Peace Region Grass Seed Testing Program - Annual Report 2016

This report presents the results of various forage and turf grass cultivars that were evaluated for seed yield for three perennial growth seasons, except for the creeping red fescue which was evaluated for two perennial growth seasons, in the Peace Region Grass Seed Testing Trials (PRGST) under the Agri-Science Projects Growing Forward 2 Program from 2013 to 2016. A total of 73 entries of different forage and turf grass species from various origins were evaluated in this period. The number of entries included 18 of timothy (Phleum pratense L.), 46 of creeping red fescue (Festuca rubra L. var. rubra), 3 of meadow fescue (Festuca pratensis Huds.), 8 of tall fescue (Festuca arundinacea) and 8 of crested wheatgrass (Agropyron cristatum [L.] Gaertn.). Most of those cultivars were developed outside of Canada and hence must be tested under Canadian conditions for seed yield and adaptability. The seed yield results of the cultivars under the PRGST trials are helpful to establish contacts between seed companies and growers.