Managed turfgrass is a common component of urban landscapes that is expanding under current land use trends. Previous studies have reported high rates of soil carbon sequestration in turfgrass, but no systematic review has summarized these rates nor evaluated how they change as turfgrass ages. Here we conducted a meta-analysis of soil carbon sequestration rates from 63 studies globally, comprised mostly of C3 grass species in the U.S., including 24 chronosequence studies that evaluated carbon changes over 75 years or longer. We showed that turfgrass established within the last ten years had a positive mean soil C sequestration rate of 5.3 Mg CO₂ ha^-1 yr^-1 (95% CI = 3.7-6.2), which is higher than rates reported for several soil conservation practices. Areas converted to turfgrass from forests were an exception, sometimes lost soil carbon, and had a cross-study mean sequestration rate that did not differ from 0. In some locations, soil C accumulated linearly with turfgrass age over several decades, but the major trend was for soil C accumulation rates to decline through time, reaching a cross-study mean sequestration rate that was not different from 0 at 50 years. We show that fitting soil C timeseries with a mechanistically derived function rather than purely empirical functions did not alter these conclusions, nor did employing equivalent soil mass versus fixed-depth carbon stock accounting. We conducted a partial greenhouse gas budget that estimated emissions from mowing, N-fertilizer production, and soil N₂O emissions. When N fertilizer was applied, average maintenance emissions offset 32% of C sequestration in recently established turfgrass. Potential emission removals by turfgrass can be maximized with reduced-input management. Management decisions that avoid losing accrued soil C-both when turfgrass is first established and when it is eventually replaced with other land-uses-will also help maximize turfgrass C sequestration potential.

Conventional golf course fairway irrigation relies on visual observation of the turfgrass, followed by secondary considerations of short‐term weather forecasts, which oftentimes lead to ‘blanket’ applications to an entire area. Precision irrigation may achieve water use reductions by irrigating only where, when, and in the amount needed. Technology can further enhance its application; for example, using global navigation satellite system (GNSS)‐equipped soil moisture sensors for creating fairway soil moisture maps to identify variability. However, research regarding soil moisture variability on fairways at golf courses that differ by climatic region and course characteristics is limited. The objective of this case study was to report fairway soil moisture variability findings from nine golf courses in eight states in the United States that completed a soil moisture mapping protocol during 2019–2022. Each course used a handheld GNSS‐equipped soil moisture device to collect georeferenced soil moisture (percentage volumetric water content [VWC]) data from seven to 14 of their fairways. Soil moisture variability was assessed through summary statistics, box and whisker plots, and spatial maps. The mean soil moisture on fairways across courses was 22.4–48.8% VWC, the range was 27.6–43.7% VWC, and the CV was 7.5–39.4%. Box and whisker plots and spatial maps of soil moisture aided in visualizing variability within and between fairways at all courses. Results suggest that golf course fairway soil moisture variability is inevitable regardless of climatic region and course characteristics, which further reiterates the need for advanced irrigation practices and technologies for water conservation via precision irrigation.

Lawns must be managed increasingly under less frequent or deficit irrigation. Deficit irrigation can reduce gas exchange, carbon assimilation, and physiological function in both warm- (C ₄ ) and cool- (C ₃ ) season turfgrasses, yet limited research has compared the physiological response to increasing levels of soil water deficit. The objectives of this greenhouse study were to compare three commonly used transition-zone turfgrasses—bermudagrass [ Cynodon dactylon (L.) Pers.] (C ₄ ), buffalograss [ Buchloe dactyloides (Nutt.) Engelm.] (C ₄ ), and tall fescue ( Festuca arundinacea Schreb.) (C ₃ )—and their ability to maintain quality and physiological function under water deficit stress. Visual turf quality, normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI), reflective canopy temperature, and gross photosynthesis were evaluated initially near field capacity (FC), and subsequent soil water deficit [48% (moderate) and 33% (severe) of plant-available water] conditions. Bermudagrass and tall fescue had similar quality ratings near FC, although the photosynthetic rate was greater for bermudagrass. Compared with other turfgrasses, bermudagrass maintained greater turf quality, NDVI, and photosynthetic rates further into water deficit stress. Tall fescue quality and photosynthetic rates declined most rapidly in both experiments as a result of the combined heat and drought stress. Buffalograss used less water compared with other species, and maintained consistent turf quality, NDVI, and photosynthetic rates under moderate and severe water deficit. These results support the notion that buffalograss and bermudagrass are better adapted than tall fescue at maintaining functional and ecosystem services with shallow soil depths in landscape situations under imposed summertime water restrictions.

Increased urban populations and drought conditions strain municipal water supplies, often resulting in activation of water conservation plans. Supplemental irrigation can be eliminated in extreme situations, which diminishes functional and visual benefits of turfgrass landscapes. The objective of this research was to evaluate differential responses of four warm‐season turfgrasses receiving supplemental irrigation (subsurface drip) or natural rainfall only in semiarid climate. Celebration bermudagrass [Cynodon dactylon (L.) Pers.] and Legacy buffalograss [Buchloe dactyloides (Nutt.) Engelm.] were sodded in 2014; Jamur Japanese lawngrass (Zoysia japonica Steud.) and Zeon Manilagrass [Zoysia matrella (L.) Merr.] were sodded in 2016. Species were split with mowing treatments at 5 or 9 cm. Limited mowing effects on response variables led to pooling mowing heights for species. Supplemental irrigation supplied 69 and 173 mm of water from July to September in 2017 and 2018, respectively. Volumetric water content (VWC) in the upper 3.8 cm, canopy temperature, normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI), and visual turf quality were recorded weekly. Drought stress symptoms were evident both years. Manilagrass experienced greatest drought stress, which lowered NDVI and turf quality with significant canopy temperature increase in 2017. Bermudagrass maintained lowest canopy temperature with greatest NDVI and turf quality with natural rainfall each year. Supplemental irrigation was required to lower canopy temperature and enhance NDVI and turf quality for other species. Results suggest bermudagrass maintains best functional and aesthetic quality under 123 mm rainfall. Japanese lawngrass and buffalograss improved with supplemental irrigation, but Manilagrass required supplemental irrigation to provide acceptable quality.