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Finally, A Grass To Celebrate In The Drought

Lindy Murff - noemail@murffturf.com — Fri, 02 Sep 2011 16:00:00 GMT

September 1, 2011 - In Texas, dove hunting began today and those hunters lucky enough to find some water to hunt near will find their gun barrels with a heat index almost as hot as the Texas sun. There in lies the problem, water, or the lack thereof. I enjoy a little time in the field bird huntin' and one thing it seems that you can always count on with dove season is the rain that comes along with opening day. I realize that is a bit of a reach but that's the way it feels. With history in mind and a historical drought for the Gulf Coast of Texas on my mind I anticipated this day. I was not looking forward to showering down on a mourning dove with a blistering shower of Remington Shurshot Heavy Dove Load, but rather being showered upon by thirst quenching, life giving rain from a wave of gulf moisture.

Newsflash, it's hot and dry.

What does all of this have to do with a grass worth celebrating? Look around, there seems not to be a lot to Celebrate about grass in these drought conditions. Here is the part where I could go into all of the facts about grass being 30 degrees cooler than asphalt on a summer day and so on, and so on.
That is a different article, I just want to talk plainly about things that I see in this historic drought we are experiencing. I have always said there is no perfect grass and I still believe that. Here is the payoff. I am about to let you in on a secret, shhhhhhhh. Celebration® Bermuda. Let me say that again, Celebration Bermuda.

At Murff Turf Farm, we grow nine varieties of turf and the drought has taught me something different about each variety. Celebration has really impressed me as the drought conditions linger on. The drought tolerance it has displayed has been astounding. We have always relied heavily on mother nature to produce our turf and this year she has not been so kind. We do irrigate our turf, but much of that irrigation is used in order to give us the moisture needed in order to harvest and send out a turf that is ready to root down. We have had a lot of damage to all of our varieties in these dry conditions. The grass that has had the least amount of injury and death has been the Celebration Bermuda. There is a location that we no longer farm and thus has not been irrigated at all this year. In this location there was a 4 acre plot of Celebration that bordered a plot of tif 419. Comparing the two plots of grass you immediately see the difference. In a year where this location has had a total of 3" of rain, compared with the normal 30" of rain, the tif 419 has about 10% live rate compared to about a 90% live rate of the Celebration. I told you this is plain talk and those observations are not scientific hypotheses, they are what I see. That makes a believer out of this grass farmer. A few years ago, the San Antonio Water System (SAWS), in conjunction with the Turfgrass Producers of Texas did a drought study that basically showed the excellent drought tolerance displayed by Celebration compared to more than 50 other varieties of turf. That was a scientific study and I would say that science was confirmed by mother nature in 2011.

Tif 419 on the left and Celebration on the right

Celebration on the left and Tif 419 on the right

I have observed it in yards this year where with water it has looked great and I have seen it in yards with no irrigation and it looked much better than the neighboring yards with St. Augustine and zoysia. Not only does it stand up to the drought conditions but it also displays excellent wear tolerance which really shows up in various sports applications. I really liked the Celebration going into 2011, but after this crazy year, the likability factor has shot through the roof.

There is no perfect grass. All grasses have their limitations when it comes to different environments and some are suited to certain environments better than others. That being said, Celebration is high on my list as a tough, dependable, aesthetically pleasing turf. It's growing on me, and on our farm, and it will grow on you; well maybe not "on" you, but you get my point.

Lindy Murff

2-Sep-11 11:00 AM

Some Older Pictures We Found

Scott Murff - noemail@murffturf.com — Thu, 09 Jun 2011 18:00:00 GMT

We were going through some of our old pictures the other day looking for some that would be interesting to put up on the website. We found a few that you might enjoy. Some of them are several years old and some are from the last couple of years but it's kind of fun to go back and look at some of them anyway. They are basically in order from older to newer. Enjoy!

9-Jun-11 1:00 PM

Some Photos From the Field

Scott Murff - noemail@murffturf.com — Wed, 16 Mar 2011 15:00:00 GMT

Just wanted to put up some photos from the farm that show the harvesters and the neatly stacked pallets of grass. Might be interesting to some people. The grass has greened up quite a bit from what it looked like a month ago but you can still some some brown in it from the winter. If the weather stays above 60 degrees for two or three more weeks in a row then all the brown grass will have turned green by then.

16-Mar-11 10:00 AM

Empire Winter Maintenance

Scott Murff - noemail@murffturf.com — Wed, 09 Mar 2011 15:00:00 GMT

Here's a link to a video and info about how to help your Empire zoysia get ready for Spring. There is a lot of other good info on that site also if you want to poke around for a while there.

2011 Empire Winter Maintenance

9-Mar-11 9:00 AM

Dormant Grass

Scott Murff - noemail@murffturf.com — Fri, 11 Feb 2011 16:00:00 GMT

I hope everyone is staying safe and warm in all these freezing temperatures we've had lately. I guess you get used to below freezing temperatures if you live in a cold climate but down here in Southeast Texas we just aren't used to temps below freezing. Although I will say that when the temperature last Friday (Feb 4 2011) only got down to 29 degrees fahrenheit, I thought to myself how much nicer that was than the 21 degrees we had the night before!

Speaking of winter and cold temps, I wanted to talk about how grass can go dormant in the winter time. Warm season grasses that are grown here in Southeast Texas go dormant when the temps get below 60 degrees F on a regular basis. The grass doesn't turn brown right away and can stay green late into the fall. The grass will start to turn brown and lose its color when we start getting frost on the ground.

The reason I bring this up is because sometimes in the winter we have customers order grass and then are not happy when they receive brown grass and the grass in their yard isn't brown or at least still has a good bit of green tint to it. If you live in a subdivision or in town with buildings all around you or even if you have some trees in your yard there's a good chance your lawn won't turn very brown. If your lawn is protected from frost by trees, or buildings or just the general heat of other homes in close proximity, then your grass won't turn as brown as ours does out on the farm.

Below are some pictures to illustrate. Our fields are basically wide open to the weather so the grass in the field doesn't have any protection from the frost so it turns a crispy looking brown! This picture was taken Thursday, February 10, 2011. We have had frost on the ground probably every morning for the last two weeks.

In these next pictures you can see that the yard is basically brown but under the trees where the grass was protected somewhat from the frost, the grass still has some green color to it. And this is only from protection from the trees. Imagine if your yard had some trees and had houses all around to protect it even more.

So please just remember that the grass coming from the farm in winter will probably not be as green as what is in your neighbor's yard but it is still a great time to install sod. With the grass being dormant it requires less water. It will put down roots even though it's dormant. And when spring comes along the grass will be ready to take off. When we plant a new field or replant an existing one we almost always do it during the late fall and winter months. There is just so much less maintenance required for newly planted grass when the grass is dormant.

Thanks for stopping by and be safe out there!

11-Feb-11 10:00 AM

Celebration Bermuda Used at LSU Football Stadium

Scott Murff - noemail@murffturf.com — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 13:00:00 GMT

Tiger Stadium at LSU has installed Celebration bermuda grass for the upcoming 2010 football season. They already have it installed on other athletic fields there and liked it so much they installed it on their football field.

Celebration has a dark green color and is extremely drought tolerant both of which make for a great all-around grass. Below is a link to an article and a video about LSU using Celebration on their athletic fields.

We are a licensed grower of Celebration and have inventory ready for your projects. Give us a call at 281-328-2812 if you have any questions or have a project you think Celebration would work on.

Thanks!

Celebration on LSU's Tiger Stadium

2-Sep-10 8:00 AM

Why Settle For Second Best?

Scott Murff - noemail@murffturf.com — Mon, 03 May 2010 15:00:00 GMT

A shade tolerance study was done at Clemson University during 2005 and 2006 on 42 different bermudagrass cultivars and the results have just recently been released. Celebration ranked the highest in shade tolerance of the 42 cultivars tested!

The study was performed at the Clemson University greenhouse complex where two sets of the cultivars were grown, one in full sun for eight weeks and the other in 64% shade for eight weeks. At the end of the two year study the results showed Celebration bermudagrass to have the highest shade tolerance of any of the tested varieties.

You can see a brief description and list of results at this site. For the complete description and results see here.

3-May-10 10:00 AM

St. Augustine Winter 2010 Update

Justin Wallace - noemail@murffturf.com — Mon, 05 Apr 2010 17:00:00 GMT

5-Apr-10 12:00 PM

Empire Winter Update

Scott Murff - noemail@murffturf.com — Thu, 25 Mar 2010 18:00:00 GMT

25-Mar-10 1:00 PM

Flawed Turfgrass Research Report Gets Mass Media Attention...Now What?

Jim Novak - noemail@murffturf.com — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 20:00:00 GMT

EAST DUNDEE, IL—(February 2010)

Turfgrass provides numerous environmental benefits and its ability to store carbon is one of them; but when a recently published and peer reviewed research study regarding the ability of turfgrass to store carbon reached the opposite conclusion of previous studies, more than a few turfgrass researchers and green industry experts were scratching their heads.

The study in question (containing miscalculations which we’ll address in a moment) got extensive media coverage because of the negative conclusions it presented. According to Amy Townsend-Small, Earth system science post-doctoral researcher at University of California, Irvine and the lead author of a study that was accepted for publication in Geophysical Research Letters, a journal of the American Geophysical Union (AGU) it was suggested that the carbon-storing benefits of lawns were counteracted by fuel consumption.

Focusing on four parks and lawns in Southern California, the Townsend-Small and colleague Claudia Czimczik study found that greenhouse gas emissions from fertilizer production, mowing, leaf blowing and other lawn management practices were four times greater than the amount of carbon stored by grass in parks and lawns. The UCI study was supported by the Kearney Foundation of Soil Science and the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

The reported conclusion reached by the Townsend-Small and Czimczik study was fundamentally the opposite of previous research findings regarding carbon sequestration in turfgrass and the amount of carbon resulting from the care and maintenance of turfgrass.

The study generated plenty of press coverage by way of the American Geophysical Union (AGU) and a press release distributed by the University of California (Irvine). Publications and websites such as USA Today, National Geographic's Green Guide, Science Daily, China Meteorological Administration (CMA), First Science, Discovery News, Yahoo News India, and just about every science publication, newspaper, news outlet, green industry website and various blogs carried assorted headlines that read:

· "Urban Green Space May Aid Global Warming"

· "Green Spaces (Lawns) Are Not So Green"

· "Urban Lawns Contribute to Climate Change"

· "The Grass Isn't Always Greener"

· “Lawn Care = Bad for the Environment?”

· “City Parks May Be Bad For The Environment”

· “Study Fumes Over City Park Grass”

· “New CO2 Threat to the Planet”

There was only one problem: The authors of the Amy Townsend-Small research report acknowledge their study contained errors and miscalculations.

So how did the errors in the study come to the surface? Dr. Thomas Rufty, Bayer Distinguished Professor, Environmental Plant Biology, North Carolina State University questioned the findings based on previous research models and proceeded to point out several discrepancies in the Townsend-Small research report:

Rufty commented, "Regarding carbon sequestration and greenhouse gas emissions in urban turf' by Townsend-Small and Czimczik, we suspected an error in calculations because their numbers were so different from the models we are developing.” Rufty was challenged to find out why there was a discrepancy. He reported that two of his Ph.D. students took apart all of the assumptions and calculations in the Townsend-Small paper and found mistakes. When asked to provide a complete analysis of the situation … they immediately presented their findings. Rufty reviewed their findings and confirmed they were right and that errors had been made.

Rufty then emailed the authors and they confirmed there was a mistake in their spreadsheet that no one had caught during the writing or peer review. The authors said 'someone' had informed them of the mistake and a correction was sent to the journal. Their corrected calculations showed that CO2 generation was 122 g m-2 yr-1 rather than 1238 g m-2 yr-1 in the paper.

"This is important, because it makes the situation with 'ornamental lawns' carbon neutral to positive, depending on some of their other assumptions about fertilization. The students also are arguing that the authors made another mistake that will result in decreasing the estimated CO2 further – they did not take into account C speciation during combustion. Depending on the kind of mowers used, this will lower levels by another 15 to 50%,” according to Rufty.

Rufty added, "The Townsend-Small and Czimczik paper is being viewed as an important publication for the carbon sequestration debate. I'm hoping our efforts will help correct this misperception."

It should be noted that Dr. Rufty isn’t alone in questioning the study. More than two dozen leading turfgrass extension specialists and turfgrass researchers from across the nation are currently reviewing the study and they have already indicated there are numerous concerns above and beyond miscalculations. They have indicated (under independent and non-collaborated review) that they are not only questioning the methodology that was used, but the absence of critically important information. It is likely the authors can expect to receive numerous questions and valid concerns following these reviews, and they can also anticipate a request to offer some valid explanations.

Now that it's apparent that flawed research (miscalculations alone) has received broad media coverage worldwide, and as of this writing the misinformation is still posted on the websites of the University of California (Irvine), the UCIrvine Today NEWS, the University of California UC Newsroom and on the American Geophysical Union (AGU) website (despite concerns expressed to UCI) the real question is, how do you get the same media coverage for the corrected version of the research report which will likely show that turfgrass has a positive impact on the environment when it comes to carbon sequestration? The challenge is much like getting the genie back in the lamp . . . or trying to get spilled coffee back in a cup.

8-Mar-10 2:00 PM

40th Anniversary

noemail@murffturf.com — Thu, 19 Mar 2009 15:00:00 GMT

Murff Turf Going Strong After 40 Years Bill Murff, owner and founder of Murff Turf in Crosby, believes he knows the secret to success in business. You’ve got to love what you do, he says. And at Murff Turf, we love grass! The pride in his business is evident in every phase of the family operation, which is celebrating its 40th year in business. With over 2,800 acres of grass available, it can meet the needs of just about any customer. The business has changed a lot over 40 years, says Murff. I remember having all my kids, nieces, and nephews out cutting grass by hand. Now, we do it all by machine. Well-known in our immediate area, Murff Turf also supplies many commercial users, such as golf courses like Tour 18, Hermann Park, Kingwood Country Club, and Walden. Besides golf courses, it has also supplied turf for places like Minute Maid Park, Sam Houston Race Track, and NASA, as well as many universities, school districts and municipalities across Texas. We pride ourselves...

Videos From Around The Farm

Tue, 14 Jun 2011 19:15:26 GMT

Our newest harvester is called an AutoSlab machine. This harvester can cut two different sizes of slabs; either a 2' x 4' slab or a 2' x 2' slab. In general the 2' x 4' slabs are the best to work with because they allow you to install the sod much quicker. But after a rain or when the grass is wet the 2' x 4' slabs can be too heavy and so we will generally cut the smaller slabs in that case. We think this is the future and hope to have more of these in the coming years and move away from the smaller slabs. Below is a short video of the AutoSlab machine. We thought you might enjoy seeing how the grass is harvested. The most common way is to harvest it in 16 x 24 slabs. Probably 90% of what we sell is harvested this way. Here is a video of that in action. Another way is to roll up the sod. We generally only do this with types of bermuda but it can be done with St. Augustine also. We use a big...

Links

Wed, 19 Jan 2011 14:06:51 GMT

Murff Turf Farms Promote Your Page Too Resellers Vincent Turf Farms Excellent reseller/custom installer working in the Houston area. Cornett Grass Sales Excellent reseller in North West Houston Turf Farms From Around the World Fresh Turf Suppliers of Lawn Turf in the UK Turf Organizations Turfgrass Producers Of Texas This site has a list of all registered turf producers in the state of Texas with contact information. This site is handy for helping find a producer close to your area. National Turfgrass Evaluation Program These pages are funded by the National Turfgrass Evaluation Program (NTEP) for distribution of information on the testing and adaptation of the major turfgrass species... Texas Turfgrass Texas Turfgrass Association is an all-inclusive organization whose membership is made up of all facets of the turfgrass industry. Our members...

Equipment For Sale

Thu, 02 Dec 2010 21:49:59 GMT

We have some Brouwer slab harvesters available for sale. If you are interested please call us at 281-328-2812 and ask for Lindy or Scott.

Tue, 23 Mar 2010 21:57:41 GMT

Empire Zoysia Empire is a rich, deep, emerald-colored grass with a massive root system. Excellent soft texture and proportion, thriving in harsh tropical climates, yet exhibits a strong cold hardiness, tolerance, and rapid injury recovery. Fine, tight blade growth with outstanding Fall color retention and early Spring green-up. It has a moderate shade tolerance with a selective resistance to insects and disease. Requires less fertilizing, watering, herbicide or fungicide usage, and mowing as compared to St. Augustine or Bermudagrass varieties. Easy weed control due to growth habits and high tolerance to most common herbicides. Seasonal Maintenance Videos Click here to sign up. Empire closeup: Empire (right) compared to Bermuda: Empire freshly Mowed: Research Empire Clemson University Evaluation of EMPIRE Zoysiagrass at Elevated Rates of Herbicides Texas A & M and Turf Producers of Texas...

T-Shirts and Caps

Fri, 09 Oct 2009 19:13:38 GMT

We have some great looking t-shirts and caps available!

T-shirts are $15.00 plus shipping unless of course you come by our office and pick one up, then there's no shipping.

Caps are $11.00 plus shipping.

Indigo Khaki-Green

Natural Red Pink

We also have 2 colors of ringer T-shirts:

Call us at 281-328-2812 or you can use the contact form link info.

Services

Fri, 19 Jun 2009 20:14:07 GMT

Our Services include: Delivery Experienced drivers will place sod where you need it. It's a good idea to place your order a day or two ahead of time, especially during the Spring and Fall which are the busiest times for us. Sometimes we may be able to deliver the same day you place your order, but ordering in advance will allow us to serve you better. Installation We have experienced independent installation contractors to suit your needs. Whether you need sod installed on a commercial job-site or around your home, we will give you personal service with a crew specialized to your needs. Sprigging Sprigging is a vegetative planting of stolons or rhizomes in rows. The sprigs are pressed into the upper inch or two inches of the soil at a width of 4 per row. Sprigging is ideal for planting large areas where irrigation is readily available. Golf courses and athletic fields are frequently sprigged. Late spring is the ideal time for planting...

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Wed, 17 Jun 2009 18:50:47 GMT

Celebration Bermuda: Strikingly deep blue-green colored Bermuda grass with a tight growing habit, fine-leafed blades, and a soft touch and feel. This draught tolerant grass can be used for athletic fields, golf courses, commerical and home lawns.

Get more information about the celebration bermuda grass

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Finally, A Grass To Celebrate In The Drought

Some Older Pictures We Found

Some Photos From the Field

Empire Winter Maintenance

Dormant Grass

Celebration Bermuda Used at LSU Football Stadium

Why Settle For Second Best?

St. Augustine Winter 2010 Update

Empire Winter Update

Flawed Turfgrass Research Report Gets Mass Media Attention...Now What?

40th Anniversary

Videos From Around The Farm

Links

Equipment For Sale

We have some Brouwer slab harvesters available for sale. If you are interested please call us at 281-328-2812 and ask for Lindy or Scott.

T-Shirts and Caps

Services

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