THE BULLETIN

of the

UNITED STATES GOLF ASSOCIATION GREEN SECTION

Vol. 10 

Washington, D. C., March, 1930 

No. 3

Contents

Page

Green Section Summer Meetings................................................................................ 38

Identifying Turf-Grass Seed. By F. H. Hillman.................................................. 39

Classification of Redtop and the Common Bent Grasses. By John Monteith, Jr. 44

Identifying Strains of Creeping Bent........................................................................  51

Questions and Answers................................................................................................  54

EXECUTIVE

COMMITTEE

W. D. Vanderpool, Chairman, P. O. Box 77, 

Newark, N. J.

Ganson Depew, Vice-Chairman, Buffalo, N. Y.
Harvey L. Westover, Washington, D. C.
H. Kendall Read, Philadelphia, Pa.
Walter S. Harran, Washington, D. C.

H. Y. Barrow, New York, N. Y.
John Monteith, Jr., Washington, D. C.
Cornelius S. Lee, New York, N. Y.
Robert M. Cutting, Chicago, Ill.
Robert F. Arnott, Upper Montclair, N. J.

RESEARCH COMMITTEE

United States Department of Agriculture
K. F. Kellerman, Acting Chairman
A. J. Pieters 
Harvey L. Westover 
Russell A. Oakley

United States Golf Association

John Monteith, Jr. 
Kenneth Welton

ADVISORY COMMITTEE

W. A. Alexander. Chicago, Ill. 
Eberhard Anheuser, St. Louis. Mo. 
N. S. Campbell, Providence, R. I. 
Wm. C. Fownes, Jr., Pittsburgh, Pa. 
F. H. Hillman, Washington, D. C. 
Thos. P. Hinman, Atlanta, Ga. 
Frederic C. Hood, Marion, Mass. 
K. F. Kellerman, Washington, D. C. 
Norman Macbeth, Los Angeles, Calif.

George V. Rotan, Houston, Tex. 
Sherrill Sherman. Utica, N. Y. 
Frederick Snare, Havana, Cuba 
James D. Standish, Jr., Detroit, Mich. 
Charles E. Van Nest, Minneapolis, Minn. 
W. R. Walton, Washington, D. C.
Alan D. Wilson, Philadelphia, Pa. 
M. H. Wilson, Jr., Cleveland, Ohio 
Frank L. Woodward, Denver, Colo.

The Bulletin is published monthly by the United States Golf Association Green Section, 

it Room 7207, Building F, 7th and B Streets, N. W., Washington, D. C.

Address all MAIL to P. 0. Box 313, Pennsylvania Avenue Station, Washington, D. C.

Send TELEGRAMS to Room 7207, Building F, 7th and B Streets, N. W., Washington, D. C.

Subscription Price: In United States of America, Mexico, and West Indies, $4.00 per year: in 

all other countries, $5.00 per year.

Entered as second-class matter. April 21. 1926. at the post office at Washington, D. C., under th* 

Act of March 3, 1879. Copyrighted. 1930, by the United States Golf Association Green Section.

38

Vol. 10, No. 3

Green Section Summer Meetings

The United States Golf Association Green Section is planning to 
hold six meetings on golf courses during the period June 30 to July 
14, 1930. Excellent opportunities will be furnished at these meetings 
to discuss golf turf problems on the ground. The success which has 
attended the Green Section’s summer meetings in the past has called 
for an increased number of these meetings, and it is fortunate that 
the six meetings now arranged for can be held under representative 
conditions within so short a period during the summer of this year. 
At all these meetings opportunity will be afforded on the demonstra­
tion turf gardens to compare different strains of grasses, different 
fertilizer tests, and the results of different cultural practices. The 
meetings will be open to anyone interested in such problems whether 
or not he may be affiliated with a club supporting the work of the 
Green Section. The meetings will be held at turf gardens on the 
golf courses listed below.

June 30, 11 a. m. Detroit Golf Club, Detroit, Mich.
July 1, 2 p. m. Sleigh Municipal Course, Grand Rapids, Mich.
July 2, 2 p. m. Niagara Falls Municipal Course, Niagara Falls, 

N. Y.

July 8,11 a. m. Mill Road Farm Course, West Lake Forest, Ill.
July 9, 2 p. m. Interlachen Club, Minneapolis, Minn.
July 14, 11 a. m. Allegheny Country Club, Sewickley, Pa. This 
meeting will be held at the time of the Pennsylvania Golf Associa­
tion’s amateur and open championship tournaments.

The meeting on July 9 at the Interlachen Club will be held just 
before the National Open Tournament. This is the first time in 
several years that a Green Section meeting and the National Open 
Tournament have been held jointly, and it should accordingly prove 
of special interest, affording visiting turf enthusiasts an opportunity 
to follow the matches and become familiar with interesting features 
of the course while at the same time joining in the study of turf 
problems at the meeting to be held at the demonstration turf garden. 
Under the liberal support of cooperating local golf courses the dem­
onstration garden at Interlachen has become a real asset to the green­
keepers in the Minneapolis district. The garden is reported to be in 
excellent condition. In the evening there will be a dinner and a 
short program of talks on turf problems. The local greenkeepers’ 
association and green committees are cooperating in the plans for 
this meeting.

STATEMENT REQUIRED BY POSTAL LAWS AND REGULATIONS OF THE OWNER­
SHIP AND MANAGEMENT (AS OF APRIL 1, 19?0) OF THE BULLETIN OF THE 
UNITED STATES GOLF ASSOCIATION GREEN SECTION, PUBLISHED MONTHLY 
AT WASHINGTON. D. C.

, T*1® owner is the United States Golf Association, a corporation organized and existing 
under the law not for profit and having no capital stock, outstanding bonds, mortgages, or 
other securities. 

*

The publisher is the United States Golf Association, 110 East 42nd St., New York, N. Y. 
Th/u w'u"’ ™an“?in* ediAOr^ and busincss managers are John Monteith, Jr., and 

Kenneth VVelton, Washington, D. C.

ness manager, before F. E. Sing.eton, notary public.

a£df 8Ubpri£edc?‘ yVashinK‘on. D. C, April 4, 1930, by Kenneth Welton, busi- 

March, 1930

39

Identifying Turf-Grass Seed
By F. H. Hillman
Seed Laboratory, United States Department of Agriculture

(An address given at the annual meeting of the Green Section in New York City, 
January 10, 1930)

The greenkeeper’s experience in handling the seed of turf grasses 
leads him to become acquainted with the identification characteristics 
of some of the kinds most commonly used. Differences in size, shape, 
and color indicate differences in kind. Unusual proportions of chaff 
and weed seeds can not easily escape notice. Thus seed of Kentucky 
bluegrass, redtop, fescue, crested dog’s-tail, sweet vernal grass, and 
Bermuda grass are readily distinguished one from another. The 
chaffy German bent seed is conspicuously different from the well 
cleaned seed from the Pacific coast and from Canada. Some im­
ported bent seed is easily distinguished from domestic seed by its 
numerous accompanying weed seeds. These kinds of seed and the 
physical condition of the sample can be recognized with the unaided 
eye, a magnifying glass not being necessary.

Some of the kinds of seed referred to are representatives of 
groups of closely related kinds which are also of interest to the green­
keeper. Close relationship of plants usually is accompanied by close 
similarity of their seeds; this is conspicuously true of the turf seeds 
under discussion. Kentucky bluegrass (Poa pratensis) is one of at 
least five kinds of Poa of more or less interest to greenkeepers in one 
section or another of the country. The word “bluegrass” appears in 
the common names of four of them, and the words “meadow grass” 
appear in the names of two; thus the common names do not suggest 
the close relationship of all of them. Excepting Kentucky bluegrass 
of domestic production, the remaining kinds, which are imported, are 
Canada bluegrass (Poa com/pressa), rough-stalked bluegrass or 
meadow grass (Poa trivialis), wood meadow grass (Poa nemoralis), 
and annual bluegrass (Poa annua). Seed of Canada bluegrass, which 
may be of turf interest in some sections, has been used as an adulter­
ant of Kentucky bluegrass and would be an undesirable substitute for 
the latter in many sections of the country. The two meadow grasses 
and annual bluegrass have their place in the turf problem, and when 
these grasses are specifically desired their seeds should not be con­
founded. How can the greenkeeper, provided with nothing better 
than a hand-magnifier and probably unfamiliar with the points of dis­
tinction and identification of the kinds, distinguish between them? 
The expert seed analyst, knowing the fine points of distinction, re­
quires the best of hand-magnifiers, and sometimes a compound micro­
scope, to insure accurate identification.

The turf fescues represent several kinds according to the names 
under which they appear in the trade. Red fescue (properly Festuca 
rubra) is a popular name. Much seed labeled thus comes from 
Europe. Chewings’ fescue (Fcstuca rubra fallax), a variety of red 
fescue, comes from New Zealand. Often the preference is for the 
New Zealand variety. How is the greenkeeper to distinguish them if 
he is not provided with the means and the knowledge with which to 
use it? The slender seeds of the so-called red fescue from Europe 
have a brownish color when a small quantity is examined spread out. 
A hand-magnifier shows that some of the seeds are very finely hairy, 

40

Vol. 10, No. 3:

and it is to be observed that many of the tapering seeds terminate in 
a slender bristle, or awn. Chewings’ fescue seed is usually lighter 
colored and has a slight purplish tinge. They are all smooth and only 
an occasional seed terminates in a very short awn. Turf fescue seed 
from Europe is imported as red fescue (Festuca rubra), sheep’s 
fescue (Festuca ovina), hard fescue (Festuca duriuscula), various­
leaved fescue (Festuca heterophylla) and fine-leaved fescue (Festuca 
capillata). The last named has comparatively small and smooth seeds 
and can be distinguished from the others by these characteristics. 
The other kinds are practically indistinguishable by an examination 
of their seeds, and it is claimed that they are much mixed in the 
trade. At present we know of no way by which the seed of the creep­
ing red fescue produced in Alberta, Canada, can be identified with 
certainty; so assurance rests upon direct dealing with the producer or 
with a reliable agent.

Two kinds of sweet vernal grass seed come from Europe; one the 
perennial sweet vernal grass (Anthoxanthum odoratum), the other 
the 'nual sweet vernal grass (Anthoxanthum puelii). A green­
keeper would have to see the two kinds together in order to distin­
guish them. Unhulled seed of the perennial kind is darker reddish 
brown than the other, as is also the hulled seed. The thin tip of the 
outer scales of the seed of this kind is rounded, while in the other kind 
it is usually notched. Seeds of crested dog’s-tail and of Bermuda 
grass are generally recognizable because of the absence of other 
closely related kinds accompanying them.

Redtop is classed as one of the bent grasses, in books on botany. 
The bent grasses (species of Agrostis) probably represent the most 
important group of closely related turf grasses with which the green­
keeper has to deal. Part of the seed on the market is domestic-grown 
and part is imported. The fact that there are several kinds, the mul­
tiplicity of names both common and botanical, the small size and simi­
larity of the seeds, the frequent misnaming and adulteration in the 
trade, all combine to render the greenkeeper practically helpless in 
identifying this class of seeds. While redtop may have a legitimate 
place in the list of golf course turf grasses, a person trying to get 
seed of one of the fine bents does not want to have redtop supplied 
him in place of it either accidentally or intentionally. The similarity 
of the seeds of bents doubtless has led to many trade errors in label­
ing. It also has led to much intentional adulteration of the more ex­
pensive fine bent seed with the cheaper redtop, sometimes redtop 
being wholly substituted for the fine bent. In one instance a large 
shipment of American grown redtop went to New Zealand, then came 
back as New Zealand grown browntop or colonial bent. In another 
instance American redtop sent to Germany was resold in the United 
States as genuine German bent. These were cases of complete sub­
stitution of redtop. Many instances of adulteration, varying in ex­
tent, are on record. Because of the coarse character of redtop turf 
unfitting it for the more exacting requirements of the golf course and 
the relatively low price of its seed, inviting its use as an adulterant 
we are becoming inclined to refer to the commercial kinds of Agrostis 
as redtop and the bent grasses.

The most widely used and produced kind of bent seed is that gen­
erally known in the United States as Rhode Island bent for which the 
name colonial bent recently has been adopted by the United States 

March, 1930 

41

Department of Agriculture. It has been produced commercially in 
Rhode Island. It is now being produced in limited quantity in Wash­
ington and Oregon. Much seed is harvested on Prince Edward 
Island, Canada, from fields which have been certified under govern­
ment inspection as practically free from redtop. This well recleaned 
seed is sold in the United States as Prince Edward Island bent. Large 
quantities of this seed are received in well cleaned condition from 
New Zealand. This seed is the chief ingredient of the mixed bent 
seed produced in southern Germany, velvet bent seed being the other 
valuable ingredient, varying much in its proportion. Some lots of 
the German seed are essentially pure colonial bent, aside from the 
chaff which is almost invariably prevalent in the German seed.

Seaside creeping bent, as its name suggests, is primarily a seacoast 
grass, but it is known to grow naturally inland. The bulk of the seed 
on the market is produced on the Oregon-Washington Pacific coast, 
chiefly in southwestern Oregon. Seed marketed under the trade name 
“Cocoos bent” is produced in the region of Coos County, Oregon. Some 
seed of creeping bent has been produced on Prince Edward Island, 
Canada. It is now under production in New Brunswick, Canada. 
The seed produced in Canada is certified by the Canadian Department 
of Agriculture after field inspection. Creeping bent has a pronounced 
capacity for spreading by means of over-ground trailing and rooting 
stems.

Velvet bent, admired for the fine quality of its turf, is also a stolo- 
niferous grass, from which especially desirable strains are being 
developed. Until recently, seed of this grass was known in the United 
States only as an ingredient of the mixed seed coming from Germany. 
Now, seed, more than half of which is seed of velvet bent, is produced 
on Prince Edward Island, and very pure seed has been produced in 
Alberta, Canada.

Two new forms of bent being produced in Oregon are now becom­
ing established in the trade. In Oregon, both spread widely by under­
ground stems and appear to have much promise as turf grasses 
suited to golf purposes. One of these is Astoria bent, produced near 
Astoria, in northwestern Oregon. The other has been marketed as 
Oregon bent and is a highland grass of interior Oregon. Both are 
believed to be varieties of the colonial bent previously discussed.

“Hybrid seed” is a term being applied to a form of bent seed com­
ing from Germany under the names “creeping bent” and “German 
bent,” implying that it is the same as the South German mixture of 
colonial and velvet bents. This seed probably has been a variable in­
gredient of the German mixture for many years, but within recent 
years it has been practically all the seed of some lots. The real nature 
of the plants produced from this seed is not now known here; but the 
plants are under study and it is expected that more will be known 
about them in the near future. In the meantime, this seed is dis­
tinguishable from that of the other commercial kinds.

The question has been asked, “To what extent can the greenkeeper 
identify the seed of redtop and the fine bents?” The general impres­
sion is that he is not properly equipped or prepared to do this ac­
curately. The seeds are so small, and the points of distinction so 
minute and obscure, that most of them can not be seen even with the 
aid of the best hand-magnifier. A compound microscope is necessary, 
and even with that one must know what to look for and be able to 

42

Vol. 10, No. 3

interpret what he finds. Not all seed analysts equipped with a micro­
scope are prepared to make these identifications. The seed now ap­
pearing in the trade can be identified as to kind under most condi­
tions. In mixtures of certain kinds, it is very difficult to distinguish 
all of the seed of each kind in a test sample, which must necessarily 
be very small to permit the work being done at all. In making deter­
minations of this kind, the problem varies with the conditions in­
volved. Thus with a mixture of redtop and creeping bent seeds, prac­
tically accurate determination of the true proportions of ingredients 
is possible; but with a mixture of colonial bent and Astoria bent seeds 
an accurate determination of proportions is not now known to be 
possible.

Structure of the seed in redtop and bent grasses, which may be seen with the use of a good 
hand-magnifier

A general understanding of the means by which the different 
kinds of bents may be distinguished by their seed may be gathered 
from an explanation of the structure of the seed in the group Agrostis. 
At the time of flowering, a single flower terminates each ultimate 
branchlet of the flower cluster. Each flower produces a single seed, 
which until maturity remains enveloped by two similar chaffy scales 
which have little, if any, value as indicating the particular kind of 
bent. Removal of the two chaffy scales exposes what is here referred 
to as the “seed,” consisting of the grain containing the germ and sur­
rounded by two additional scales, one longer than the grain, the other 
shorter, thin, and transparent. The longer scale has a slender bent 
bristle, or awn, from near its base in some of the seeds of colonial 
bent, including the Astoria and Oregon varieties, but in none of the 
others. These awns are noticeably numerous in seed of the A?toria, 
some of the seeds of which are unusually large and robust for these 
three kinds. The surface of this scale in these kinds is comparatively 
dull and the seeds average smaller than those of redtop and creeping 

March, 1930

43

bent. These features are somewhat evident under a good magnifier. 
The length of the shorter transparent scale, and whether its tip is 
notched, rounded, or truncate, are important points to consider in 
naming the seed. The magnifier is of little use in observing these 
points. Seeds of redtop and creeping bent, also the “hybrid” seed, are 
more or less shining on the longer scale about the grain. This is 
somewhat evident under the hand-magnifier and may be useful in 
disclosing the presence of the “hybrid” seed in German bent seed. 
This “hybrid” seed is very much like redtop, but mostly smaller and 
more slender. Other structural features necessary to use are too 
obscure to justify consideration here. Velvet bent seed may be dis­
tinguished from all the other commercial kinds with a good hand­
lens, since the individual seeds are dull, the surface of the longer 
scale around the grain being finely roughened and often awned from 
the middle, the smaller scale being so small that it is practically in­
visible, and the grain soft with a semifluid interior while the grains 
of all the other kinds are hard and mealy.

The kind of the bent seed coming before the analyst often is sug­
gested by the evident origin of the seed. The region of production, or 
origin, of the seed is indicated chiefly by the seeds of other kinds of 
plants usually present with the bent seed. Some of these associated 
seeds are those of weeds, others those of cultivated crops. One can 
readily understand that plants growing naturally, and even certain 
cultivated crops, will differ in kind in regions remote from each other. 
Thus German bent seed usually contains seeds never found in seed 
of any of the bents produced in the United States or Canada. The 
same applies to seed grown in different sections of the latter regions. 
The greenkeeper’s hand-magnifier would be very useful if he could 
know the origin-indicating seeds and had sufficient patience to find 
them.

The chaff of German bent seed usually indicates the origin of this 
seed, because it consists chiefly of the two outer scales of the seed 
separated from the heavier stem, and is therefore very fine and light 
in weight. It varies from 20 to 60 per cent of the total weight of 
the bulked seed. The virtue of its presence in the seed probably is 
best appreciated by the foreign dealers when they think of the price 
per pound paid by American consumers.

The evolution of better turf grasses is by no means complete. 
Throughout the whole great realm of animal and plant life the process 
of evolution is ceaselessly though silently going on. In this develop­
ment the hand of man plays no small part. In 1840 the average 
weight of fleece sheared from American sheep was less than 2 pounds. 
By 1900 it had been increased, through selection and breeding, to 
nearly 5VG pounds. Today it is approaching 8 pounds.

The house wren, for all its diminutive size, is a most useful bird, 
says the Bureau of Biological Survey. It feeds almost exclusively on 
harmful insects, and as it usually rears two broods a year the parents 
are kept busy from morning till night searching for food. This wren’s 
only bad habit is to interfere with the nests of other birds.

44

Vol. 10, No. 3

Classification of Redtop and the Common Bent Grasses 

By John Monteith, Jr.

Classifications and names are devised primarily for convenience 
in handling or in making reference to things. Grasses are frequently 
classified as hay grasses, pasture grasses, putting green grasses, fair­
way grasses, and under other headings based on the purpose for which 
the grass is to be used. Another classification is on the basis of 
geographical distribution. Of all the many classifications of plants, 
that of the botanist is of most general use. In making the botanist’s 
classification, the flower parts of a plant are of prime importance, but 
the many cnaracieristics of the seed, leaf stalk, and root are also 
given consideration. Unfortunately the dividing lines between groups 
in any classification are more or less artificial, and there are always 
members which seem to straddle these lines and cause confusion. An 
example of this is the arrangement of grasses into the two groups 
northern and southern grasses. Bermuda grass is readily recognized 
as a southern grass and red fescue as a northern grass. However, 
such grasses as annual bluegrass and crab grass, which thrive in 
both the North and the South, can not be separated by such a classifi­
cation. In spite of these difficulties there are admittedly many 
occasions when it is convenient to use such an arrangement. Like­
wise the botanist also find many hindrances in establishing sharp 
lines for separating his different groups. In some groups of plants 
he finds a greater number of intermediate forms than occur in other 
groups. The bent grasses offer an example of much variation, which 
has given botanists a great deal of difficulty in establishing dividing 
lines between groups.

When any group of plants is classified by botanists the different 
divisions are given names for convenience in reference. A large 
group is termed a genus, and this is then subdivided into species. 
Distinct groups belonging to a single species may be referred to as 
varieties. The reasons for such a classification are complex and can 
not be fully explained in this brief discussion. The botanist uses a 
Latin name to designate both the genus and the species and occa­
sionally to denote varieties. Species and varieties of common plants 
are usually given common names, and sometimes a common name is 
used for a whole genus. The Latin, or scientific name, remains the 
same everywhere, but the common names vary in different countries 
where different languages are used and frequently vary in different 
sections of the same country. The scientific name Agrostis is given 
to the genus containing the bent grasses and also redtop. The common 
name “bent” is applied to all but one of the subdivisions or species 
of this genus. This one exception is the species known under the 
common name redtop. The grass usually known as velvet bent is a 
species to which the botanist gives the scientific or Latin name 
Agrostis canina. As with all scientific names, the first name, Argostis, 
is the name of the genus and the second, canina, designates the 
species. Several selections have been made of especially promising in­
dividual plants of velvet bent. These selections, known as strains or 
varieties, have, in a few cases, been given common names, but are 
not sufficiently distinct botanically to warrant scientific recognition. 
Thus the Acme velvet bent and Highland velvet bent are two dis­
tinct strains of a single species, Agrostis canina.

March, 1930

45

Names, whether scientific or common, are applied to objects for 
convenience in referring to them verbally or in print. As long as 
each person in a group knows what one of them may be referring to, 
it makes little difference what name he uses. However, if two per­
sons in referring to an object call it by different names and each is 
ignorant of the name the other uses, it naturally follows that each 
thinks the other is talking about something entirely different. Local 
names for plants frequently lead to much misunderstanding and 
futile argument. The bent grasses furnish an example of the con­
fusion in both common and scientific names. One needs only to 
glance through a few seed catalogs to discover the wide range of 
names now in use for the same grass. For example, a single species 
of bent grass is found to be designated by the following names: 
Rhode Island bent, colonial bent, browntop bent, browntop, fine bent, 
Waipu bent, Prince Edward Island bent, Astoria bent, Agrostis tenuis, 
Agrostis capillaris, and Agrostis vulgaris. Anyone who is not 
acquainted with grasses naturally assumes that these names refer 
to different kinds. Seedsmen and those who use the grass in question 
have been confused and often misled by the many names under which 
it appears on the market.

For greatest convenience in any one country, a plant should have 
only two names, the common name and the scientific name. The 
common name is largely determined by popular usage. The scientific 
name is determined by botanists who have made a special study of 
the plant, or group of plants to which the one under consideration 
belongs. Since the work of the Green Section constantly brings its 
staff in contact with the confusion of names of the bent grasses, 
many seedsmen and others handling these grasses have urged that 
our organization attempt to obtain the opinions of those who are most 
interested in this subject for the purpose of presenting and recom­
mending adoption of the names which seem most convenient and 
simple in the light of present knowledge. No classification or group 
of names can be regarded as permanent, for when new information 
is available some changes become desirable. However, in the interest 
of better understanding, it is generally admitted that some names 
might well be dropped from common usage, and that those who write 
or talk about bent grasses would materially clarify the situation by 
using only one common name for any one accepted species.

The species of bent which has perhaps had the greatest superfluity 
of names is the one known generally in this country as Rhode Island 
bent, colonial bent, or browntop. The earlier and most commonly 
used American name was Rhode Island bent, since in the United 
States seed of this grass was first harvested in Rhode Island. In 
more recent years, seed of this species having been raised also in 
other regions, seedsmen have made a practice of designating the 
source of origin of the seed they handle. However, a geographical 
name to show the origin of seed, when coupled with a geographical 
common name, makes a clumsy and confusing combination, which has 
been objected to by dealers and purchasers of the seed. There are 
thus such combinations as New Zealand Rhode Island bent, Prince 
Edward Island Rhode Island bent, and Rhode Island Rhode Island 
bent, which are obviously awkward. Furthermore, the Rhode Island 
bent seed years ago fell into disrepute, due to adulteration, through 
ignorance or intent; and even though this fault has been largely

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Vol. 10, No. 3

Creeping bent (Agrostis palustris). 1. Portion of flowering plant (about one-third natural size).
2. Spikelet (much enlarged). 3. Ligule (much enlarged).

March, 1930

47

Colonial bent (Agrostis capillaris)

48

Vol. 10, No. 3

remedied many of the seedsmen prefer some other name to avoid any 
lingering prejudices. The various common names already used, to­
gether with some new names, were carefully considered by officials 
of the United States Department of Agriculture and the United States 
Golf Association Green Section. It was finally decided that the choice 
should best be from three names already in use, namely, Rhode Island 
bent, colonial bent, and browntop. All the arguments which had been 
raised for or against each of these three names were briefly enu­
merated and a mimeographed sheet containing the summary was sub­
mitted to 16 seedsmen handling large quantities of this grass, 16 
representative greenkeepers and 16 chairmen of green committees 
in the regions where the grass is used, and 5 interested individuals 
at State experiment stations or other institutions. Four green­
keepers and 4 chairmen failed to return the sheet indicating a pref­
erence. Of the 45 who expressed their choice, 40 were in favor of 
the name “colonial bent.” The seedsmen were unanimously in favor 
of this name. Two voters suggested new names, 2 were in favor of 
Rhode Island bent, and 1 in favor of browntop. It was accordingly 
decided that the name colonial bent would be adopted by the United 
States Department of Agriculture as the common name which it would 
use for this grass.

The name colonial bent had indeed been suggested several years 
previously, due to historical associations which attended the intro­
duction of the grass into various regions. The grass is supposed to 
have been introduced into New England and Nova Scotia by the 
early colonists, who, in embarking from England, brought the seed 
with them in quantities of dried grass used as bedding. When the 
bedding was changed, the stuffing was scattered about, and the seed 
so distributed soon germinated in the new soil, thus establishing the 
grass in colonial territory. It is likewise supposed to have been 
carried from Canada by colonists moving to New Zealand, and it 
probably also went to the west coast of the United States with early 
settlers. Since the name “colonial” in itself has no particular geo­
graphical significance, it can be conveniently combined with geo­
graphical names to designate the special source of the seed, as, for 
example, New Zealand colonial bent, Rhode Island colonial bent, Prince 
Edward Island colonial bent, and Oregon colonial bent.

The various classifications of the genus Agrostis have included 
many species which were apparently not clearly defined. This has, 
no doubt, been due partly to the fact that the bent grasses have not 
been regarded as of much economic importance. In recent years the 
increased attention given to fine turf, especially for putting greens, 
has stimulated a much greater interest in this group of grasses. The 
botanists who have recently worked with the group now divide 
those grasses in it that are used commercially into four major groups. 
There is still some dispute as to the scientific name to be applied to 
each group and to the subdivisions to be made under each group. For 
practical purposes it is, however, significant that there is an agree­
ment as to the main subdivisions. Dr. M. 0. Malte, in his classifica­
tion, which was reviewed in the November, 1928, number of the 
Bulletin, recognizes three species, one of which he divides into two 
distinct groups. He therefore has four major subdivisions. These 
same four groups are listed in a recent book by Charles C. Dean, of 
the Indiana Department of Conservation. As explained by Prof. F. H.

March, 1930

49

Hillman, in his article “Identifying Turf-Grass Seed” in this number 
of the Bulletin, the seed analyst uses entirely different character­
istics from those of the botanist in making his distinctions between 
groups. Using seed characteristics only, the seed analysts also can 
separate these same groups. Those who study the characteristics of 
these grasses in turf are also able to distinguish these same four 
groups without taking into consideration the characteristics used by 
the botanist and the seed analyst. Even though other subdivisions are 
recognized by botanists, seed analysts, and turf specialists, it seems 
significant that these same groups should be set apart by specialists 
using entirely different methods, and it seems very reasonable to 
assume that the other groups which have been set up by different 
individuals as distinct species are in reality superfluous and tend 
merely to confuse those who are working with these grasses. The 
Green Section, therefore, accepts these four groups in its classifica­
tion of redtop and the bent grasses, and until new information seems 
to justify a change it will, when referring to these grasses, use the 
common names or the scientific names given in the accompanying 
list in heavy type to designate the grasses coming within the four 
groups. The scientific names appear in italics; they are the scientific 
names being used by Dr. A. S. Hitchcock, agrostologist of the United 
States Department of Agriculture. Under each division are given 
also the other common and scientific names which have been used 
more or less frequently for the grasses within the groups.
A Grouping of Redtop and the Common Bent Grasses

1. Redtop 

Agrostis alba

Whitetop, English bent, southern bent, herd’s grass, white bent, marsh bent, 

florin.

Agrostis dispar, A. stolonifera major, A. palustris (misapplied).

2. Creeping bent 
Fiorin, carpet bent, seaside bent.*

Agrostis pulustris

Agrostis alba maritima, A. maritima, A. stolonifera compacta, A. stolonifera.f

3. Colonial bent 

Agrostis capillaris

Rhode Island bent, fine bent, browntop, Waipu bent, English bent, furzetop, 

Burden’s grass, Prince Edward Island bent, dew grass, Astoria bent.

Agrostis vulgaris, A. alba vulgaris, A. tenuis.

4. Velvet bent 

Brown bent, dog bent.

Agrostis canina

In addition to the seed of these different species on the market 
there are available mixtures containing seed in varying proportions 
of the different species. One of the best known of these mixtures is 
the seed known in the trade as German bent, German mixed bent, or 
South German mixed bent. Seed sold under these names usually 
contains all four of the species listed above. When this mixed seed is 
sown on a green the appearance of the turf during the first two or 
three years usually very closely resembles turf produced from colonial 
bent seed. Even though the velvet and creeping bents be present in 
only relatively small amounts they begin to appear in distinct patches 
throughout the turf when it is several years old. In time the creeping 
bent and velvet bent may practically crowd out all the other species

* Some Seaside creeping bent is sold under the trade name Cocoos l>ent.
t Anrostis stolonifera is still another species of Avrostis which, not being on the market nor of 

economic importance, does not come within the scope of this article. 

50

Vol. 10, No. 3

of bent. Some greens planted with mixed bent seed years ago are at 
this writing composed almost entirely of velvet bent or creeping bent. 
As new sources of bent seed are developed, it is likely that there will 
be on the market additional mixtures of seed of the different bent 
grasses. As an example, in regions where colonial bent and creep­
ing bent are both produced commercially there is bound to be some 
seed on the market containing mixtures of these two grasses, since 
the seed of the different bents can not be separated by any means at 
present available for commercial purposes.

In recent years there have been selected a large number of strains 
of creeping and velvet bent for putting green purposes. These are 
selections of individual plants which are propagated by the stolon 
method. In some cases these selections have become so popular that 
they are known almost entirely by the strain name. They are, as 
selections, on a par with the horticultural varieties of roses, apples, or 
other cultivated plants, being distinguished by certain characteristics 
which are not distinct enough to class them as botanical species 
or varieties. Seed of these strains is not available for commercial use. 
Some of the strains of creeping bent which are well known are the 
Washington, Metropolitan, Virginia, Columbia, Inverness, and Ek- 
wanok. Examples of named strains of velvet bent are Capitol, High­
land, Acme, and Kernwood. All of these strains are propagated by the 
stolon method and no seed of any of them is at present available 
commercially. There has been some misunderstanding with regard to 
the application of the name creeping bent on account of the erroneous 
idea held by some that it alone of the bent grasses possesses the 
stoloniferous or creeping habit. As a matter of fact, the creeping 
characteristic is more or less common to all the species of Agrostis, 
including redtop. Any of the commercial bents may, indeed, be 
propogated by the stolon method.

Many insects have a marked ability to make themselves at home 
in the place wherever they happen to be carried, by flight or through 
commerce. Many of our present-day crop pests formerly fed on wild 
plants, but when the land was planted to cultivated crops they not 
only changed their diet to man’s food but prospered on it. The Colo­
rado potato beetle is a good example. This beetle formerly lived on a 
wild nettle in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains, and when the 
potato was introduced into the region the bug apparently adopted it, 
and in 20 years had spread to the Atlantic Ocean.

The average weight of roller best suited for putting greens is 
probably between 150 and 200 pounds, depending more or less on the 
type of soil and the diameter of the roller in relation to its length. 
A roller 18 inches in diameter should weigh approximately 100 pounds 
to each foot in length. If the diameter is less than 18 inches, the 
weight to the linear foot should be reduced. Light or sandy soils 
require more rolling and the use of heavier rollers than heavy soils.

A rainy day is a good day for the greenkeeper to be out on his 
course. It is then that he can most readily detect areas that need 
improved drainage.

March, 1930

51

Identifying Strains of Creeping Bent

During the past fifteen years there has been much interest in the 
selection and propagation of different strains of creeping bent for 
golf course turf. On old putting greens which were planted with 
mixed bent seed many years ago, there usually appear more or less 
circular patches of creeping bent with different characteristics as 
regards color, fineness of leaf blade, density of turf, and other quali­
ties, marking these particular patches as desirable or undesirable turf 
for putting greens. These distinct patches probably each came from 
a single seed of creeping bent contained in the original mixed bent 
seed. The fact that single plants were able to spread out to form 
such large patches and were able to crowd out all other grasses in 
so spreading has indicated the vigor of some of these individual 
plants and suggested the method of developing them in order that an 
entire green, or even an entire course, might be planted with a uni­
form turf originating from a single plant. Plugs from desirable 
patches were torn apart and planted in nursery rows apart from all 
other grasses. Stolons from such nursery rows furnished material 
for planting greens.

Turf produced from seed is composed of countless individual plants 
each with certain more or less distinct characteristics, even though 
they be of the same general appearance. With the stolon method 
of planting, however, the turf all comes indirectly from one parent 
plant by the mere replanting of shoots from the original plant. This 
method is quite similar to the method used in strawberry culture. 
When a new variety of strawberry is produced from seed, it is propa­
gated by runners cut from the plant. If plants are grown from 
seed of a particular variety of strawberry, they will not be exactly 
like the variety from which the seed was obtained, due to the geneti­
cal factors introduced by seed. The runners, however, do not vary, 
for they represent actually the one plant without any involved 
genetics. In a similar manner seed from a Baldwin apple does not 
produce a Baldwin apple tree, but buds or shoots taken from a Bald­
win apple tree when grafted to any wild stock will produce a Baldwin 
apple. It is sometimes difficult for one not acquainted with plant 
life to grasp the distinction between these two methods of reproduc­
tion, because he is familiar with only the method common to the 
higher animal kingdom, and this always involves individual variation 
due to crossing.

Every viable seed of a plant subject to propagation from the 
vegetative parts has the potentialities of a new variety or strain. 
Creeping bent, like apples and strawberries, shows endless variations 
as to individuals, but only a relatively few of them have been picked 
out for propagation on a large scale. Identification of creeping bent 
strains is therefore limited to these few strains which have been 
grown on any extensive scale. Occasionally some turf enthusiast 
wandering about a golf course picks up a conspicuous piece of creep­
ing bent sod and sends it to the Green Section for information as to 
strain. Obviously it is impossible to identify the countless thousands 
of different creeping bent plants that occur on the golf courses of 
this country where mixed bent seed was used. Identification and 
naming of varieties is of value only in the few cases where the 
varieties have been tested and have some known record. In the few 

52

Vol. 10, No. 3

cases of creeping bent strains, such as the Washington, Metropolitan, 
Virginia, Columbia, and similar well-tested strains, an identification 
is of value because of the many tests that have been made with them.

Bent Identification Rows at the Arlington Turf Garden
Sampler of bent grass received by the Green Section for identification are planted in 
the rows shown in the illustration, where the samples are grown beside plugs of 
known strains of bent. Each plug is marked with a wooden label. After the samples 
have developed sufficiently they are compared with the Green Section's stock. Identi­
fication is not attempted until the stolons have grown several inches from the original 
sample.

If a club purchases a strain of creeping bent turf as the Metropolitan 
strain, because the characteristics of that particular grass seem desir­

March, 1930 

53

able for its course, it is important that the strain be as represented; 
but if an unknown and untested strain be planted, the club of neces­
sity shoulders the full responsibility. Much disappointment and 
waste of funds has resulted from the indiscriminate planting of 
unknown strains of creeping bent on golf courses.

To enable clubs to determine the strain of creeping bent used on 
their courses the Green Section is prepared to identify the most 
common strains at present available commercially. Just as varieties 
of apples or strawberries vary somewhat in appearance when grown 
on different soils in different climates, so creeping bent strains vary 
slightly in certain characteristics when grown under different con­
ditions. The general habit of growth of the strains remains much the 
same under varying conditions, but due to the many minor differences 
that may appear positive identification is not made by the Green 
Section until the strain under question is compared with known stock 
under identical conditions at the Arlington turf garden. To accom­
plish this direct comparison, plantings are made on land which has 
been in cultivation for some time and kept free from creeping bent. 
A sample to be identified is planted beside a similar-sized sample 
from the known stock growing at Arlington. The known sample and 
the sample to be identified are grown side by side for several months 
and comparisons are made and recorded from time to time. In this 
manner the stolons of all samples are grown in the same soil under 
identical conditions, which enables anyone who is thoroughly familiar 
with these strains to readily distinguish between them without mak­
ing any allowances for differences due to varying soil and climatic 
conditions. This method, of necessity, requires much time for growth, 
since no attempt is made to identify a sample until it is thoroughly 
established in the soil at the Arlington turf garden. It is possible 
to make fairly reliable identification of strains growing on courses, 
but it has been the experience of those acquainted with the work 
that such identifications are not always dependable and that positive 
identification requires some such procedure as that now used at the 
Arlington turf garden. Even with the method of comparing strains as 
here outlined, the Green Section does not attempt to positively identify 
every strain that is received, since some of the commercial strains 
appear similar unless a more elaborate series of comparisons is made. 
Thus the strain commonly known as Columbia is difficult to distin­
guish from several similar strains that have been distributed com­
mercially in recent years. All of these strains give a somewhat similar 
type of turf, which has generally been regarded as unsatisfactory. 
All of these strains are merely identified as of the Columbia tvpe. 
To distinguish between some of the closely related strains of'the 
Columbia type would necessitate plantings to establish closely cut 
turf for a comparison of disease resistance and other qualities in which 
these strains are known to vary. Such comparisons would be far too 
costly to be justified except in rare cases, and then only at the expense 
of the club or individual desiring the exact name. This necessity for 
comparing certain stages of plant growth for the identification of 
strains or varieties is not by any means new to those acquainted 
with plant culture. When a man buys young apple trees, for instance, 
he may have to wait from 5 to 10 years until fruit is borne before the 
variety can be positively identified. Certain types of apple varieties 
can be recognized from leaves and bark, but the final identification 

54

Vol. 10, No. 3

of particular varieties must await comparison of fruits; and likewise 
positive identification of some creeping bent strains must await cer­
tain stages of development in the turf. The buyer of apple nursery 
stock must depend on reliable nurserymen to assure getting the 
variety he orders, and golf clubs must do likewise in obtaining creep­
ing bent stolons unless they raise their own stolons and are careful 
to do it on land which is free from other strains.

In some cases the same strain of creeping bent has been distributed 
from different nurseries under different names. If a nurseryman 
chooses to rename a strain, he is at liberty to do so. The Green Section 
in its identification of a strain of creeping bent uses the name that was 
applied to that particular strain when it was first listed in the records 
of the Arlington turf garden.

QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS

Selecting strains of Bermuda grass.—We are considering the sub­
stitution of grass greens for our sand greens and are wondering 
whether it would be practicable for this purpose to make use of a 
local strain of Bermuda grass. In an experimental way we have 
just put into play a green which we have sodded with a local strain. 
(Mexico)

Answer.—There are numerous strains of Bermuda grass, but 
since there has been little experimental work done so far on indi­
vidual strains the different strains are not named, except in a general 
way. In Atlanta, Ga., fine strains were selected and were all called 
the Atlanta strain. This name indicates no strain in particular, but 
is generally considered to refer to any fine strain. Giant Bermuda 
grass, on the other hand, is spoken of when referring to one of the 
coarser strains. The St. Lucie strain of Bermuda grass is found in 
Florida and is slightly different from other strains in that it produces 
no underground rootstocks but spreads entirely by stolons above­
ground. Pure seed of the St. Lucie strain is not available. From 
Bermuda seed on the market many different strains of Bermuda 
grass may be produced. Golf courses in the South should maintain 
nurseries of Bermuda grass grown from seed, and when particularly 
fine strains appear, or strains suitable for particular purposes, they 
should be isolated and planted in separate nurseries. Cuttings from 
these could then be used for planting putting greens or for other pur­
poses. Certain strains of creeping bent were originally developed 
in this manner. If particularly fine patches of Bermuda grass are 
developed on your putting green from one source or another, it would 
be well to dig up the sod and plant nurseries from them in the 
manner recommended for planting creeping bent nurseries as de­
scribed in various numbers of the Bulletin. Such a nurserv would, 
in time, furnish material from which to plant all putting greens with 
a uniform strain of fine Bermuda grass.

Mixing arsenate of lead with sulphate of ammonia.—In the control 
of earthworms and grubs can arsenate of lead be applied mixed with 
sulphate of ammonia in order to let a single application serve for both 
fertilizing and applying the insecticide? (Ohio)

Answer.—The mixing and applying of these two chemicals to­

gether will not destroy the efficiency of either.

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A little neglect may breed great mischief. For 
want of a nail the shoe was lost; for want of a shoe 
the horse was lost; and for want of a horse the 
rider was lost, being overtaken and slain by the 
enemy; all for want of a little care about a horse­
shoe nail.

Benjamin Franklin