When we consistently see above average rain fall throughout the growing season, this presents many challenges including flooding, field capacity of turf, damage to turf, and disease. Provided below is information regarding respiration of turf grass and how high amounts of moisture/rain will affect the function of the plant
Aerobic and anaerobic respiration are terms used to describe how a plant is utilizing oxygen. Respiration is the process of a plant using oxygen to convert carbon-containing compounds into useful forms of energy. Available energy in plants is represented as ATP.
Aerobic respiration occurs when oxygen is present. At this point, 3 stages of respiration are happening inside the plant: glycolysis, Krebs cycle, and oxidative phosphorylation. All three biochemical reactions convert carbon into ATP.
Anaerobic respiration occurs when no oxygen is present. All the stages of respiration are still happening however sulfate, nitrate, and fumarate are being utilized instead of oxygen causing a much slower rate of energy being produced.
This slower rate will ultimately end up with the death of the plant. Life expectancy of turf under water experiencing anaerobic conditions can be several days to a couple of weeks of sustained conditions.
Thinking about these options is the best coarse of action for alleviating stressed areas. Constantly over-seeding or replacing with sod will not work. Following information can be found at http://www.extension.umn.edu/garden/turfgrass/
