass breeding efforts at the UGA Tifton Campus are focused on the development of stress tolerant grasses that will be more sustainable than older varieties. Turfgrasses developed in Tifton during the past 15 years, including TifSport, TifBlair, TifEagle, and TifGrand, have been licensed to numerous growers in many countries and have been planted across the globe. TifTuf bermudagrass, released in 2014 on the basis of its drought tolerance, wear resistance, persistence in the shade and widespread adaptability, has been distributed to 32 sod producers across the United States and internationally. New efforts have been initiated at UGA to develop new zoysiagrasses that are more vigorous, disease tolerant, and pest resistant than currently available cultivars. Nearly 70 laboratory, greenhouse, and field evaluations are under way to maintain the pipeline that has provided leading turfgrass cultivars for over a half century. Collaboration with other institutions has included work with Purdue University, the University of Tennessee, and the University of Arizona to test advanced turfgrasses for stresses not found in Tifton. In 2015, the turfgrass breeding programs at UGA were awarded a four-year, $4.4 million USDA-NIFA grant to evaluate hybrids developed for persistence, survival, and recovery under limited irrigation and long-term drought in a partnership with the University of Florida, Texas A&M University, Oklahoma State University, and North Carolina State University.