(Festuca rubra)

With its needle shaped leaves and dense growth, red fescue is particularly suitable for ornamental lawns, where it can be used alone or together with other grasses. The species thrives on almost all soil types, including dry and light soils. Red fescue grows relatively slowly in the year of establishment, but as it is highly resistant to cold and tolerates drought, it contributes to a long life for the lawn.

DLF-TRIFOLIUM is developing varieties within the subspecies rubra rubra, trichophylla and commutata.

Festuca RUBRA RUBRA is the most robust and widely adapted of the three subspecies. It establishes faster than the other two types and its uses therefore include oversowing/rejuvenation of established lawns, and acting as a component in mixtures of medium quality. With its strong runners, it can quickly cover bare patches in the lawn.

In developing new varieties, DLF-TRIFOLIUM focuses on

• types with high density of shoots
• types which are resistant to red thread (Laetisaria fuciformis)
• types which combine fine lawn quality with good seed production.

Click here for information on varieties.

Festuca rubra TRICHOPHYLLA has short runners and is thus also able to cover holes in the lawn, but not to the same degree as rubra rubra. The density of shoots is very high, and the species tolerates close mowing. Trichophylla gives the most attractive lawn in summer, when it is hot and slightly dry.

Its salt tolerance makes it a good partner in mixtures for sowing along roads and in parks where salt is used in winter on paths.

The goals of the breeding programme are

• high density of shoots
• tolerance to frequent close mowing
• increased resistance to fungal diseases such as red thread (Laetisaria fuciformis)
• increased resistance to snow mould
• types with good colour and growth, also in dry periods
• high seed yield

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Festuca rubra COMMUTATA does not have runners, but it does have a very high density of shoots. It is very suitable for low mowing, and is therefore an important component in quality mixtures. By combining the best properties of the subspecies commutata and trichophylla (shoot density, runners, summer quality) in mixtures, it is possible to obtain high quality lawns with little variation over the year.

Breeding is focused on:

• combining fine lawn quality with high seed yield
• developing types with good colour in summer
• improving shoot density
• selecting varieties which tolerate close mowing.

Click here for information on varieties.

The table below indicates some general differences between the three subspecies. These properties can be combined in practice by sowing a mixture of the three types.