Adaptability and Character Traits of Turf-type Tall Fescue Cultivars Grown under Limited Irrigation in Northern Italy

The use of tall fescue is increasing in the European transition zone because of its inherent tolerance to heat and drought stresses. Climate change, as expressed by more frequent drought occurrences, presents a challenge for selecting appropriate turfgrass cultivars. A field study was conducted at the Experimental Agricultural Farm of the University of Padova (Legnaro, Italy) to assess the response of 20 tall fescue cultivars grown without irrigation for 2 years (with a single emergency irrigationapplicationinJul2022).Thecultivarswereevaluatedevery2weeksfrom Mar 2021 to Mar 2023 to determine the texture, uniformity, density, color, quality, green turf cover, and normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI). The cultivars tested were Bullseye, Darlington II, Detonate LS, Forlaine, Grande II, Lexington, Melya-ne, PPG-TF238, PPG-TF254, PPG-TF315, PPG-TF336, RGT Nuance, Rhambler SRP, Talladega II, Thor, Thunderstruck, Tough, Triad, Turfway, and ZRC-1. The results confirmed the ability of ...