Kentucky Bluegrass, named `Ba74-17`

Abstract

A variety of Kentucky Bluegrass having a medium to high level of resistance to leaf spot and melting out, leaf rust, Fusarium patch and red thread; a dark green color throughout the growing season; the ability to form a medium to high quality turf under a variety of environmental conditions; short growth and a high seed yielding capacity.

Description

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a new and distinct variety of Poa pratensis that has been designated Ba74-17 Kentucky Bluegrass.

DESCRIPTION OF RELATED ART

Kentucky Bluegrass have been disclosed in U.S. Plant Pat. No. 3,156, issued May 9, 1972; U.S. Plant Pat. No. 3,186, issued May 23, 1972; U.S. Plant Pat. No. 4,336, issued Nov. 28, 1978; U.S. Plant Pat. No. 6,280, issued Sep. 6, 1988; U.S. Plant Pat. Nos. 6,537 and 6,538, issued on Jan. 17, 1989; U.S. Plant Pat. No. 6,585, issued Feb. 7, 1989; U.S. Plant Pat. No. 7,831, issued Mar. 17, 1992; U.S. Plant Pat. No. 8,490, issued Dec. 7, 1993; U.S. Plant Pat. No. 9,036, issued Jan. 3, 1995; U.S. Plant Pat. No. 9,209, issued Jul. 18, 1995; U.S. Plant Pat. No. 9,611, issued Jul. 23, 1996; U.S. Plant Pat. No. 9,848, issued Apr. 1, 1997; U.S. Plant Pat. No. 9,977, issued Jul. 22, 1997; pending U.S. Plant patent application Ser. No. 08/680,168, filed Jul. 15, 1997; pending U.S. Plant patent application Ser. No. 08/680,167, filed Jul. 15, 1997; pending U.S. Plant patent application Ser. No. 08/763,076, filed Dec. 10, 1996.

SUMMARY OF THE VARIETY

The present invention relates to a new and distinct variety of Poa pratensis that has been designated Ba74-17 Kentucky Bluegrass.

Ba74-17 plant material was selected from the open pollinated progeny of PI-1369718, a Kentucky Bluegrass plant grown and maintained in a Breeders Nursey at The Scott Company's Research Station in Marysville, Ohio. After testing and observing the Ba74-17 Kentucky Bluegrass variety, it was determined to be a distinct variety, and it was asexually propagated by rhizomes, tillers and disseminules, Seed of Ba74-17 Kentucky Bluegrass was produced first at Marysville, Ohio and later at Gervais, Oreg. This seed was used to plant turf performance evaluation trials and later seed production fields.

In field and laboratory tests, it was demonstrated that Ba74-17 was significantly different at the 0.05% level from its female parent, PI-1369718, on the basis of the following characteristics: culm length, panicle length, seed weight, and leaf spot incidence. A comparison of the two grasses is given in the following table:

______________________________________ Mean Values Culm Panicle Seed Length Length weight Leaf spotVariety (cm) (cm) (gms) Incidence*______________________________________Ba74-17 33.6 7.7 0.26 7.8PI 1369718 30.0 7.2 0.21 8.2______________________________________ *Leaf spot incidence rated 0-9, 9 = most leaf spot disease

Asexual production of Ba 74-17 by propagules (tillers and rhizomes) and by disseminules (modified caryopses produced by apomixis) has consistantly produced progeny plants indistinguishable from a mother plant Ba 74-17 in regard to characteristics other than those specified above. The apomixis level of Ba74-17 is approximately 95% based upon examining seedling characteristics of approximately 100 to 150 seedlings from different crop years in a growth chamber.

Ba74-17 has a number of highly desirable characteristics including a medium to high level of resistance to Drechslera spp. that causes leaf spot, melting out and crown rot, Puccinia spp. that causes rust infection such as leaf rust, Fusarium spp. that causes Fusarium patch and Laetisaria fuciformis that causes red thread. Ba74-17 is an overall good turfgrass performer as evidenced by medium to high scores for quality and color. Ba74-17 has a high seed yield potential in the Bluegrass seed production region of the northwestern U.S.A.

In comparison with a number of other Kentucky Bluegrass varieties, Ba74-17 is slightly above average in seed length and width, and rachilla length and has an average amount of lemma hairs. The panicle is below average in length and width, above average in whorl number, and above average branch count for both the lower and third whorls. Ba74-17 has below average size spikelets, a significantly lower number of florets and shorter glumes. The peduncle is below average in length and above average width, and significantly shorter culm length, below average in node number and internode length. The flag leaf is of average length, width and thickness. The flag leaf ligule is above average in length, has an average amount of hair on the dorsal side of the ligule but below average hair content on the leaf margin. The vegetative leaf is of average length and thickness but the leaf width is significantly narrower and the ligule is below average in length. The hair content of the vegetative leaf is above average for the upper margin of the ligule, and is significantly less on the leaf margin.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a Ba74-17 Kentucky Bluegrass panicle during anthesis;

FIG. 2 is a Ba74-17 Kentucky Bluegrass seed; and

FIG. 3 is a Ba74-17 Kentucky Bluegrass plant shortly after completing anthesis.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE VARIETY

Ba74-17 Kentucky Bluegrass (Poa pratensis L.) is perennial with creeping rhizomes forming a dense turf. When plants overwinter in the field under freezing temperatures and are then brought into the greenhouse during late winter to continue growth undisturbed by clipping under moderate temperatures (60-80 F.), culms are erect averaging 31.0 cm in length and 3.1 nodes per culm. The uppermost internode averages 7.6 cm in length. The peduncle average 20.7 cm in length and 0.76 mm in width. The vegetative leaf averages 19.3 cm in length, 3.0 mm in width, 0.30 mm in thickness and the ligule 0.14 mm in length. The flag leaf averages 4.3 cm in length, 3.1 mm in width, 0.20 mm in thickness and a ligule length of 1.2 mm.

The panicle averages 75.1 mm in length, 53.4 mm in width, and 9.8 whorls. The lowest whorl and the third whorl from the bottom of the panicle average 3.9 and 3.6 branches, respectively. A spikelet in the lowest whorl averages 4.2 mm in length, 2.1 mm in width, 2.4 florets, the outer and inner glumes average 2.5 mm and 2.9 mm in length, respectively. A spikelet from the third whorl from the bottom of the panicle averages 4.4 mm in length, 2.2 mm in width, 2.1 florets and the outer and inner glumes average 2.5 mm and 2.9 mm in length, respectively.

Conditioned seed of Ba74-17 averages 3.00 mm in length, 0.88 mm in width, a rachilla length of 0.83 mm and an average hair content at the base of the lemma.

Comparisons of Ba74-17 with other Kentucky Bluegrass varieties in terms of seed dimensions and seed numbers per pound are shown in Tables 1 and 2 as follows:

TABLE 1______________________________________Morphological Comparisons of Seed Length and Width; Rachillaand Lemma Hairs of Ba74-17 and Other Kentucky BluegrassVarieties After Conditioning at Marysville, OH. Seed Length Width Rachilla LemmaVariety mm mm mm Hairs*______________________________________Ba74-17 3.00 0.88 0.83 4.4Abbey 2.97 0.89 0.80 3.8Adelphi 2.70 0.84 0.65 4.4Allure 2.78 0.86 0.70 4.7Ascot 3.00 0.85 0.82 3.9Baron 3.08 0.81 0.71 5.0Bristol 2.94 0.88 0.73 4.3Buckingham 3.23 0.89 0.88 4.2Cannon 3.00 0.94 0.86 4.9Chateau 2.81 0.86 0.71 4.5Coventry 2.71 0.81 0.70 4.0Eclipse 2.77 0.83 0.68 3.5Georgetown 2.94 0.82 0.74 4.9Gnome 2.78 0.83 0.75 4.1Kelly 3.07 0.89 0.75 4.2Midnight 2.94 0.76 0.78 5.7Nassau 3.07 0.86 0.68 3.4Nottingham 3.05 0.88 0.82 3.8Ram 1 3.23 0.89 0.80 6.0Touchdown 2.93 0.88 0.41 4.6Victa 3.00 0.80 0.82 3.5Viva 3.04 0.91 0.84 4.4LSD (.05) 0.16 0.05 0.13 0.86______________________________________ *Rating Scale: 0-9; 9 = most hairs TABLE 2______________________________________Comparisons of Seeds Per Pound of Ba74-17 and Other KentuckyBluegrass Varieties After Conditioning.Variety Seeds Per Pound______________________________________Ba74-17 1,128,600Ba78-258 1,127,000Ba78-165 965,500Abbey 988,500Buckingham 978,000Cannon 1,023,250Coventry 1,374,750Garfield 1,250,500Newport 1,250,250Viva 993,500LSD (.05) 77,042______________________________________

Ba74-17 differs significantly from several of the other Kentucky Bluegrass varieties in regard to the following morphological characteristics: (1) the culm length and number of nodes per culm; (2) the number of florets in both the lowest and third whorl; (3) the length of the outer glumes in the third whorl; and (4) vegetative leaf length, ligule length and leaf margin hairs. Since environmental conditions such as soil and climate may influence morphological characteristics to some extent comparisons of Ba74-17 were made with other Kentucky Bluegrass varieties and the comparisons are set forth in Tables 3-8:

TABLE 3______________________________________Morphological Comparison of Panicles, Whorl Number and WhorlBranches of Ba74-17 and Other Kentucky Bluegrass Varieties in theGreenhouse at Marysville, OH NumberPanicles of Branches Length Width Whorl Lowest ThirdVariety Nodding* (mm) (mm) Number Whorl Whorl______________________________________Ba74-17 1.3 75.1 53.4 9.8 3.9 3.6Abbey 1.6 80.4 59.3 9.3 3.8 3.3Adelphi 1.8 106.8 76.4 10.0 3.6 3.0Allure 2.2 60.8 47.6 8.4 3.9 3.0Ascot 2.4 77.1 66.0 9.2 2.3 2.1Baron 2.2 92.6 71.0 10.0 3.4 2.8Bristol 2.0 85.5 61.5 8.4 2.8 2.7Buckingham 2.0 88.8 62.0 9.3 2.1 2.1Cannon 1.1 80.2 55.3 9.8 4.1 3.9Chateau 2.9 65.2 57.3 8.5 3.3 2.8Coventry 2.5 64.0 54.2 8.4 3.3 2.5Eclipse 1.3 89.2 74.0 10.7 3.3 2.1Georgetown 1.0 80.0 57.0 7.4 2.1 2.6Gnome 1.1 80.6 56.0 10.6 4.6 3.9Kelly 2.0 88.0 70.2 9.8 4.6 3.7Midnight 2.0 75.8 48.4 7.1 2.9 3.0Nassau 2.2 91.2 68.6 10.0 2.5 2.1Nottingham 1.2 77.5 56.1 8.7 4.0 3.5Ram 1 1.3 67.7 47.0 7.3 3.0 3.2Touchdown 1.1 73.1 75.0 7.6 2.1 2.3Victa 1.7 74.9 58.3 10.0 4.7 3.5Viva 1.6 88.8 68.4 8.8 4.3 3.7LSD (.05) 0.68 7.35 8.62 0.66 0.72 0.50______________________________________ *Rating Scale: 1-9; 9 = most nodding TABLE 4______________________________________Morphological Comparison of Spikelets and Florets of Ba74-17 andOther Kentucky Bluegrass Varieties in the Greenhouse at Marysville, OH. Number Spikelets of Florets Lowest Whorl Third Whorl Per Spikelet Length Width Length Width Lowest ThirdVariety mm mm mm mm Whorl Whorl______________________________________Ba74-17 4.2 2.1 4.4 2.2 2.4 2.1Abbey 4.4 2.2 4.5 2.2 3.0 3.0Adelphi 4.6 2.2 4.8 2.2 4.4 4.4Allure 4.3 2.2 4.3 2.2 3.4 3.2Ascot 5.4 2.6 5.3 2.9 3.1 3.1Baron 5.4 2.8 5.4 3.1 4.0 4.2Bristol 4.9 2.4 5.0 2.5 4.2 4.5Buckingham 5.6 3.2 5.6 3.3 4.1 4.1Cannon 4.7 2.4 4.6 2.6 2.7 2.7Chateau 4.4 2.4 4.4 2.4 3.4 3.5Coventry 4.4 2.2 4.5 2.4 3.2 3.5Eclipse 4.6 2.4 4.6 2.4 3.6 3.6Georgetown 5.0 2.3 5.0 2.6 4.8 4.9Gnome 4.6 2.5 4.6 2.9 3.2 3.2Kelly 5.1 2.5 5.2 2.8 3.7 3.8Midnight 5.3 2.5 5.5 2.4 4.4 4.7Nassau 4.7 2.6 4.8 3.0 4.2 4.3Nottingham 4.6 2.5 4.8 2.6 3.3 3.4Ram 1 5.4 2.6 5.3 2.8 3.6 3.4Touchdown 5.1 2.9 4.8 2.8 4.1 4.0Victa 4.5 2.5 4.5 2.4 3.3 3.2Viva 4.6 2.5 4.7 2.6 2.6 2.8LSD (.05) 0.41 0.35 0.38 0.35 0.58 0.3______________________________________ TABLE 5______________________________________Morphological Comparison of Glumes of Ba74-17 and OtherKentucky Bluegrass Varieties in the Greenhouse at Marysville,______________________________________OH Glume Length (mm) Outer Inner Lowest Third Lowest ThirdVariety Whorl Whorl Whorl Whorl______________________________________Ba74-17 2.5 2.5 2.9 2.9Abbey 2.7 2.7 3.1 3.1Adelphi 2.7 2.6 3.0 3.1Allure 2.6 2.7 3.0 3.0Ascot 3.7 3.7 4.1 4.0Baron 3.1 3.2 3.6 3.7Bristol 2.8 3.0 3.3 3.4Buckingham 3.5 3.3 3.9 3.8Cannon 2.8 2.9 3.2 3.1Chateau 2.8 2.9 3.1 3.2Coventry 2.7 2.8 3.1 3.1Eclipse 3.0 3.0 3.4 3.4Georgetown 2.8 2.8 3.1 3.1Gnome 2.8 2.9 3.3 3.3Kelly 3.0 3.1 3.4 3.5Midnight 2.6 2.6 3.0 3.1Nassau 2.6 2.7 2.9 3.0Nottingham 2.7 2.8 3.3 3.3Ram 1 2.9 3.0 3.6 3.5Touchdown 3.3 3.3 3.8 3.8Victa 2.8 2.7 3.1 3.1Viva 2.8 2.8 3.2 3.1LSD (.05) 0.23 0.22 0.22 0.23______________________________________ Glume Hairs* Lowest Whorl Third WhorlVariety Outer Inner Outer Inner______________________________________Ba74-17 1.3 3.0 1.9 2.9Abbey 0.6 0.9 1.0 1.0Adelphi 0.6 2.7 1.1 1.9Allure 2.5 3.0 2.5 2.5Ascot 2.1 3.0 2.0 2.3Baron 4.8 4.4 4.2 4.6Bristol 1.0 2.2 0.8 2.2Buckingham 2.6 3.2 2.2 2.8Cannon 1.7 2.3 2.1 2.3Chateau 1.5 2.6 2.0 1.8Coventry 1.5 2.7 1.6 2.4Eclipse 1.5 1.9 1.8 1.9Georgetown 1.7 2.7 1.2 2.4Gnome 1.0 1.9 1.2 1.6Kelly 1.3 1.5 1.1 0.8Midnight 1.8 2.8 1.0 2.4Nassau 2.1 2.6 4.2 4.4Nottingham 2.4 2.2 1.9 2.1Ram 1 1.1 2.3 0.7 1.2Touchdown 0.7 2.1 1.1 1.4Victa 0.8 1.1 1.1 1.3Viva 1.7 1.3 1.3 2.0LSD (.05) 0.9 0.9 0.9 0.9______________________________________ *Rating Scale: 0-9; 9 = most hairs TABLE 6______________________________________Morphological Comparison of Flag Leaves of Ba74-17 and OtherKentucky Bluegrass Varieties in the Greenhouse at Marysville,______________________________________OHLeaves Length Width ThicknessVariety cm mm mm Angle Curve______________________________________Ba74-17 4.3 3.1 0.20 1.2 5.0Abbey 3.8 3.4 0.14 2.7 4.1Adelphi 5.7 3.4 0.18 5.2 5.0Allure 3.8 2.9 0.21 1.0 4.9Ascot 4.7 3.5 0.29 2.1 4.5Baron 7.0 4.2 0.15 9.2 4.4Bristol 4.3 3.2 0.21 2.3 5.0Buckingham 5.3 3.4 0.23 1.4 5.0Cannon 4.3 3.5 0.22 1.9 5.0Chateau 4.0 2.7 0.19 3.4 2.0Coventry 3.7 3.0 0.14 0.7 4.3Eclipse 3.9 3.2 0.19 8.7 5.0Georgetown 5.7 2.8 0.22 1.9 5.0Gnome 4.5 3.5 0.18 4.3 5.0Kelly 4.8 4.1 0.18 3.1 4.4Midnight 3.8 2.6 0.19 1.1 5.0Nassau 6.0 3.7 0.19 5.9 4.7Nottingham 4.3 3.7 0.22 2.0 4.6Ram 1 3.4 3.1 0.19 1.0 4.8Touchdown 4.1 2.7 0.16 3.4 4.1Victa 3.9 3.7 0.27 2.1 4.6Viva 4.5 3.6 0.18 5.1 4.4LSD (.05) 1.0 0.42 0.02 2.50 0.44______________________________________ Hairs* Ligule Leaf SheathVariety mm Margin Ligule Color**______________________________________Ba74-17 1.2 0.2 2.8 2.0Abbey 1.3 0.8 1.6 0.2Adelphi 1.1 1.8 1.6 0.4Allure 0.8 0.4 2.3 2.0Ascot 1.5 0.6 0.7 0.9Baron 1.2 1.0 3.8 2.6Bristol 0.6 0.4 1.9 2.0Buckingham 1.2 0.5 2.1 1.8Cannon 1.3 0.4 3.6 1.5Chateau 0.9 1.1 3.1 0.3Coventry 0.9 0.8 1.7 2.0Eclipse 1.1 1.0 1.0 0.2Georgetown 0.6 0.6 2.0 2.0Gnome 0.8 0.9 3.2 1.5Kelly 1.5 1.1 2.5 2.2Midnight 30.4 0.4 0.3 2.0Nassau 1.1 2.6 2.4 0.8Nottingham 1.3 1.5 2.3 1.8Ram 1 0.7 0.5 1.3 2.0Touchdown 1.1 1.0 1.0 7.7Victa 1.3 1.0 0.8 0.5Viva 1.5 0.4 2.2 0.5LSD (.05) 0.17 0.50 0.70 0.76______________________________________ *Rating Scale: 0-9; 9 = most hairs **Rating Scale: 0-9; 9 = most color TABLE 7______________________________________Morphological Comparison of Peduncles, Culms, Nodes Per Culmand Top Internode Length of Ba74-17 and Other KentuckyBluegrass Varieties in the Greenhouse at Marysville, OHPeduncle Culm Top Length Width Length Nodes InternodeVariety cm mm cm Per Culm length (cm)______________________________________Ba74-17 20.7 0.76 31.0 3.1 7.6Abbey 23.2 0.65 41.3 4.1 11.0Adelphi 24.5 0.66 40.0 4.0 10.4Allure 17.9 0.61 28.0 3.1 7.7Ascot 20.0 0.64 36.3 3.0 12.7Baron 34.0 0.70 52.8 4.2 12.8Bristol 22.9 0.73 43.5 4.0 12.6Buckingham 24.7 0.71 44.9 3.7 13.4Cannon 24.3 0.81 39.5 3.1 10.8Chateau 20.7 0.61 38.9 4.4 9.9Coventry 19.6 0.49 34.7 4.5 7.9Eclipse 23.7 0.66 39.2 4.9 9.9Georgetown 21.7 0.68 37.5 3.2 11.1Gnome 19.4 0.84 35.3 3.1 9.2Kelly 29.4 0.75 46.6 3.6 11.8Midnight 20.5 0.72 29.5 2.8 7.6Nassau 25.0 0.66 36.0 3.9 7.4Nottingham 26.9 0.82 39.7 2.9 9.7Ram 1 22.2 0.69 30.5 2.5 6.6Touchdown 23.6 0.52 38.0 4.0 8.4Victa 21.2 0.81 37.9 3.7 10.3Viva 26.4 0.70 42.7 4.1 9.2LSD (.05) 3.2 0.08 3.3 0.4 1.9______________________________________ TABLE 8______________________________________Morphological Comparison of Vegetative Leaves of Ba74-17 and OtherKentucky Bluegrass Varieties in the Greenhouse at Marysville,______________________________________OHLeaf Length Width ThicknessVariety cm mm mm Angle* Curve***______________________________________Ba74-17 19.3 3.0 0.30 51.9 7.3Abbey 20.7 3.6 0.28 51.3 7.4Adelphi 19.4 3.7 0.28 67.0 4.6Allure 18.1 3.5 0.30 53.0 6.2Ascot 17.4 3.4 0.35 67.9 5.5Baron 18.2 4.3 0.29 35.0 4.4Bristol 18.2 3.7 0.32 65.5 6.9Buckingham 18.9 4.5 0.36 50.9 5.0Cannon 22.1 3.3 0.30 62.5 8.2Chateau 23.1 3.3 0.33 39.7 5.4Coventry 23.4 3.6 0.25 63.0 7.3Eclipse 20.3 4.4 0.30 65.5 5.4Georgetown 19.5 3.6 0.29 56.7 5.8Gnome 18.2 2.9 0.29 43.2 6.6Kelly 22.8 3.9 0.30 55.5 7.0Midnight 19.5 3.5 0.31 63.3 5.0Nassau 16.3 3.7 0.29 63.2 4.9Nottingham 18.6 3.8 0.34 61.6 7.7Ram 1 19.1 3.6 0.27 70.8 6.5Touchdown 16.7 3.7 0.24 51.3 4.0Victa 21.5 3.6 0.36 56.3 6.7Viva 22.9 3.8 0.40 53.0 7.1LSD (.05) 3.5 0.43 0.04 15.9 1.5______________________________________ Ligule Hairs*** Length Leaf Leaf Color***______________________________________Ba74-17 0.14 3.5 0.9 2.0Abbey 0.32 4.4 2.8 0.0Adelphi 0.34 2.6 3.4 0.0Allure 0.14 2.0 1.6 1.9Ascot 0.22 1.5 2.0 1.4Baron 0.33 4.6 3.6 0.4Bristol 0.12 2.6 3.0 2.0Buckingham 0.14 3.3 2.6 2.0Cannon 0.16 3.2 0.7 2.0Chateau 0.22 3.3 3.1 0.5Coventry 0.32 3.1 2.4 0.3Eclipse 0.38 2.8 2.6 0.2Georgetown 0.14 2.5 2.4 2.0Gnome 0.23 1.6 0.8 1.4Kelly 0.34 4.6 2.4 0.0Midnight 0.10 1.3 1.6 2.0Nassau 0.34 2.5 3.3 1.4Nottingham 0.21 3.1 2.0 1.4Ram 1 0.09 1.8 1.0 2.0Touchdown 0.29 1.4 1.3 8.0Victa 0.26 2.3 1.7 0.1Viva 0.23 5.2 4.2 0.0LSD (.05) 0.04 0.8 0.6 0.6______________________________________ *Leaf Angle: Degrees from stem **Leaf Curve: 1-9; 1-4 = curves up; 5 = no curve; 6-9 = curves down ***Leaf Hairs: 0-9; 0 = none; 9 = many ****Sheath Color: 0-9; 0 = none; 9 = many

With regard to comparative analysis conducted for purposes of determining color of Ba74-17 plants relative to other Kentucky Bluegrass varieties, readings were taken of the vegetative color of Ba74-17 during mid-October while the turf was actively growing with adequate nutrient and water availability. The readings were taken in full sun with several actively growing leaves being compared, one at a time, utilizing color chips from the Munsell Book of Color as a reference. On this basis, the color of Ba74-17 was determined to be 5 GY 4/6. During the same time period, the color of similar leaves of other Kentucky Bluegrass varieties were determined by the same procedure to be as follows: Ascot--5 GY 4/4; Buckingham--7.5 GY 4/4; Ba77-700--5 GY 4/6; Midnight--7.5 GY 4/4; Abbey--5 GY 4/6; and and Victa--5 GY 4/4. However, it should be noted that the general apparent color of turf does not always correlate directly with the color of the individual actively growing leaves within the turf and that turf color varies with nutrient level and time of year with some varieties being darker or lighter green depending on such factors.

Comparisons of Ba74-17 with other Kentucky Bluegrass varieties for quality, genetic color, spring greenup, winter color, leaf texture, percent living ground, drought tolerance, canopy height, nitrogen deficiency, flood recovery and seedheads are set forth hereinafter in Tables 9-20.

TABLE 9______________________________________A Comparison of Quality of Ba74-17 and Other KentuckyBluegrass Varieties under Low Maintenance in Five (5) TestsA-E conducted at various Locations in the US. TESTS (Mean Values)Variety A B C D E______________________________________Ba74-17 5.3 4.9 4.4 4.6 3.9Baron 5.3 5.0 4.5 4.6 4.1Gnome 5.2 4.6 4.4 4.7 4.1Haga 5.3 4.8 4.6 4.5 4.1Kenblue 4.5 4.2 4.3 4.0 3.3Liberty 5.2 5.0 4.5 4.4 3.9Merion 4.3 4.6 4.2 4.5 3.9Merit 5.4 4.9 4.5 4.6 4.1Midnight 5.7 5.6 4.7 4.9 4.2Monopoly 5.2 5.0 4.6 4.9 4.0Park 4.6 4.2 4.1 4.1 3.8Ram 1 5.5 5.1 4.7 4.9 4.6South Dakota 4.1 3.9 3.9 3.9 3.3LSD (0.05) 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.4______________________________________ Rating Scale: 1-9; 9 = Ideal Turf TABLE 10______________________________________A Comparison of Quality of Ba74-17 and Other KentuckyBluegrass Varieties under Low Maintenance at Four (4)Locations in the US. Test Locations Rathdrum St. Louis Pittstown WashingtonVariety Idaho Missouri New Jersey DC______________________________________Ba74-17 6.3 6.4 6.4 4.1Baron 6.5 6.6 6.0 3.1Gnome 6.1 6.3 5.7 3.1Haga 6.7 6.0 5.1 3.2Kenblue 4.5 5.1 3.7 3.2Liberty 6.6 6.1 5.3 3.4Merion 5.9 6.1 3.4 1.7Merit 6.4 6.5 6.0 3.3Midnight 7.2 7.8 6.7 2.4Monopoly 4.9 5.5 4.8 3.9Park 4.6 5.0 3.9 3.3Ram 1 7.1 6.9 6.2 2.8South Dakota 4.0 4.5 3.5 2.3LSD (0.05) 0.9 0.8 0.7 1.0______________________________________ Rating Scale: 1-9; 9 = Ideal Turf TABLE 11______________________________________A Comparison of Genetic Color of Ba74-17 and Other KentuckyBluegrass Varieties under Low Maintenance at Seven (7) Locations in US.Color Ratings By Locations Rath- St. North Marys- Univ. Nor- drum Louis Lincoln Brunswick ville Park tonVariety ID MO NE NJ OH PA VA______________________________________74-17 7.2 6.7 6.4 7.0 7.2 6.4 6.3Baron 6.0 6.9 6.4 6.3 7.5 6.3 6.5Gnome 6.8 6.7 6.6 5.3 7.5 6.1 6.7Haga 3.3 5.6 5.8 4.3 6.3 5.4 5.0Kenblue 4.5 6.2 5.6 3.7 7.2 5.7 3.7Liberty 6.0 6.6 6.0 5.3 7.0 5.8 5.7Merion 5.7 6.3 5.8 5.3 7.0 5.8 5.0Merit 6.5 6.6 6.4 5.7 7.2 6.2 6.7Midnight 7.3 7.3 7.4 7.3 8.2 8.0 7.2Monopoly 2.3 5.8 5.4 3.7 6.0 4.9 5.0Park 4.0 5.3 5.3 3.0 6.5 4.9 4.0Ram 1 7.2 7.2 6.0 6.0 7.3 6.1 5.8South 4.8 5.8 5.2 3.7 7.0 5.9 4.3LSD (0.05) 1.6 1.0 0.7 1.2 0.5 0.9 0.9______________________________________ Genetic Color Rating Scale: 1-9; 9 = Dark TABLE 12______________________________________A Comparison of Spring Greenup Ba74-17 and OtherKentucky Bluegrass Varieties under Low Maintenanceat Two (2) locations in the US.Variety Rathdrum ID Univ. Park, PA______________________________________Ba74-17 7.0 3.3Baron 6.3 2.7Gnome 6.0 3.0Haga 5.3 2.3Kenblue 2.7 1.3Liberty 5.7 2.3Merion 7.7 3.3Merit 6.3 2.7Midnight 8.3 2.3Monopoly 2.7 1.7Park 3.3 2.3Ram 1 7.0 1.0South Dakota 3.0 1.3LSD (0.05) 1.8 0.8______________________________________ Spring Greenup Rating Scale: 1-9; 9 = Completely Green TABLE 13______________________________________A Comparison of Winter Color of Ba74-17 and OtherKentucky Bluegrass Varieties under Low maintenance at Rathdrum, ID Winter Variety Color______________________________________ Ba74-17 7.0 Baron 6.3 Gnome 6.7 Haga 6.3 Kenblue 3.7 Liberty 6.7 Merion 7.7 Merit 7.0 Midnight 8.3 Monopoly 3.7 Park 5.3 Ram 1 7.7 South Dakota 3.7 LSD (0.05) 1.5______________________________________ Winter Color Rating Scale: 1-9; 9 = Complete Color Retention TABLE 14______________________________________A Comparison of Leaf Texture of Ba74-17 and OtherKentucky Bluegrass Varieties under Low Maintenance atTwo (2) Locations in the US. Rathdrum St. LouisVariety ID MO______________________________________Ba74-17 6.3 5.3Baron 5.7 5.8Gnome 6.0 5.3Haga 6.7 6.2Kenblue 9.0 7.8Liberty 7.3 5.9Merion 6.0 5.5Merit 5.7 5.1Midnight 8.3 6.3Monopoly 6.3 5.8Park 8.0 6.7Ram 1 7.3 6.4South Dakota 8.3 6.8LSD (0.05) 1.1 0.8______________________________________ Leaf Texture Rating Scale: 1-9; 9 = very fine TABLE 15______________________________________A Comparison of Percent Living Ground Cover in Spring of Ba74-17and Other Kentucky Bluegrass Varieties under Low Maintenance atthe Washington Monument Grounds, DC.Variety % Cover______________________________________Ba74-17 41.7Baron 25.0Gnome 31.7Haga 48.3Kenblue 33.3Liberty 43.3Merion 10.0Merit 20.0Midnight 21.7Monopoly 53.3Park 33.3Ram 1 36.7South Dakota 11.7LSD (0.05) 23.2______________________________________ TABLE 16______________________________________A Comparison of Drought Tolerance (Dormancy) of Ba74-17 andOther Kentucky Bluegrass Varieties under Low Maintenance atBeltsville, MD and Hubbard, OR. Beltsville HubbardVariety MD OR______________________________________Ba74-17 6.3 5.3Baron 4.7 2.0Gnome 5.3 3.0Haga 5.3 2.0Kenblue 4.0 2.7Liberty 3.0 3.0Merion 6.0 4.7Merit 5.7 4.0Midnight 6.7 3.0Monopoly 5.7 3.0Park 4.7 3.3Ram 1 5.7 4.0South Dakota 5.7 3.7LSD (0.05) 2.0 2.2______________________________________ Dormancy Rating Scale: 1-9; 9 = No Dormancy TABLE 17______________________________________A Comparison of Canopy Heightin Inches of Ba74-17 and Other KentuckyBluegrass Varieties under Low Maintenance at University Park, PA.Variety Height in Inches______________________________________Ba74-17 4.5Baron 5.0Gnome 5.2Haga 6.2Kenblue 7.3Liberty 4.5Merion 4.3Merit 4.5Midnight 3.2Monopoly 7.0Park 7.3Ram 1 5.2South Dakota 6.3LSD (0.05) 1.4______________________________________ TABLE 18______________________________________A Comparison of NitrogenDeficiency Ratings of Ba74-17 and OtherKentucky Bluegrass Varieties under Low Maintenance at Rathdrum, ID.Variety Nitrogen Deficiency______________________________________Ba74-17 6.3Baron 6.3Gnome 6.7Haga 5.0Kenblue 1.7Liberty 6.7Merion 3.7Merit 5.3Midnight 7.0Monopoly 5.3Park 4.0Ram 1 7.3South Dakota 1.7LSD (0.05) 2.1______________________________________ Nitrogen Deficiency Rating Scale: 1-9; 9 = no symptoms TABLE 19______________________________________A Comparison of Flood RecoveryRatings of Ba74-17 and Other KentuckyBluegrass Varieties under Low Maintenance at Lincoln, NE.Variety Flood Recovery______________________________________Ba74-17 5.7Baron 3.3Gnome 4.0Haga 1.7Kenblue 2.3Liberty 3.3Merion 5.3Merit 4.0Midnight 4.3Monopoly 1.7Park 1.7Ram 1 2.3South Dakota 2.0LSD (0.05) 3.2______________________________________ Flood Recovery Rating Scale: 1-9; 9 = best TABLE 20______________________________________A Comparison ofSeedheads of Ba74-17 and Other KentuckyBluegrass Varieties under Low Maintenance at North Brunswick, NJ.Variety Seedheads______________________________________Ba74-17 2.3Baron 3.0Gnome 3.7Haga 4.7Kenblue 9.0Liberty 4.0Merion 4.0Merit 2.0Midnight 9.0Monopoly 6.0Park 9.0Ram 1 6.3South Dakota 8.7LSD (0.05) 1.8______________________________________ Seedhead Rating Scale: 1-9; 9 = none

Turf diseases are one of the major causes of inconsistent and poor turf performance. Ba74-17 has been found to have a medium to high level of resistance to the following diseases: (a) leaf spot and melting out caused by Drechslera poae formerly called Helminthosporium vagans; (b) diseases such as leaf rust caused by Puccinia spp; (c) Fusarium patch caused by Fusarium spp; and (d) red thread caused by Laetisaria fuciformis.

Compounds of disease incidence of Ba74-17 as compared with other Kentucky Bluegrass Varieties in regard to leaf spot, melting out, leaf rust, Fusarium patch and red thread are presented in Tables 21-26.

TABLE 21______________________________________A Comparison of Leaf Spot Incidenceof Ba74-17 and Other Kentucky BluegrassVarieties under Low Maintenance at Five (5) Locations in the US. N. Brunswick Pittstown Marysville Beltsville NortonVariety NJ NJ OH MD VA______________________________________Ba74-17 4.7 5.7 6.0 4.0 5.7Baron 4.7 5.3 6.7 4.0 4.0Gnome 3.7 4.0 6.3 3.3 4.7Haga 2.7 3.3 6.3 3.3 4.3Kenblue 1.0 1.0 3.3 1.3 2.3Liberty 4.7 4.7 7.3 3.7 5.7Merion 5.7 6.3 6.0 3.3 6.0Merit 4.3 4.7 6.7 4.3 5.0Midnight 7.7 7.3 7.7 6.7 6.3Monopoly 3.3 3.3 5.7 3.7 4.0Park 2.0 2.7 4.0 2.0 3.7Ram 1 4.3 3.7 6.7 4.7 4.3South 1.0 1.3 3.3 1.0 4.0LSD (0.05) 1.4 1.5 1.0 1.2 1.7______________________________________ Leaf Spot Rating Scale: 1-9; 9 = no disease TABLE 22______________________________________A Comparison of Leaf Spot Incidenceof Ba74-17 and Other Kentucky BluegrassVarieties under Low Maintenance at Pittstown, NJ and Ithaca, NYVariety Pittstown NJ Ithaca NY______________________________________Ba74-17 5.7 9.0Baron 5.3 9.0Gnome 4.0 9.0Haga 3.3 8.0Kenblue 1.0 1.3Liberty 4.7 8.3Merion 6.3 8.0Merit 4.7 7.3Midnight 7.3 9.0Monopoly 3.3 5.0Park 2.7 2.3Ram 1 3.7 3.7South Dakota 1.3 4.3LSD (0.05) 1.5 2.7______________________________________ Leaf Spot Rating Scale: 1-9; 9 = No Disease TABLE 23______________________________________A Comparison of Melting OutIncidence of Ba74-17 and Other KentuckyBluegrass Varieties under Low Maintenance at Rathdrum, ID.Variety Melting Out______________________________________Ba74-17 6.0Baron 7.0Gnome 5.3Haga 6.3Kenblue 4.0Liberty 6.3Merion 6.0Merit 6.7Midnight 8.0Monopoly 5.0Park 4.3Ram 1 8.0South Dakota 4.0LSD (0.05) 1.5______________________________________ Melting Out Rating Scale: 1-9; 9 = No Damage TABLE 24______________________________________A Comparison of Leaf RustIncidence of Ba74-17 and Other KentuckyBluegrass Varieties under Low Maintenance at Rathdrum, ID.Variety Leaf Rust______________________________________Ba74-17 7.3Baron 6.0Gnome 8.0Haga 5.7Kenblue 4.3Liberty 6.5Merion 3.7Merit 6.3Midnight 5.7Monopoly 3.0Park 2.7Ram 1 7.7South Dakota 3.7LSD (0.05) 1.7______________________________________ Leaf Rust Rating Scale: 1-9; 9 = No Disease TABLE 25______________________________________A Comparison of Fusarium PatchIncidence of Ba74-17 and Other KentuckyBluegrass Varieties under Low Maintenance at Rathdrum, ID.Variety Fusarium Patch______________________________________Ba74-17 5.7Baron 4.3Gnome 6.0Haga 4.7Kenblue 2.3Liberty 6.0Merion 3.3Merit 5.7Midnight 4.7Monopoly 3.3Park 1.7Ram 1 6.0South Dakota 2.7LSD (0.05) 1.8______________________________________ Fusarium Patch Rating Scale: 1-9; 9 = No Disease TABLE 26______________________________________A Comparison of Red ThreadIncidence of Ba74-17 and Other Kentucky BluegrassVarieties under Low Maintenance at Kingston, RI and Marysville, OH.Variety Kingston RI Marysville OH______________________________________Ba74-17 7.0 8.0Baron 7.0 7.7Gnome 5.7 8.0Haga 6.3 8.0Kenblue 3.7 4.7Liberty 7.7 8.0Merion 8.3 7.7Merit 7.0 8.0Midnight 6.3 7.7Monopoly 6.0 7.7Park 6.0 6.0Ram 1 7.3 7.3South Dakota 6.7 7.7LSD (0.05) 2.1 1.2______________________________________ Red Thread Rating Scale: 1-9; 9 = no disease

Additional comparisons for mature plant height, vegetative growth versus seed heads, panicle length, days to heading, days to anthesis and seed yields are presented in Tables 27-32.

TABLE 27______________________________________A Comparison of Mature Plant Heightof Ba74-17 and Other Kentucky Bluegrass Varieties at Gervais, OR. Variety Height cm______________________________________ Ba74-17 62.2 Ba78-258 60.3 Ba77-700 60.0 Ba78-165 53.4 Abbey 65.0 Allure 53.0 Ascot 56.0 Bristol 69.4 Buckingham 66.8 Cannon 68.4 Chateau 60.2 Coventry 62.4 Estate 57.4 Fairfax 60.6 Gnome 60.8 Kelly 65.2 Newport 74.9 Victa 68.2 Viva 61.6 LSD (0.05) 8.7______________________________________ TABLE 28______________________________________A Comparison of Vegetative Growth Versus Seed Headsof Ba74-17 and Other Kentucky Bluegrass Varieties at Gervais, OR.Variety Vegatative Growth vs Seed Heads______________________________________Ba74-17 5.6Ba78-258 6.9Ba77-700 7.2Ba78-165 5.8Abbey 5.8Allure 7.2Ascot 4.2Bristol 6.0Buckingham 5.6Cannon 8.0Chateau 6.8Coventry 8.0Estate 8.6Fairfax 7.2Gnome 6.6Kelly 4.8Newport 3.4Victa 7.8Viva 7.2LSD (0.05) 1.8______________________________________ Vegetative Growth versus Seed Heads Rating Scale: 1-9; 9 = Most Vegetativ Growth TABLE 29______________________________________A Comparison of Panicle Lengthof Ba74-17 and Other Kentucky Bluegrass Varieties at Gervais, OR.Variety Panicle Length (cm)______________________________________Ba74-17 9.3Ba78-258 11.1Ba77-700 8.9Ba78-165 8.6Abbey 10.4Allure 7.8Ascot 9.5Bristol 13.6Buckingham 11.9Cannon 9.9Chateau 7.7Coventry 7.8Estate 8.3Fairfax 9.1Gnome 9.7Kelly 9.7Newport 10.8Victa 10.0Viva 9.8LSD (0.05) 2.0______________________________________ TABLE 30______________________________________A Comparison of Days to Headingof Ba74-17 and Other Kentucky Bluegrass Varieties at Gervais, OR. Days to HeadingVariety First 50% 100%______________________________________Ba74-17 103.0 119.2 122.0Ba78-258 110.1 125.5 128.1Ba77-700 109.8 125.4 127.2Ba78-165 100.2 118.6 121.6Abbey 108.2 124.2 127.2Allure 110.6 125.0 126.2Ascot 88.0 112.0 118.6Bristol 95.4 118.6 122.2Buckingham 94.0 112.4 120.0Cannon 113.4 125.0 127.0Chateau 106.0 123.8 126.0Coventry 105.8 122.4 124.6Estate 105.8 123.8 125.6Fairfax 102.6 121.6 124.4Gnome 109.8 125.4 127.2Kelly 112.2 125.4 127.2Newport 85.0 109.8 118.2Victa 111.6 125.0 127.0Viva 109.4 125.0 127.2LSD (0.05) 5.3 4.0 1.8______________________________________ TABLE 31______________________________________A Comparison of Days to Anthesisof Ba74-17 and Other Kentucky Bluegrass Varieties at Gervais, OR. Days to AnthesisVariety First 50% 100%______________________________________Ba74-17 125.0 127.0 132.0Ba78-258 129.1 134.1 137.5Ba77-700 129.0 134.4 137.8Ba78-165 124.2 126.2 132.0Abbey 129.2 132.4 136.6Allure 127.8 131.0 134.8Ascot 118.6 123.8 131.8Bristol 124.6 126.6 132.0Buckingham 123.4 127.6 133.6Cannon 129.0 132.2 136.0Chateau 128.2 130.8 135.2Coventry 126.6 128.6 134.4Estate 127.0 129.2 135.2Fairfax 125.8 128.8 132.8Gnome 129.0 133.2 136.6Kelly 129.0 132.8 136.6Newport 120.4 123.4 131.4Victa 129.0 132.2 136.0Viva 129.0 132.8 136.6LSD (0.05) 2.1 2.5 1.8______________________________________ TABLE 32______________________________________A Comparison of Seed Yields of Ba74-17 and Other KentuckyBluegrass Varieties in Three (3) Tests Conducted at Imbler, OR. Seed Yield (Lb./acre)Variety Test 1 Test 2 Test 3______________________________________Ba74-17 1,433 1,238 1,284Ba78-258 1,377 1,211 1,076Ba77-700 1,569 1,105 1,156Abbey 1,549 1,324 1,090Buckingham 748 923 740Cannon 1,551 1,130 1,171Coventry 1,046 839 847Fairfax 1,159 1,074 766Viva 1,612 1,111 1,054LSD (0.05) 160 271 296______________________________________

Claims

1. A variety of Kentucky Bluegrass, substantially as shown and described, characterized by a medium to high level of resistance to a broad spectrum of serious diseases including leaf spot and melting out, leaf rust, Fusarium patch and red thread; a dark green color throughout the growing season; a medium to high quality turf formation under a wide variety of environmental conditions; short growth and a high level of seed yielding capacity.