Why you should plant Seeded Bermuda...

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• Traditionally,westatethatthetimetoplantbermudagrassiswhenthesoiltemperaturereaches65F(17C).The reasonforwaitingiswarmseasongrasses,likeBermuda,germinateat65F(17C).MotherNatureplantsseedin thefallaftertheymatureontheplantandfalltotheground.Researchshowsusthatwecanplantearlyinthe springwhentimepermitsandtheseedwillliedormantuntiltheconditionsareacceptableforgermination. Therefore,youcanplantyourBermudaseedasearlyasFebruaryinthetransitionzoneandachieveaquality standofbermudagrassquickerthanwaitinguntilMay(Richardsonetal.,2006).

• Takeasoilsampleandfollowfertilityrecommendationspriortoplanting.

• Coverseedwithnomorethan1/8inch(3mm)ofsoil.

• Afterseeding,soilmoistureintherootzonemustbemaintainedfor2-3weeks.

• Afternewturfisestablished,lessfrequent,deepwateringisdesirable.

• Seedingisfasterandrequireslessequipmentandlaborthanspriggingorlayingsod.

• Seedcanbeeasilytransportedandstored,whereassodorsprigsmustbeplantedimmediatelytomaintainquality.

• SeedproductionandqualityiscertifiedconsistentlybytheArizonaorCaliforniaCropImprovement Associations.

• Wherewinterinjury,transitionfromoverseeding,orexcessivewearmakesrenovationprojectsnecessary, Princess77canbeinter-seededtocreateadenserstand.

Using Princess 77 Seed Offers Many Advantages:

• Turfqualitythatisequaltothebest vegetativevarietiesintheindustry

• Lessexpensivethansprigsorsod

• Fasterestablishmenttimethansprigs

• Establishmentandrenovationprojects areeasierwithseed

• Requires21%lesswaterthanTifway 419

• Fasterdivotrecoveryandgoodwear tolerance

Establishment Guidelines for Princess 77

Starting Turf from Seed Provides Many Convenient Advantages

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WhentheClubCampestreSanFran-ciscoinChihuahua,Mexicodecidedtoexpandfrom9to18holes,theywantedtodoitright.ArchitectDavidFlemingwasbroughtintodesignthenewnineholesandexperiencedsuperintendentEmilioCastorenawashiredtomanageit.Onceconstructed,hybridbermudagrasswouldbeestablishedonthefairways.

Thefirstattempttoestablishbermuda-grassfromsprigsfailedtoestablishbeforewinter,soCastorenawastaskedtofindabetter,morecost-effectivewaytoestablishahighqualitybermudagrassturf.

Princess77hybridbermudagrassfromseedwasbroughtinthatNovemberandseededontoateeboxforevaluation.Bycoveringitwithplastic,CastorenawasabletokeepgroundtemperaturesundertheplasticwarmandthePrincess77filledinbyFebruary.Satisfiedthatthiswasgoingtomakeaviableoptionfortheupcomingseason,plansweremadetogoaheadwithseedingtherestofthecoursethatspring.TheresultswereexactlywhatCastorenahadhopedfor.Wheresoilsweregood,Princess77filledincompletelyinfourweeks.Rockiersoilsrequiredeightweeks.

“They told me I wouldn’t be able to grow anything on this rocky type soil,”Cas-torenarecalls.Hewentontodescribetheeaseofhandlingaseededvariety.“Princess 77 is a lot easier to handle as opposed to sprigging and you get faster establish-ment than you would with a vegetative type. With sprigs you get clumpiness and have to topdress to get it level. With Princess, I didn’t have to topdress at all.” Whilethissavedtimeforthemaintenancecrew,ClubCampestreSanFranciscowasalsosavingmoney.Princess77seedcostsabouthalfthepriceofsprigs.Sowhatdidthegolfersthink?TheClubreportsthateveryoneisexcitedaboutplay-ingthebacknine.“The color and texture of the grass is comparable to Tifway 419.” However,CastorenaseesadvantageswithusingPrincess77.“The ball sits up nicely on the turf, even at the higher mowing heights in the rough. Play moves along better because people can find their balls much easier.”BecausePrin-cess77performswellatdifferentmowingheights,onlyonevarietyofbermudagrasswasnecessaryforthefairways,roughsandtees.“I’m happy with the end result,”saysCastorena.“It does the job for me.”

Princess 77 Graces the Back Nine in Chihuahua, MexicoPrincess 77 Graces the Back Nine in Chihuahua, Mexico

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A21%SAVINGSinirrigationvolume(ascomparedto419)throughthesummermonthscanadduptosignificantcostsavingsattheendoftheyear.

Emergence-5days 2weeks 3weeks

Fairway-2weeks Fairway-3weeks SprigsvsSeed-3weeks

Establishment Method Variables Cost/Acre

Princess 77 Seed 31 – 87 lbs./acre $600/Acre 0.75 – 2 lbs./1,000 sq. ft.

Sprigs 300 – 500 bu./acre, variety $1,272/Acre and size of the project

Sod Variety and pricing in your area $11,326/Acre

* Prices used are estimates and may vary depending on supplier, region, size of area being established, equipment and labor required, etc.

Geographically Dependent

Geographically Dependent

1997NationalBermudagrassTestGriffin,GA

1999DataforDroughtTolerance(Wilting)RatingsandPercentRecoveryfromDroughtDormancy

Variety Drought Drought Tolerance Recovery------------------1-9;9=NoWilting---------------Tifgreen 6.0 85.0%Princess77 5.7 91.7%Tifsport 5.3 81.7%Jackpot 5.0 80.0%AZCommon 4.7 71.7%Mirage 4.7 76.7%Savannah 4.7 83.3%Blackjack 4.3 80.0%SunDevilII 4.0 78.3%Tifway 4.0 63.3%Patriot 3.3 70.0%

LSD 1.1 26.0%C.V. 15.2 20.9%Forcompletereportgotowww.ntep.org,NationalBermu-dagrassTest–1997:Table15A,Table39A.

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In2003,theGroundsCrewatNewMexicoStateUniversityinLasCruceswasgiventheresponsibilityofrenovatingAggieMemorialStadiumafterthefirstunde-featedfootballseasonathome.

Thefieldhadbeenoverseededwithaperennialryegrassblendeveryautumnforaestheticsandretentionofasafe,healthyplayingsurfaceduringthefallandspringfootballseasons.Plantcompetitionwiththeryegrass,coupledwithwearontheexistingbermudag-rasshadresultedinverysparseber-mudagrasscoverage.AfterdiscussingthematterwithDr.BerndLeinauer,StateExtensionTurfgrassSpecialistfortheCollege,PatMontoya,NMSUGroundsCrewManager,alongwithBudJonesandtherestoftheGroundsCrewatNewMexicoStatedecideditwastimetotakeaction.

Itwasdeterminedthatthefieldwouldberenovatedusingseededbermudag-rass.ThiswouldallowtheGroundsCrewtocostef-fectivelyrepairwornareasnow,aswellasinthefuture.AccordingtoDr.Leinauer,“The variety Princess 77 was selected because it most closely matched the existing Tifway in terms of leaf structure, texture and uniformity.”

InearlyMay,followingthefinalspringfootballgame,theryegrasswassprayedwithPronamide(Kerb)andthenphysicallyremovedwithaflailmower.Inaddi-tion,thefieldwasdeeptineaerifiedandthenspikedin

severaldirections.Itwasdeterminedinmid-JunethatanyresidualPronamidehaddegradedandthatsoiltemperatureswereadequateforplanting.Averticutterwasusedtocutthroughanyremainingthatch,exposingthesoil.Thegroovescreatedbytheverticutterformedaseedbedthatallowedforgoodseed-to-soilcontactwhileprotectingthegerminatingseedsfromthedryNewMexicowinds.Theseed-lingsemergedfromthesegroovesandbegantocoverthefield.Just 50 days after the field was overseeded to Princess 77, it was pronounced to be “at

full density and in excellent condition.” Howdidthisnewturfholdup?“Remarkably well,”saysBudJones,AssistantGroundsManagerwhowasalsopleasedwithPrincess77’sabilitytorecoverquickly.

New Mexico State Wins with Princess 77

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Princess77&Sovereign(SWI1012)recoversignificantlyquickerthantraditionalvegetativetypebermudai.e.Tif-wayandTifsport.(Karcheret.al.,2005)

“Princess 77 recovers very fast from damage caused by divots. We’ve seen divots start recovering in 3 days and fill-in completely in 10-14 days in the summer.” -MarioAguiar,CimarronGolfResort,CathedralCity,CA

Astudyofsalttolerancewascon-ductedbyDr.CharlieRodgersandTrentMurpheetoevaluatethetoler-anceofsalinityofseveralbermudag-rasscultivars.Usingarandomizedcompleteblockdesignwith14replications,theentriesweresolidseededintocontainers.Oncealltheconeswereestablished,i.e.100%,dailydunkinginthesaltbathwas

initiated.Thetestbeganat26,000ppmsalt(SodiumChloride,NaCl)andcontainedamodifiedHoag-landsSolutiontoprovidenutrientstotheplants.Thegrowingmediumusedwas100%silicasand.Theconesweredunked7daysaweek,1timeperday.Theconeswereleftsubmergedfor15minutes–itwasdeterminedthiswasenoughtimefortheconestoreachcompletesatura-

tion.Thesalinitylevelwasrampedupevery2weeks–beginningat26,000ppm;then35,000ppm;43,000ppm;52,000ppmandthenwateredwithfreshwaterfor4weeksandregrowthwasevaluated.Coneswereevaluatedattheendofeachconcentrationlevel(every2weeks).RyegrassandKentuckyBluegrasswereaddedassaltsusceptiblecon-trols.

Recovery of Bermudagrass from Divots

Salt Tolerance TestSalt Tolerance

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PrincessSovereignRivieraYukonMirageSaharaCommonRyegrassKYBluegrass

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Severalpost-emergenceherbicidescausedsignificantinjurytonewlyseededPrincessbermudagrass,includingdiclofop,megsulfuron,2,4-Danddicamba.However,allplotsrecoveredfullyfromherbicideinjuryby30DAT.Thisdatademonstratesthatarangeofpost-emergenceherbicideprogramscanbeusedeffectivelytocontrolweedsinnewlyseededbermudagrass.Charcoalbandingalsoprovedtobeaneffectivemeansofestab-lishingbermudagrassfromseedandpermitstheuseofpre-emergenceherbicidesinaseededplanting.Thistechniqueisofgreatvaluewhenattemptingtoestablishaseededbermudagrassinanareawithahistoryofannual,grassyweeds.(GCMMc-Callaet.al.,2002)

Date:August22,2007To:PenningtonSeedSubject: Princess 77 Bermuda SeedRecentlytheCityofMountDorausedPrincess77BermudaTurftosurfaceitsnewDogPark.

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HerbicideinjuryofnewlyseededPrincessbermudagrassasaffectedbygrass(top)andbroadleaf(bottom)herbicides.Herbicideswereappliedatone,twoandfourweeksafteremergence,anddataforthisgraphareaveragedacrossallap-plicationperiods.Errorbarsindicatesignificantdifferencesbetweenherbicidetreatmentsateachevaluationperiod(P≥0.05).

Herbicide Strategies for Newly Seeded Bermudagrass

CITY OF MOUNT DORAParks and Recreation Department 510 North Baker StreetMount Dora, FL 32757

(352) 735-7183Fax: (352) 735-1406

Email: parksandrec@cityofmountdora.com

We’d like to highlight the following:• ThePrincessgrewinfasterthannormalspriggingprocesses• Wewereabletoopenthefacilitysoonerthanwewouldhaveunderother grassingprocesses• Thefacilityhasbeenopenforapproximately2monthsandisprovidingan adequateusesurfaceunderextremeusedemands• BecauseoftheinitialsuccessofPrincess77BermudaTurf,theCityofMount DorahasdecidedtoinstallPrincess77onournewAthleticSportsFields

Summary:Beinganewprocess,wearehappywiththeinitialresultsandlookforwardtothefuture…particularlyusingaseededBermudatorenovatedamageduseareasandtoquicklyestablishnewturfareas.WehavealsobeenhappywiththesupportgivenbythePenningtonSeedProfessionals.

John Burt, CPRP, CPSIParksandFacilitiesManagerMountDora,Florida

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TosuccessfullyestablishPrincess77intoanexist-ingstandofbermudagrass,morethanproperseedtosoilcontactisrequired.Researchdemonstratedthatanon-selectiveherbi-cideat4qts.peracremustbeappliedtotheexistingBermudapriortoverticut-ting.OncetheherbicideisabsorbedbytheexistingBermuda,theareamustbeverticutandthedebrisremovedtoconverttothedesiredPrincess77.(Phillyetal.,2005)

CimarronGolfResortisaJohnFoughtdesigned36-holegolfcourseinSouthernCalifornia’sscenicCoachellaValley.ThecoursesopenedforplayinJanuaryof2000withfairwaysandroughsseededentirelytoryegrass.Whiletheryegrassflourisheddur-ingthewinter,warmtemperaturesinthesummermonthsrequiredCimarron’sstafftoover-watertheryegrasstokeepitalive.Thispracticeledtootherproblemsinclud-ingmuddyfairwaysandturfgrassdiseasesthatloweredtheoveralllevelofplayatthecourseduringthesummermonths,resultinginfewerroundsandlowerrevenues.Cimar-ronneededasolutionthatwouldnotshutthecoursesdownforrenovation.Thegoalwouldbetoestablishaturfwiththedisease

SEEDING INTO AN EXISTING STAND OF BERMUDAGRASS

Princess 77 Makes Fairway Renovation a Breeze at Cimarron Golf Course

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resistanceandreducedwaterusageofbermudagrasswithoutsacrificingturfquality.ThiswasatoughsituationthatcalledforatoughgrassandPrincess77waschosenforthejob.TomChristy,HeadAgronomistforOBSportsknewthatPrincess77hadprovenintheNationalBermudag-rassTrialstopossesscolor,densityandoverallturfqualityequaltothemostelitevegetativebermudagrassvarietiesintheindustry.UnderTom’sguidance,Princess77wasdi-rect-seededintoCimarron’sryegrass

fairwaysinjust3days.“We have seen great seedling vigor in Princess 77 being over-seeded into ryegrass fairways,”reportsMarioAguiar,courseSuperinten-dentatCimarron.“We had full coverage in eight weeks and never shut down for renovation. Our fairways look great and we are thrilled with the ease of handling seed as opposed to sod.”Whilethedense,darkgreenturfprovidesexcellentplayforCimar-ron’spatrons,thestaffatCimarronhaspickeduponotheradvantages.

“Princess 77 recovers very quickly from damage caused by divots. We’ve seen divots start to recover in 3 days and completely recover in 10-14 days in the summer,” saysAguiar.Princess77alsohelpedCimarrontoachieveanenviron-mentalgoalofcuttingtheiroverallwaterusageforthisyearby15%re-portsMarkGoulet.“We expect to achieve a 30% water savings next year by increasing the amount of Princess 77 on our course.”

Princess 77 Makes Fairway Renovation a Breeze at Cimarron Golf Course

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Greenville TestimonialDavidBrownistheProfessionalTurfandMaintenanceManagerfortheEasternParksDivisionofGreenvilleCountyRecreationDistrict.Hehasworkedinthegolfcourseindustryforover20years,bothassuperintendentandasheadprofessional.HestartedworkingforGreenvilleCountyRecreationDistrictfiveyearsago,andhasbeenanintegralpartoftheoverallturfprograminthecounty.

Davidcurrentlymanages4soccerfieldsthatwereestablishedfromPrincess-77.Healsomanagesan-otherfieldinthecountythatwases-tablishedfrom50%Princess-77and50%Yumaafewyearsago.ThereareotherfieldsinthedistrictthathavebeeninterseededwithPrincess-77andPrincess-77hasbeenseededtoreplacedamagedturf,i.e.,goalboxes.

MostofthefieldsseededwithPrincess77havebeenestablishedfor3fullyearsandreceiveconstantpressurefrompracticeandplay52weeksperyearwithapeakdur-ingspring,summerandfall.DavidmaintainsthePrincess77fieldsonthesamescheduleashis419fields.David’sprogramforfertilizationandweedcontrolfollowsthescheduleabove.

• Pre-Emergentweedcontrolinlatewinter/earlyspring• Nitrogen(andothersupplements)appliedinAprilforspringgreenup• StraightapplicationofIroninMaytoaidingreenup• SlowreleaseNapplicationinJune• SeveralsubsequentapplicationsofNduringthepeakgrowingseason• “Primo”appliedtoallfieldstoencouragelateralgrowthanddiscour- ageverticalgrowthinordertocutdownonmowingfrequency(this programallowsDavidtoextendmowingperiodsouttoabout7day intervals).• StraightapplicationofIroninearlyfall• HighKfertilizerforthedormantseasoninlatefall/earlywinter

Davidrecapstheadvantagesofus-ingPrincess77versusothervegeta-tivevarieties(sodorsprigs).“Prin-cess 77 has been very economical for our overall program when you compare the cost of establishing a field from seed versus sodding or sprigging. I get quicker establish-ment during the initial grow in period with almost full coverage in just 8 weeks. In addition, we used less water during grow in and maturity stages. Princess 77 was impressive as compared to 419 under the same maintenance program with a longer growing period through the summer and into the fall and a quicker spring green-up. That coupled with high

wear tolerance and very low weed pressure after initial establish-ment proves to me that Princess 77 is desirable for high traffic on recreation and sports fields.”

DavidandGreenvilleCountyareverypleasedwiththeoverallperfor-manceofPrincess77,bothduringestablishmentandintomaturity.ThefieldsgetatremendousamountofplaythroughouttheyearandPrincess77hasheldupwellunderthispressure.DavidandGreenvilleCountyplantoestablishadditionalPrincess77fieldsinthenearfutureandtorenovateexistingfieldswithPrincess77asneeded.

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TheCityofAtlantaParksandRec-reationDepartmentplannedama-jorsportsturfrenovationprojectinearly2007.Thetotalprojectencom-passed66sportsfields,includingsoccer,football,baseballandsoftballandapproximately1,000,000sq.ftofturf.Upuntilrenovationeachparkhadadifferentvarietyofgrass

andtheturfwasthinandweedyateachlocation.

TheCityofAtlantaselectedPrincess77Bermudagrassseedfor50%of

therenovationproject.Tifway419Bermudag-rasssodwaschosenfortheotherhalfoftheproject’sturfarea.TheCitycontractedwiththeAstraGroupinWood-stock,Georgiaandtheprojectwasmanagedby

PhilipL.Spackman,aturfandsportsfieldconstructionconsul-tantwithGrassworx,LLCofNorcross,Georgia.

TheseedwasplantedinMarchandAprilof2007byGrassworxandwasseededatarateof2lbs./1,000sq.ft.withabrillionseeder.MostoftheareaplantedwithPrincess77wasanoverseedtypeapplicationwithseedbeingpreparedbyanaerovator.The

grow-inwasmanagedbyTruGreenChemLawn.Thefirstapplicationoffertilizerwasonemonthafterplant-ing.Afterestablishment,TruGreenLandcarewascontractedtomow

twiceperweekwithrotarymowers.

PhilipSpackmantestifiestothemeritsofPrincess77bysaying,“By the end of summer, in most cases you could not tell the differ-ence between the fields that were sodded with 419 vs. the seeded Princess 77 fields. On most of the baseball fields, the infields

were renovated and laser graded. After grading the hips and shoulders of the infields were sodded to prevent erosion and maintain the grade. The outfields were seeded with Princess 77. Upon a Septem-ber inspection of the fields, we could not find where the 419 sod ended and the areas seeded with Princess 77 began.”

City of Atlanta

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Characteristics:•CertifiedQuality•DarkGreenColor•MediumFineTexture•ImprovedColdTolerance•ExcellentDroughtTolerance•IncreasedTurfDensityforWearandDurability•WideRangeofAdaptationduetoGeneticDiversity

Featuring - Certified Mohawk, Sultan, and SydneyTurf-type Bermudagrasses

TheBermudaTriangleisnotamysteryanymore!Threeofourbet-ter-seededvarietieshavebeenblendedtogethertoprovideanexcel-lentturfwithwideadaptation.Thesetopperformingvarietieshaveimprovedturfdensity,colorandmoderatecoldtolerance.Forturfthatstandsuptothedemandsoftoday’sturfprofessionalsandthebestofthebest,seedBermudaTriangleBlend.

Recommended Uses: GolfCourses(Fairways,TeesandRoughs)AthleticTurfFieldsParksSchoolsHomeLawnsCommercialLandscapes

NorthGeorgiaCollege&StateUniversityinDahlonega,Georgia,recentlyreceivedapprovalforfullmembershipintheNCAAandthePeachBeltConference.RandyDunn,AthleticDirectorandhisstaffdecidedthatitwasalsoagreattimetorenovateandupgradetheirsoccerfield.Priortorenovation,thefield’ssurfacewasamix-tureofturfgrasses,primarilyperennialryegrassandtallfescuewithsomebermudagrass.Overall,theexistingsurfacewasclumpy,unleveledandrough,notverydesirableforcompetitiveplay.Withplansforrenovation,Randyneededtodeterminethebestgrassforplayabilityanddurabilityandbermudag-rasswashisspeciesofchoice.WhileworkingwithPreci-sionTurfwhoassistswithmanagementofthefieldtoinvestigatetheinstallationofbermudagrass,theyfoundadesirablealternativetospriggingandsod.Thatalter-nativewasseedingthefieldwithoneofthenewhybridbermudagrasses.Atthispoint,NorthGeorgiaCollege&StateUniversitycontactedPenningtonSeed,aleaderinthebermudagrassindustrytohelpevaluatetheirneeds.Afterreviewingthespecificationsforthefield,Ber-

mudaTrianglewasselectedduetothequalitiesoftheva-rietiesintheblend.RandyDunnstates,“Bermuda Triangle fit our needs perfectly. We stripped and laser-graded the field in late July, then planted the Bermuda Triangle by hydroseed-ing, and played our first game at the beginning of September. Everyone is pleased with the ease of establishment and the quick coverage. The players have seen excellent traction. We are very pleased with having seeded Bermuda Triangle on our field.”

Randy Dunn, North Georgia College & State University Athletic Director

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Bermuda Triangle an Excellent Choice for North Georgia Soccer FieldBermuda Triangle an Excellent Choice for North Georgia Soccer Field

IntroductionPriortorenovation,thesoccerfieldatNorthGeorgiaCollegewasestablishedwith“common”Bermudaandhybrid419onthesidelines.CommonbermudagrassisafarinferiorturfcomparedtothehybridBer-mudasusedonmostathleticfields.Com-monhasverylowturfdensity,poordiseaseresistance,lesscoldtoleranceandslowerturfgrowthrecoverycomparedtothehybrids.Inadditiontobeingestablishedincom-monbermudagrass,theoverallconditionofthefieldwaspooratbest.Itwasextremelyundulatedwithareasofsharpgradechangeswherewaterwouldaccumulateandincreasethechanceforplayerinjury.Itneededlotsofworktoaddressdrainageandpotholesandamajoroverhaultoincreasethefield’sabilitytomaintainhealthyturfgrowth.

Renovation Takes PlaceThebudgetforthecollege’ssoccerfieldwasextremelylimited,buttherewasatremen-dousneedtorenovatethefieldassoonaspossible.PrecisionTurf,EFSandPenning-tonSeedallcameupwithaplantosolvetheneedsoftheuniversityandit’ssoccerprogram.PrecisionTurfbeganthetaskofcompleterenovationofthefield.Itwastilled

andlasergradedandpreparedforhydro-seeding.BermudaTrianglewasselectedforseedingthesoccerfieldduetoitselevationandpossibleneedforacoldtolerantvari-ety.EFShydroseededBermudaTriangleonJuly13,2007.

“The Bermuda Triangle grew in very aggressively and although we could have played on it earlier, we were able to keep the team off the field for 88 days,” says Eric Holland, Professional Turf Manager for Precision Turf. “I was very impressed with the Bermuda Triangle and I had no idea it would produce a turf so quickly with such density. Most of our jobs are high end and are laser graded and sodded with hybrid Bermudas. We will definitely promote Bermuda Triangle in the future. It is an excellent alternative to sod, especially when a limited budget is part of the equation.”

ThesoccerfieldismowedseveraltimesperweekwithahighendTOROrotarymower.FertilityismanagedbyPrecisionTurf ’sMaintenanceDivision.

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Easley,SCisthehostcityforthe“BigLeagueWorldSeries”(16-18yearoldyouthboysleague).Thetour-namentwasheldattheJ.B.RedOwensbaseballcomplexinlateJulyof2006andagainin2007.

EleventeamsfromallovertheworldparticipateinthisweeklongtournamentinEasley.Thereareapproximate-ly12gamesplayedduringthisparticulartournamentweekalongwithscrimmagesandpractices(sothefieldsundergoheavypressureinadditiontotheregularplaythattheyreceiveduringtherestoftheyear). Whilepreparingforthetournamentin2006,BenWigingtonofWigingtonTurfandMelvinAikenoftheCityofEasleyParksandRecreationDistrictnoticedsomepersistingproblemsonseveralfields.Theseissueswerespringdeadspotandageneral“weakeningofthe419turf”duetoyearsofPerennialRyegrasspressureduringspringgreenup.Thetournamentwasplayedin2006onastandof419bermudaandPerennialRyegrass. Thefieldproblemspersistedduringthespringof2007.Asthesummermonthsapproached,BenandMelvinknewthattherewasadefiniteproblemwiththemainfieldwherethetournamentisplayed.TheCitysuspendedallplayonthefieldduringthefinalweek

ofJune,givingBenandMelvinonemonthtoprepareforthetournamentthatwouldbegininlateJuly.TheysprayedoutalloftheresidualPerennialRyeandinter-seededPennington’sBermudaTriangleintothestandof419.Someareasofthefieldwerecompletelybare,andtheentireinfieldwas“almost gone”accordingtoBen.Theyirrigatedthefieldandhadgerminationin5-6days.BenandMelvinwaiteduntilthegrassreachedthesecondleafstageandthen“pushed it to maturity with subsequent Nitrogen applications.”Theymanagedtohavethebarespotsfilledinandthickentheentireturfwithin30days.Thetournamentwasplayedassched-uled,andtheturfheldupperfectlyasaresultoftheBermudaTriangle.Thefieldhasfilledinverywellsincethen,andBenhasappliedotherPenningtonseedprod-uctstootherfieldsonthecomplexasaresult.

City of Easley

HomeownerWesMartin,homeownerinWoodstock,Georgiawasfacedwithsellinghishomeandrelocatingin2006.Oneofhisconcernswastheconditionofhislawnandthepossibilityofnegativeimpactonthesaleofhishome.WesdidalittleresearchanddecidedtoplantBermudaTriangle,ablendofthreedifferentseededbermudagrasses.Hetilledhisyardandhydroseededthelawnatarateof2.5lbs.,per1,000sq.ft.Atplantinghefertilizedwith300lbs/acreof19-19-19.Therainfallhitjustrightandheonlyhadtoirrigateonceperweek.Wessays,“In just 3 short weeks, I was cutting grass and in 4 weeks I had complete coverage. I planted in August and had a fully es-tablished lawn by mid-September before the lawn went dormant. Best of all, seeding with Bermuda Triangle was 1/6 the cost of the purchase price of sod not including labor. I put my house on the market in January and it sold in just 5 days. Needless to say, I plan to seed with Bermuda Triangle on my new home lawn next year.”

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SovereignBermudagrasswasseededontotheAtleeHighSchoolFieldinMechanicsville,Virginia.MarkMoran,professionalturfmanagerfortheschoolstates,“We have been re-ally pleased with Sovereign Bermu-dagrass. It is one of the best seeded

bermudagrass varieties we have used and it really stands up well to the abuse it gets on our practice field. It takes traffic from football practice every day and withstands a three-hour band practice once a week. It established quickly

and had rapid grow-in. Sovereign Bermudagrass is economical com-pared to sprigging and presented a great alternative to sprigging with no sacrifice in quality.”

Testimonial from Marc Moran, Atlee High School, Mechanicsville, Virginia

Name AZ1 IL2 LA2 MO1 OK1 SC2 MeanContessa(SWI-1045) 83.8 87.3 73.3 88.7 99.0 94.7 88.5Sovereign(SWI-1012) 69.2 94.8 80.0 91.8 99.0 94.4 87.3Patriot 47.8 96.3 70.0 95.2 99.0 91.9 80.5Yukon 52.7 68.0 71.7 95.4 99.0 94.0 77.1Sunbird(PSTR68A) 69.9 73.4 73.3 27.7 99.0 93.4 70.4SundevilII 57.4 63.5 68.3 69.7 99.0 93.4 70.4ArizonaCommon 60.8 19.8 63.3 5.0 98.3 91.4 48.7LSDValue 22.8 34.6 15.7 30.6 0.4 8.1 13.8

PercentLivingGroundCover(Fall)RatingsofBermudagrassCultivars1/2003-06Data

PercentLivingGroundCoverinFall:Locations2/

Table 18A

Name Jun July Aug Sep MeanYukon 3.8 4.8 5.8 6.7 5.0Sovereign(SWI-1012) 2.3 4.3 5.7 . 4.1Riviera 2.5 3.8 4.5 5.0 3.8SundevilII 1.3 2.0 3.7 . 2.3Transcontinental 1.0 2.0 3.3 . 2.1TiftNo.1 1.0 2.0 2.7 . 1.9Mohawk 1.0 1.0 2.0 . 1.3LSDValue 1.4 1.4 1.4 . 1.0

TurfgrassQualityRatingsofBermudagrass(Seeded)CultivarsForEachMonthGrownatWestLafayette,In

(NorthCentralRegion)1/2003-06DataTurfgrassQualityRatings1-9;9=IdealTurf:Months2/3/

Table 5B

TheseexamplesrepresentafewofthevarietiestestedintheNTEP2003NationalTallFescueReport,2003-2006Data,FinalReport.Forcompletetrialdata,gotowww.ntep.org

Sovereignsolvesthedilemmawhenplantingawarmseasongrassintheuppertransitionzone.Bermudagrassissoughtafterworldwideforthehightraffic&weartoleranceinadditiontothequickrecoveryfrominjuryandSovereignalleviatestheconcernregard-inglackofcoldtolerance.ThethrivinggermplasmselectedinNorthernKYwhenbreedingSovereignen-surestheutmosttolerancestotheelements.Thefinetexturedandbrightgreencolor,andaggressivegrowthsatisfiesallturfmanagers.

JUST RELEASED

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Dr.BaltenspergerwasDirectorofResearchforPenningtonSeed/SeedsWestfrom1989until2000.HewasanAssistantProfessorattheUniversityofArizonafrom1958until1963,andaProfessoratNewMexicoStateUniversityfrom1963until1988,whereheservedasheadoftheDepartmentofAgronomyfortwelveyears.Dr.Baltensperger’sinnovativeresearchledtothedevelopmentofthefirstseededF1hybridbermudagrass.Princess-77wasthefirstcommerciallyavailableseededbermudagrasstorankinthesamestatisticalcategoryastheelitevegetativevarietiesofber-mudagrass.Dr.BaltenspergerholdsPlantVarietyProtectiononmoreseededbermudagrassesthananyotherResearchScientist,havingreceivedatotalof7PVPssince1988.Princess-77wasusedasthebaseturffortheNFLSuperBowlFields,theonlytimesa100%seededbermudagrassbasehasbeenusedforthatevent.Princess-77iscurrentlybeinggrownongolfcoursesin8statesintheU.S.andin7foreigncountries,allwithresoundingsuccess.ThevarietyPrincess-77HybridSeededBermudagrasshasbroughtsuccessandwidespreadac-claimtoPenningtonSeed’sgrassseedprogram.

BermudagrassisamajorseedcropplantedonAmerica’slawns,sportsfieldsandgolfcoursesaroundtheSouthernU.S.,andintropicalandsubtropicalregionsaroundtheworld.Muchoftheworld’sproductionofbermudagrasscomesfromPenningtonSeed,Inc.,throughitsfullyownedsubsidiary,SeedsWest.SeedsWestpioneeredtheresearchanddevelopmentofimprovedturf-typebermudagrassvarietieswiththereleaseofNuMexSaharain1989.Theirwarmseasonturfgrassresearchprogramhasreleasedmanymoreimprovedvarietiessincethattime.Anotherindustrymilestonewasmarkedin1995whenPrincess77be-camethefirstcommerciallyavailableseededhybridbermudagrassvariety.Today,improvedturf-typevarietiesofbermudagrassareusedincountriesaroundtheworld.PenningtonSeed,Inc.,istheleadingseed,lawnandgardensupplydistributorinNorthAmericaandatopgrower,packagerandconditionerofqualitylawnseed,fieldseed,forageseedandwildbirdfeed.PenningtonSeedisawhollyownedsubsidiaryofCentralGarden&PetCompany(NASDAQ:CENT).

Dr. Arden Baltensperger’s Innovative Research Leads to Princess 77

About Pennington Seed and Seeds West

1-800-286-6100 Ext: 280www.penningtonseed.com

Lit#211437GV20M11/07

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