REPORT OF PROJECT COMMITTEE ON TURF CULTURE
SEEDED OR SODDED GRASSES ON ROADSIDE SLOPE AREAS ARE OFTEN REPLACED BY HERBACEOUS OR WOODY GROUND COVERS OR TREE GROWTH WITHOUT DISADVANTAGE IN THE CONTROL OF EROSION. ON OTHER AREAS SUCH AS ROAD SHOULDERS IT IS IMPORTANT TO OBTAIN A TURF WITH CERTAIN DESIRED CHARACTERISTICS. ONE TYPE OF SEEDING SPECIFICATION FREQUENTLY OBSERVED CALLS FOR ONE OR TWO KINDS OF GRASSES CAREFULLY SELECTED FOR KNOWN REASONS TO MEET KNOWN SOIL AND CLIMATIC CONDITIONS. A SECOND TYPE OF SPECIFICATION TOO OFTEN CALLS FOR A HAPHAZARD "SHOTGUN" MIXTURE INCLUDING MOST OF THE KINDS OF GRASSES OR LEGUMES KNOWN TO THE SPECIFICATION WRITER. BECAUSE DESIRABLE SEEDS ARE NOW A LARGE ITEM IN TOTAL COSTS OF TURF ESTABLISHMENT "SHOTGUN" METHODS OF SPECIFICATION WRITING ARE TO BE AVOIDED. A SECOND BASIS FOR SEED SELECTION LIES IN CAREFUL EXAMINATION OF ROADSIDE AREAS SEEDED WITH KNOWN GRASS-SEED MIXTURES IN PREVIOUS YEARS. OFTEN A KIND OF GRASS THAT FORMED A VERY SMALL PERCENTAGE OF ORIGINAL GRASS-SEED POUNDAGE WILL BE FOUND TO HAVE FORMED NINETY PERCENT OR MORE OF THE EXISTING TURF. IN THIS CASE, GRASSES FORMING A LARGE PERCENTAGE OF THE ORIGINAL SEED MIXTURE WERE NOT WISELY CHOSEN. IN SOME REGIONS CERTAIN FESCUES, BLUEGRASSES OR BERMUDA GRASS WILL COME IN NO MATTER WHAT KINDS OF GRASSES WERE ORIGINALLY SEEDED, SPRIGGED, OR SODDED. ELSEWHERE THE PROPER CHOICE OF A GRASS SPECIES TO BE ESTABLISHED CAN ONLY BE DECIDED BY FIELD OBSERVATION OF AREAS SEEDED WITH KNOWN SEED MIXTURES IN FORMER YEARS. ACCURATE FIELD OBSERVATION, RATHER THAN COMPLICATED RESEARCH EXPERIMENTS, IS LIKELY TO GIVE THE BEST ANSWERS TO PROBLEMS OF SEED SPECIFICATION WRITING. /AUTHOR/
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Supplemental Notes:
- Distribution, posting, or copying of this PDF is strictly prohibited without written permission of the Transportation Research Board of the National Academy of Sciences. Unless otherwise indicated, all materials in this PDF are copyrighted by the National Academy of Sciences. Copyright © National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.
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Authors:
- MONTEITH, J
- Publication Date: 1949
Media Info
- Media Type: Digital/other
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Serial:
- Highway Research Board Roadside Development Committee Reports
- Publisher: Highway Research Board
Subject/Index Terms
- TRT Terms: Grasses; Mixtures; Planting; Seeds; Slopes; Specifications
- Subject Areas: Design; Environment; Highways;
Filing Info
- Accession Number: 00205015
- Record Type: Publication
- Report/Paper Numbers: pp 104 - 106
- Files: TRIS, TRB
- Created Date: Dec 13 1971 12:00AM