Growth of Creeping Bentgrass (Agrostis palustris Huds.) after Applying with Fish Byproduct Fermented with Effective Microorganism

Abstract

This study was conducted to investigate changes of growth and quality of creeping bentgrass applying fish byproduct fermented with effective microorganism (FBEM), an organic agro-material. Treatments were as follows; No fertilizer (NF), control (compound fertilizer 3N a.i. g/m2/month), FBEM-1 (control + FBEM 1 mL/m2/month), FBEM-2 (control + FBEM 2 mL/m2/month), FBEM-3 (control + FBEM 4 mL/m2/month), and SFBEM (control + sterilized FBEM 2 mL/m2/month). As compared to NF, turf color index (TCI), chlorophyll a+b content, shoot length, turfgrass clipping yield, and nitrogen (N) uptake in the FBEM treatments (FBEM-1, FBEM-2, FBEM-3, and SFBEM) were increased. Compared to control, growth factors of FBEM treatments were not significantly different. An application amount of FBEM was positively correlated to TCI, shoot length, clipping yield, N content in the tissue, and N and K uptake (p≤0.05). These results indicated that FBEM application improved the quality and growth of creeping bentgrass by promoting N uptake from soil.