A study on the effect of foliar urea v/s neem oil coated urea on specific qualitative characters of turfgrass

Urea fertilization is a widely recommended practice in turfgrass management. However, the actual amount of nitrogen from urea that is available to turfgrass depends on many factors. A field study was conducted in South Gujarat agro climatic conditions to determine the effect of foliar urea application versus neem oil coated urea fertilization on qualitative characters like turf colour, grass intensity, weed population, aesthetic appearance and the presentability of the grass. The experiment was conducted on Hybrid Selection-1 var. of Cynodon dactylon in Randomized Block Design with ten treatments and replicated thrice. Treatments consisted of three annual nitrogen (N) inputs 100, 150 and 200 kg ha⁻¹, using three forms of urea viz. 100% foliar, 50% foliar + 50% granular neem oil coated and 100% granular neem oil coated. In control treatment, where no N was applied. The results suggest that maximum mean score for turf colour and aesthetic appearance was obtained with 100% foliar application of 200 kg N ha⁻¹ yr⁻¹. For grass intensity, 100% granular urea of 200 kg N ha⁻¹ yr⁻¹ acquired the maximum mean score. Minimum weed intensity was observed in control plots. The most presentable turf was in the plot supplied with the treatment of 200 kg N ha⁻¹ yr⁻¹ (50% foliar + 50% granular) and was graded ‘A ’.