Silicon in turfgrass: A review

AbstractSilicon (Si) is a “quasi‐essential” element that helps plants to overcome various abiotic and biotic stresses. This review summarizes research which examined application of Si in turfgrass management and its impact on plant health. Research on inclusion of Si in turfgrass has largely centered upon three areas: plant disease suppression, improvement in wear tolerance, and reductions in drought and salinity stress. Of these, the ability of Si to reduce turf diseases has received the most attention, with applications of Si often reducing various diseases, including gray leaf spot, dollar spot, and brown patch, in creeping bentgrass, bermudagrass, perennial ryegrass, and St. Augustinegrass. One potential constraint to its effectiveness is that Si application rates for disease reduction are often quite high (e.g., rates as high as 400 to 2,000 kg Si ha–1). Responses were also variable with turfgrass species, soil type, and soil Si content, and the measured response was often not great enough to produce turf of desirable quality without additional use of fungicides. More research is needed in the area of Si and turf wear, as the use of Si to “harden” turfgrass and improve wear and ball roll is widely marketed in turfgrass maintenance. Further research is also needed to identify best soil extractants for measuring soluble Si and to calibrate this extractable Si for the determination of critical levels of soil Si across soil types and turfgrass species.