Bentgrass cultivar affects competitiveness in a <i>Poa annua</i> fairway

Abstract A field experiment was conducted to determine the competitiveness of different bentgrass ( Agrostis spp.) cultivars established vegetatively into a Poa annua fairway. This experiment was conducted at the Rutgers Horticulture Farm in North Brunswick, NJ, from 2018 to 2023. Treatments consisted of eight bentgrass cultivars. Seven creeping bentgrass ( Agrostis stolonifera L.) cultivars were selected to represent a gradient from low density, older cultivars to higher density, modern cultivars and consisted of Penncross, L‐93, 007, Shark, Luminary, Piranha, and Flagstick. Puritan colonial bentgrass ( Agrostis capillaris L.) was also included. The site was a P. annua fairway maintained at a 9.5 mm mowing height. Bentgrass was established for each plot by cutting four sod strips of a particular cultivar from a nursery and installing them in the P. annua fairway in parallel, spaced 15 cm apart. Treatment differences were most apparent from June 2021 until May 2023 when Shark and Piranha consistently provided the most bentgrass cover. On most dates, bentgrass cover provided by 007 and Luminary, but not Flagstick, was similar to Piranha and Shark. Modern bentgrass cultivars with improved density were more competitive against P. annua in a fairway than older cultivars Penncross and L‐93.