Bentgrass Cultivar Performance as Influenced by Light-Weight Rolling and Soil Surfactants.

Recent creeping bentgrass cultivar breeding efforts have focused on improved summer performance and dollar spot resistance. Extensive field data for these newest cultivars as affected by various management practices is lacking. A multi-year field study evaluated the effect of light-weight rolling, (0, 3, or 5 wk^-1) and monthly soil surfactant applications on the performance of the cultivars: Penn A-4, 007 and Declaration grown on a sand-based rootzone. Declaration and 007 provided superior visual appearance to Penn A-4, primarily due to substantially reduced dollar spot incidence and severity. Cultivars ranked Declaration>007>Penn A-4 for dollar spot resistance when averaged across rolling and surfactant treatments. Rolling ≥ 3 wk^-1 increased ball roll distance, surface firmness, improved visual appearance and often reduced dollar spot incidence. The soil surfactant significantly increased soil water content and improved cultivar appearance. This newest generation of bentgrasses provides surface characteristics > Penn A-4.