New Bahiagrass Cultivars for Southern US.

Forage availability over the cool season is important since most perennial summer grasses in the southern region become dormant during the late fall and livestock must rely on conserved forage and/or supplements during that period. Several recently released bahiagrass (Paspalum notatum Flügge) cultivars are higher yielding, have improved cold tolerance or are more winter hardy than conventional bahiagrass. The genetic improvement in bahiagrass through plant breeding has produced new cultivars with desirable traits and a renewed interest in this C4 forage grass. IVOMD analyses of these new bahiagrass cultivars show improvement in forage quality, in addition to the improved yield and seasonal distribution of forage production. Comparison of performance of these new cultivars will be discussed.