Turfgrass Culture

44M0529

Master

English

5.0

only winter term

1 semester

Historically, the emergence of lawns is linked to the history of human settlement and social development. From tree-lined lawns in ancient times to the landscaping of pleasure gardens in the Middle Ages, lawn elements have acquired aesthetic and functional significance. In modern times, turf has acquired a multifaceted significance both in the social environment in terms of recreation, leisure and sport ( recreational to professional sport), as well as ecologically in terms of landscape and environment (ecosystem services). From this point of view, this module deals with the various types of turf and the requirements of the different areas of application in terms of sustainable use and conservation of resources. Knowledge of turf grasses and their characteristics plays a special role in the selection of seed mixture compositions. Fundamentally, quality requirements in accordance with the regulations of the Seed Marketing Act and the standard seed mixtures (RSM) must be observed when placing seed on the market.

• Historical review of the emergence and development of lawns
• Importance and scope of lawn culture in the social environment
• Lawn types, lawn plants (grasses and herbs) and lawn communities for a wide range of applications such as ornamental lawns, utility lawns, hard-wearing lawns and landscape lawns
• Characteristics and distinguishing features of lawn grasses in a non-flowering state, requirements for growth factors
• Requirements for grass seed with assessment criteria such as TKM and quality requirements such as purity and germination capacity according to RSM and the Seed Marketing Act, identification characteristics of grass fruits
• Suitability of grass species and grass mixtures for various areas of application according to RSM requirements, taking into account site conditions and weather influences
• Grass stock management and options for conserving resources

The total workload for the module is 150 hours (see also "ECTS credit points and grading").

• oral exam or
• Homework / Assignment or
• Written examination

Standard examination: Oral examination

An alternative examination form to be selected by the examiner if necessary and announced at the beginning of the course.

The standard examination is an oral examination: ca. 20-30 Minutes per Student

One potential alternative is a 3-hour written examination.

Students can prepare for the module with the help of the literature listed in the section “Contents and qualification objectives” of this module description.

Students at Osnabrück University of Applied Sciences who have successfully completed this module can define the importance and scope of turf culture in the social environment.

Students at Osnabrück University of Applied Sciences who have successfully completed this module can describe of the origin and development of lawns and differentiate lawn types, lawn plants and lawn communities for a wide range of applications such as ornamental lawns, utility lawns, hard-wearing lawns and landscape lawns.

Students at Osnabrück University of Applied Sciences who have successfully completed this module use a range of methods to categorize and compare the characteristics of turf grasses and turf herbs, grass seeds and to obtain and process suitable mixture compositions according to the guidelines of the RSM requirements.

Students can independently integrate new knowledge into existing knowledge and make scientifically sound decisions in order to carry out application-oriented projects on future challenges in turf management.

Students who have successfully completed this module will be able to initiate research processes on the topic of turf by identifying research deficits on the basis of international specialist literature and deriving suitable projects for dealing with them.

Students who have successfully completed this module are able to communicate highly complex ideas in a well-structured and coherent manner and to discuss solutions to problems with representatives of various academic and non-academic institutions in a relevant and professional manner.

Students who have successfully completed this module will have mastered common job-related skills, abilities and techniques in order to use materials and methods professionally. They will be able to assess future challenges in the field of all types of turf and their requirements from an ecological and economic point of view. 

• Thieme-Hack, Martin

Lehrauftrag