2014 Southeast Hay Convention
Forage Bermudagrass Varieties for
Southeastern Hay Producers
Bermudagrass
Forage Bermudagrass Varieties
for Southeastern Hay Producers
•
Common (seeded)
•
Hybrids (sprigged)
§
Tifton (USDA-ARS & UGA)
Dr. Dennis Hancock
Extension Forage Specialist
Crop and Soil Sciences – UGA
Dr. Bill Anderson
Biomass and Forage Breeder
USDA-ARS Coastal Plain Exp. Station, Tifton
Bermudagrass
•
Common (seeded)
•
Hybrids (sprigged)
§
Dr. Glen Burton
“Father” of forage &
turf bermudagrasses
(1910-2005)
Tifton (USDA-ARS & UGA)
•
Typically very drought tolerant
•
Aggressive and persistent
•
Requires high fertility
(1936-1997*)
Selecting the appropriate variety.
Bermudagrass
•
Varieties differ in quality
•
Vigor
•
Coarseness & drying rate
Dr. Dennis Hancock
Extension Forage Agronomist
1
2014 Southeast Hay Convention
Forage Bermudagrass Varieties for
Southeastern Hay Producers
Coastal
Coastal
• Released 1943
hybrid
forage bermudagrass)
• F1 hybrid a South Africa x
an ecotype found in a S.
Georgia cotton patch.
• Named for Exp. Station
• On ~15 million acres in the
SE US.
• Gold standard against
which other varieties are
measured.
• Tall-growing, intermediate
coarse-stemmed type
Tifton 44
Russell
(1st
§
§
§
§
Rhizomes and stolons
Produces few viable seed
Excellent drought tolerance.
Moderate forage quality
• Establishes well from both
sprigs and clippings (tops).
• Best adapted to the Coastal
Plain and Piedmont areas.
• Not as cold tolerant as
Tifton 44 or Russell.
• Winter-hardy hybrid
released in 1978.
• Natural hybrid found in a
field in Russell Co., in
eastern AL in 1970’s
§ Cross between Coastal and a
winter-hardy bermudagrass
from Germany.
§ CP & digestibility similar to
or slightly lower than
Coastal
§ Finer stems than Tifton 85,
§ Yields well but slightly lower
than Tifton 85
• Produces rhizomes, but few
stolons
• Fine stems, dark green,
and dense sod.
• Higher quality than most
• Slower to establish
• Russell spreads very
rapidly, with impressive
establishment growth
• Emerges early – similar to
Tifton 44
What is the difference in
Coastal and Tifton 85?
Tifton 85
• Released in 1993
72.3
§ Fast growing,
§ Highest yielding & quality
73
72
• Larger stems, wider
leaves, and is darker green
than other cultivars.
• Tifton 85 is higher in
digestibility than other
cultivars, despite having
higher fiber (NDF).
NDF, %
71
68.9
70
69
68
67
68.6
66.9
66
6 wk
65
64
3 wk
Coastal
Adapted from Mandebvu et al. (1999). Dr. Dennis Hancock
Extension Forage Agronomist
2
Variety
Tifton 85
Harvest
Interval
2014 Southeast Hay Convention
Forage Bermudagrass Varieties for
Southeastern Hay Producers
What is the difference in
Coastal and Tifton 85?
Ratio of Ester:Ether Ferulic Acid
What is the difference in
Coastal and Tifton 85?
64
IVDMD48h, %
62
61.7
60
56.9
58
56
54
52
50.8
51.4
6 wk
50
3 wk
Coastal
2.04
2.2
2
1.8
1.39
1.6
1.4
1.31
6 wk
1.2
1
Tifton 85
Tifton 85
Adapted from Mandebvu et al. (1999). What is the difference in
Coastal and Tifton 85?
Coastcross II
§ CCII is a mutant of
Coastcross I
§ Comparable to Tifton 85
65.0
60.6
NDFD48h, %
55.6
§ Yields
§ Digestibility
§ Cold tolerance?
55.0
41.0
50.0
45.0
42.6
§ Leaves and stem more
coarse than Coastal but
less coarse than Tifton 85
6 wk
40.0
3 wk
Coastal
Tifton 85
Adapted from Mandebvu et al. (1999). Tifton 85
Coastcross II
Dr. Dennis Hancock
Extension Forage Agronomist
3 wk
Coastal
Adapted from Mandebvu et al. (1999). 60.0
1.87
3
2014 Southeast Hay Convention
Forage Bermudagrass Varieties for
Southeastern Hay Producers
Clipping trials 2006-2008
Warm Season Perennial Grass
Variety Trial – Tifton (avg. over 2006-2008)
Hybrid Bermudagrass Yields at
Calhoun 2003-2005
25000 Mean Annual Yield
lb DM/acre
Forage Yields (lbs DM/acre) 20000 15000 10000 5000 0 Ti<on 85 Coastcross II* Russell Coastcross I Coastal Ti<on 44 22000
20000
18000
16000
14000
12000
10000
8000
6000
4000
2000
0
a*
Tifton 85
b
Russell
bc
Alicia
cd
Tifton 44
d
Coastal
Variety
Varieties labeled with the same letter were not significantly different (α=0.05).
Results:
aa
a
18%
a
10
b
8
b
b
16%
Avg. Number of Infected
Tillers/Pot
Avg. Percent of Tillers
Damaged/Pot
a
14%
12%
10%
b
6
b
b
8%
b
6%
4
c
c
c
c
2
4%
2%
s
85
ar
gr
as
Columns followed by the same leHer are similar at the 0.05 level Dr. Dennis Hancock
Extension Forage Agronomist
9
Recovery rating (1-10)
Blairsville, GA
8
7
6
Coastal
5
Tifton 44
4
Tifton85
3
Russell
CC II
2
1
0
2006
St
-I
I
68
fto
n
Ti
on
Ti
ft
a
ro
ss
ici
Co
as
tc
Al
el
Ru
ss
m
m
ta
Co
as
Co
l
0%
on
0
l
Avg. Number of Infected Tillers/Pot
14
12
Avg. Percent of Tillers Damaged/Pot
Effect of Cultivar on Number of
Infected Tillers with Flies Present
4
2007
2008
2014 Southeast Hay Convention
Forage Bermudagrass Varieties for
Southeastern Hay Producers
Cheyenne II
• Seeded variety cultivar
§ Good persistence, winterhardy, and consistent yields
§ The forage quality (protein,
fiber, and digestibility)
similar to Coastal.
• Sold and used in seed
blends such as Ranchero
Frio.
SEEDED BERMUDAGRASS
Seeded Bermudagrass
Blairsville, GA
22000
20000
18000
16000
14000
12000
10000
8000
6000
4000
2000
0
a
a
8000
a
Cheyenne
7000
b
Forage Yield
(lbs DM/acre)
Mean Annual Yield
lb DM/acre
Seeded Bermudagrass Yields at
Calhoun 2004-2005
Wrangler
P2 Exp
Coastal
Laredo
6000
5000
4000
3000
2000
CD 90160
Cheyenne
Wrangler
Vaquero Blend
1000
Variety
0
Varieties labeled with the same letter were not significantly different (α=0.05).
2005
Warm Season Perennial Grass
Variety Trial – Tifton (avg. over 2006-2008)
2006
2007
2008
Seeded bermudagrass
25000 Tifton Seeded Trial
Forage Yields (lbs DM/acre) 20000 15000 P 2
10000 Coastal
P2
5000 Blairsville Trial
0 P2* Cheyenne Dr. Dennis Hancock
Extension Forage Agronomist
Laredo Wrangler 5
Laredo
2014 Southeast Hay Convention
Forage Bermudagrass Varieties for
Southeastern Hay Producers
Palatability of Bermudagrasses
Impaction on Bermudagrass
Myth or Truth?
Highly acceptable:
Coastal = Tifton 44 = Tifton 78
(= Russell)
• High NDF Content
§ Somewhat related to bermudagrass variety
§ As a rule of thumb for bermudagrass hay,
keep NDF < 65%.
• Insufficient Water Availability
• Insufficient Mastication (chewing)
Acceptable if given no other choice:
§ Tifton 85
§ Coastcross
§ Fed only 1-3 times per day
§ Horses in stall
• Inactivity/lack of exercise
Questions?
www.georgiaforages.com
1-800-ASK-UGA1
Dr. Dennis Hancock
Extension Forage Agronomist
6