Drought Resistance

The ability of a plant to adapt to drought conditions by aiming to 1. avoid, 2. escape or 3. tolerate drought. For turfgrass comparison purposes an average rating of drought avoidance and drought tolerance can be used to give an indication of its drought resistance. This can also vary amongst cultivars within a species. A more drought resistant grass will be able to maintain surface coverage and turf strength by making necessary adjustments to its environment, giving it the capability to rapidly restart active growth once conditions become suitable. Being able to maintain adequate, but not excessive, growth can result in these grasses being more resilient than some others, reducing plant and sward deterioration and death from any prolonged period of water shortages.

A more drought resistant grass should also be more suited to increased intervals between irrigation applications, as well as arguably be more resistant to disease pressures due to drier conditions which can be allowed to prevail.

Reducing water requirements contributes to water conservation and cost savings, plus also reducing wear and tear on irrigation equipment and time needed to set-up and operate it.

The visual appearance of a sward is usually much better with drought resistant grasses, thereby providing greater satisfaction to players and spectators who often perceive colour to be an important feature of a good turfgrass surface.

Playing conditions should be able to be better maintained due to improved sward coverage of more drought resistant grasses. Root growth is often enhanced in more drought resistant grasses, exploring a much greater volume of rootzone and therefore being able to extract greater amounts of available soil water. This can ensure that traction and surface stability is maintained for longer periods of time.

Maintenance practices will usually be reduced because these grasses are less vigorous in their growth, thereby providing savings in labour and machinery use. However, if maintenance practices are applied intensively, this can have a detrimental impact on the ability of a grass sward to resist drought conditions because the plant is consistently under a stress related condition.

The range of benefits of a drought resistant grass and sward can also contribute to the environmental sustainability of a surface.