Evaluating rooting vigor of two zoysiagrass cultivars using a simulated sod installation protocol

Abstract Sod installation rooting vigor is an important characteristic for establishment of turfgrass sod. This study evaluated rooting traits of two zoysiagrass cultivars, ‘SS‐500’ (Empire®, Sod Solutions, Inc., Zoysia japonica Steud) and ‘Zeon’ ( Zoysia matrella L. Merr), under controlled settings to simulate sod installation. The experiment, conducted twice, followed a randomized complete block design with a split‐plot arrangement, where cultivars were the main plots and weeks of harvest were the split plots. Significant differences were observed between genotypes and harvest weeks for all root traits. Empire generally had higher values for the evaluated characteristics, and values increased over time for subsequent harvest dates. Results indicate that the methodology has merit for evaluation of sod installation rooting vigor of zoysiagrass.