Propagation of Turfgrass

By Matt Pap

There are many different ways that turfgrass can be propagated. Turfgrass has a lot of unique characteristics that allow it to be reproduced in many different ways. Several of the ways that turf is propagated are by seeding, sodding, hydromultching, sprigging, plugging, and stolonizing.

Stolonizing:

Stolonizing is the process of taking the stolon of the turfgrass plant which is a reproductive structure and spreading them over the surface of the dirt much like seeding. This type of propagation only works with grasses that are stoloniferous. The most common stoloniferous grass is the bermudagrass and bent grass. The process is a much more expensive task as compared to seeding which will be talked about later. The one benefit of stolonizing is that it can produce a very uniform turf that is all one genetic type. This can also be a very bad thing if there is a specific disease affecting that specific cultivar of grass so it is generally not recommended.

Plugging:

Plugging is the process where small pieces of sod, plugs, are taken and placed throughout the area being filled in with grass. This process will leave a lot of the soil exposed which can be a down side to this procedure. The plugs in this case are supposed to take root and then spread to fill in the bare dirt. The general rule is that is will take at least one to two seasons to completely fill in the area. Since the plugged area has a lot of bare soil there can be a big problem with weeds. The big benefit is that plugging can be somewhat cheaper than sodding. A one hundred square foot piece of sod can cover one thousand square feet of plugs. Any grass type that spreads can theoretically be used for plugging but with the time it takes to get fully established it generally isn’t done but the most commonly used grass for plugging are St. Augustinegrass and zoysiagrass.

Sprigging:

Sprigging is another way of propagating turfgrass. Sprigging is a vegetative form of propagation and it is used when the type of grass you want to use has a poor seed quality or the seed for the grass isn’t available. Sprigging is usually used for warm season grasses. Sprigging is a process that uses the stolon or rhizome of the grass plant and is cut so that each sprig has two to three nodes on them and then the sprig is placed in the soil by manual or mechanical means so that a quarter of the sprig is still above ground. A quarter of the sprig is left above ground so that the plant will up.

Sodding:

Sodding is a quick way of getting good quality grass fast. Using sod, when establishing grass, helps to avoid erosion. The roots of the sod are not established so the soil under neither the sod could still wash away and unless the sod is stapled down the sod could wash away. The biggest down side to using sod is price. It can be quite expensive to cover a large area with sod.

Hydromulching:

Hydromulching is somewhat new but now is being used more. Hydromulching is also sometimes called hydroseeding. This process uses seed of the grass you want mixed in with virgin wood mulch and water and is sprayed onto the area that you want seeded. The mulch helps to reduce erosion and it helps keep the soil moist. The process is somewhat expensive but is usually cheaper than sodding.

Seeding:

Seeding is probably the most common propagation procedure. Seeding is usually the cheapest option a person has. The process is carried out by selecting the seed you want and then tilling the soil and leveling it. Then spreading the required amount of seed over the area and then lightly raking it into the soil. The biggest disadvantage to seeding is the time it takes to get the final product.

As you can see there are many different ways to propagate turfgrass. There are lots of different options no matter what your budget is. There are different techniques for warm and cool season grasses.