Score ______________ out of 100

Hour Exam #1

Multiple choice. (40 pts.)

Please read these carefully. Only one response correctly answers the question, or completes the statement. Circle the corresponding letter (a, b, c, d, or e).

1. The cool-season turfgrass with the coarsest leaves is

a. creeping bentgrass

b. fine fescue

c. Kentucky bluegrass

d. perennial ryegrass

e. tall fescue

2. Compared with C₃ grasses, C₄ grasses have

a. less wear tolerance

b. less insect resistance

c. greater photosynthesis at high light levels

d. all of the above

e. none of the above

3. Which species is the most highly drought avoidant warm-season species; growth is rank and seedy; salt and shade tolerance are poor?

a. Axonopus affinis

b. Cynodon dactylon

c. Eremochloa ophiuroides

d. Paspalum notatum

e. Stenotaphrum secundatum

4. What coefficient of uniformity would be considered adequate for an irrigation system?

a. 25%

b. 50%

c. 80%

d. 90%

e. 99%

5. Grasses often grow poorly in the shade, because their CO₂ compensation point (the level of illumination at which photosynthesis equals respiration) is higher than the available illumination. At about what relative illumination (percent of illumination relative to full sunlight) does this occur in turfgrasses?

a. 0.5%

b. 5%

c. 25%

d. 50%

e. 75%

6. Which characteristic would be a typical distinction between cultivars within a species?

a. the pathway of CO₂ fixation (C₃ vs. C₄)

b. the width of the leaf blades

c. the arrangement of the inflorescences, e.g., spike-like or branched

d. spikelets containing one fertile floret vs. several fertile florets

e. cool-season vs. warm-season

7. Which species is a low maintenance bunch grass, competitive for transition zone and southern regions of the cool-season zone? Considered a lower water use alternative to Kentucky bluegrass.

a. Agrostis palustris

b. Festuca arundinacea

c. Festuca rubra, etc.

d. Lolium perenne

e. Poa pratensis

8. Which species is a rhizomatous, long-lived, cold-tolerant perennial for general use turf (lawns, fairways)? It is the most widely used cool-season turfgrass. It goes dormant in summer.

a. Agrostis palustris

b. Festuca arundinacea

c. Festuca rubra, etc.

d. Lolium perenne

e. Poa pratensis

9. The strongest reason to irrigate at night or in the early morning, not in the middle of the day, is

a. evaporation is lowest

b. the likelihood of disease is lowest

c. distortion of sprinkler pattern is lowest

d. water pressure is lowest

e. the likelihood of sun scald is lowest

10. A turf manager wants to fertilize a 2000-square-foot lawn with 1 pound of N per thousand square feet, using Rite Green. What additional information is needed to answer, "How much fertilizer is required?"

a. The size of the lawn

b. The fertilizer analysis

c. The type of fertilizer spreader

d. All of the above

e. None of the above

11. Turfgrass culture developed initially in

a Northern Europe

b Eastern Asia

c Spain

d Northern Europe and Eastern Asia

e Northern Europe, Spain, and Eastern Asia

12. The combined loss of water from plants and soil is

a. photosynthesis

b. respiration

c. evapotranspiration

d. translocation

e. denitrification

13. Compared with rotary heads, spray heads:

a. have higher precipitation rate and lower cost per area

b. have higher precipitation rate and higher cost per area

c. have lower precipitation rate and lower cost per area

d. have lower precipitation rate and higher cost per area

e. are about the same

14. In the paper by Kneebone and Pepper, which grass had the most evapotranspiration?

a. bermudagrass

b. St. Augustinegrass

c. tall fescue

d. zoysiagrass

e. none of the above

15. Which species is a shade tolerant, coarse-textured stoloniferous species for lawns in Florida and gulf coastal areas/ It has fair wear tolerance and a wide range of pH tolerance.

a. BuchloN dactyloides

b. Cynodon dactylon

c. Eremochloa ophiuroides

d. Paspalum notatum

e. Stenotaphrum secundatum

16. The portion of the grass conducting tissue which brings carbohydrates to the roots is the:

a. phloem

b. xylem

c. stomata

d. all of the above

e. none of the above

17. Floratam is a cultivar of

a. bahiagrass

b. bermudagrass

c. centipedegrass

d. St. Augustinegrass

e. zoysiagrass

18. Pensacola is a cultivar of

a. bahiagrass

b. bermudagrass

c. centipedegrass

d. St. Augustinegrass

e. zoysiagrass

19. A turf manager tries to figure how long to run an irrigation system. Which information can be ignored?

a. the available soil moisture reserve in the root zone

b. the precipitation rate of the irrigation system

c. the evapotranspiration rate of the turfgrass

d. the rainfall

e. none of this information can be ignored

20. Food is converted to energy by a process called

a. photosynthesis

b. respiration

c. evapotranspiration

d. translocation

e. denitrification

Matching. (20 pts.)

For each blank space, write the word or words that match the statement. The list of words is:

blade, C3, C4, chloroplast, diffusion, Eragrostoideae, evapotranspiration, fibrous roots, floret, glume, intercalary meristem, lateral meristem, mowing, Panicoideae, pollen, respiration, rhizome, root hair, sheath, spikelet, stigma, stolon, stomate, sunlight, thatch, translocation, transpiration

21. An artificial defoliation of turfgrass.

________________________________________

22. The process by which plants release energy and carbon dioxide from carbohydrates.

________________________________________

23. The first fixed carbon molecule of cool-season grasses.

________________________________________

24. An underground runner, or spreading stem.

________________________________________

25. The source of energy for photosynthesis.

________________________________________

26. The layer of decomposing and undecomposed residue between the soil and the green canopy of turfgrass.

________________________________________

27. A process of gas movement, e.g., how CO2 enters the stomate and water exits.

________________________________________

28. The feathery portion of the pistil that receives the pollen for fertilization.

________________________________________

29. The type of runner of St. Augustinegrass.

________________________________________

30. The basic unit of the grass inflorescence.

________________________________________

31. The typical form of grass roots, in contrast to tap roots.

________________________________________

32. Bract located at the base of the grass spikelet.

________________________________________

33. Particles which are emitted by the grass anther, are carried by the wind, and effect fertilization.

________________________________________

34. The outstretched, usually flattened part of a grass leaf above the sheath.

________________________________________

35. The movement of materials in the xylem and phloem.

________________________________________

36. A subfamily of grasses; adapted to warm, dry areas.

________________________________________

37. A tiny projection from the roots; absorbs water and nutrients form soil.

________________________________________

38. A part of the cell containing the chlorophyll.

________________________________________

39. A region of development (cell division and growth) which is located at the base, e.g., the base of the internode, the base of the leaf.

________________________________________

40. The combined loss of water from a turf area, from both the soil and the grass leaves.

________________________________________

Conversion problems. (15 pts.)

Set up the problem, based on what's given and what's asked for, multiply by the necessary identities, and convert the units of measurement by cancelling. Do not do any arithmetic. You will not be graded on the answer, only on the setup and conversion.

41. A turf scientist applied 1 g of fertilizer (16-4-8) to a 10-inch diameter pot. What is the rate of application, in pounds nitrogen (N) per thousand square feet?

42. A turf manager wants to apply a 21-0-0 fertilizer at the rate of 1 pound of N per thousand square feet. How many pounds of fertilizer should be applied to a 3000 square foot lawn?

43. The fertilizer urea (45-0-0) is to be applied at the rate of 1 pound N per thousand square feet. How large a lawn (in square feet) can be treated with one bag (44 pounds)?

Short answer. (25 pts.)

44. What is a grass? Describe the characteristics of the grass family, both vegetative and flowering, compared with sedges and compared with broad-leaved plants (dicotyledons). Mention the location of meristems. (5 pts.)

45. How do you determine an appropriate irrigation strategy (amount and frequency) for turfgrass? (5 pts.)

46. Give at least five examples each of the consequences of under- and over-irrigation. (5 pts.)

47. What are the benefits of turfgrass? Make an outline with at least two levels (major headings and minor headings). (5 pts.)

48. Your friend up north is planting a lawn. What questions would you ask regarding the purposes of the lawn, the resources available, and the characteristics of the site? (5 pts.)