Flawed Turfgrass Research Report Gets Mass Media Attention . . . Now What?

EAST DUNDEE, IL—(February 2010)

Turfgrass provides numerous environmental benefits and its ability to store carbon is one of them; but when a recently published and peer reviewed research study regarding the ability of turfgrass to store carbon reached the opposite conclusion of previous studies, more than a few turfgrass researchers and green industry experts were scratching their heads.

The study in question (containing miscalculations which we’ll address in a moment) got extensive media coverage because of the negative conclusions it presented. According to Amy Townsend-Small, Earth system science post-doctoral researcher at University of California, Irvine and the lead author of a study that was accepted for publication in Geophysical Research Letters, a journal of the American Geophysical Union (AGU) it was suggested that the carbon-storing benefits of lawns were counteracted by fuel consumption. (continue)

Exploring the Ecology Behind Springtime Turfgrass Transition

Oct 1, 2009
By: Cy Charles Fontanier, Kurt Steinke

Article in TurfGrass Trends Impact of annual and perennial ryegrass examined in process

In order to provide prime playing conditions throughout the winter, golf courses and sports fields in the southern United States frequently overseed warm-season turf with cool-season species such as annual and perennial ryegrass.  (continued)