use along highway right of way.

Details

• Creators:
  Engelhardt, Katharina A M ; Hawkins, Kara
• Corporate Creators:
  University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science. Appalachian Laboratory
• Corporate Contributors:
  Maryland. State Highway Administration. Office of Policy & Research
• Subject/TRT Terms:
  Access Control (Transportation) Ecosystems Environmental Grasses Quality Right Of Way (Land) Roadside Flora Turf Turfgrasses
• Publication/ Report Number:
  MD-16-SHA-UMCES-6-3
• Resource Type:
  Tech Report
• Geographical Coverage:
  Maryland
• Corporate Publisher:
  Maryland. State Highway Administration. Office of Policy & Research
• Abstract:
  Katharina, A. M. Engelhardt orcid.org/0000-0002-9185-4292
  
  Roadsides are managed as mowed turfgrass to prevent erosion, maintain visibility, provide a safety zone
  
  for stopped vehicles, and improve aesthetics. Roadside vegetation often needs to be mowed several times
  
  each growing season, and in addition to its cost mowing exposes workers to traffic and other hazards,
  
  discharges tailpipe gases, and disturbs soil. This study explored the efficacy of using commerciallyavailable
  
  grass species that may reduce maintenance costs, yet still provide economic and ecological
  
  services such as fast establishment, erosion control, ecosystem benefits, and resilience. A literature review
  
  of over 500 journal articles, white papers, reports, and fact sheets and discussions with turfgrass experts
  
  produced a list of over 100 graminoid species. A trait-based approach was then used to select a subset of
  
  species for evaluation. The final selection included 21 species and cultivars. Each species was given an
  
  overall grade (A=Excellent, B=Good, C=Fair, D=Poor, and F=Very poor) reflecting six economic and
  
  ecological services. Maryland's standard roadside seed tall fescue received a grade below the median grade.
  
  Fine fescues ranked higher than tall fescue owing to lower stature and generally higher resilience. The
  
  native grass species Sporobolus, side-oats grama, and purple lovegrass received excellent grades (A or A-)
  
  and should be further studied as alternatives to tall fescue. Species that are not recommended for roadsides
  
  include Kentucky bluegrass, perennial ryegrass, prairie junegrass, alkaligrass, and zoysia.
  
  
• Format:
  PDF
• Funding:
  SP509B4E
• Collection(s):
  US Transportation Collection
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:dcf30c3db847c0e76969a88ea70c69c7e24a328bcb454df5e9dbee6812b0f84c464915aaad24a357dd166d5b6c3ced64b8a0e9c28dd5c7466c9246259d13e781
• Download URL:
  https://rosap.ntl.bts.gov/view/dot/31559/dot_31559_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 10.53 MB ]