POTENTIAL OF RAPD MARKERS FOR USE IN THE IDENTIFICATION OF CREEPING BENTGRASS CULTIVARS

The production of RAPD markers is rapid and provides a reliable mechan ism for generating an almost infinite number of polymorphisms useful i n cultivar identification. The potential use of RAPD markers to identi fy bulk seed samples of 13 synthetic creeping bentgrass (Agrostis stol onifera L. var. stolonifera) cultivars was examined. Two seed lots wer e evaluated for five of the 13 cultivars. Eight of the 50 oligonucleot ide primers screened produced unique polymorphic amplification fragmen ts that identified 11 of the 13 cultivars. Two cultivars could not be identified because the amplification fragments that distinguished one seed lot were not present in the second seed lot of the same cultivar. These observed differences among seed lots were repeatable. The resul ts demonstrate that RAPD markers have the potential to be a valuable t ool for the identification of synthetic turfgrass cultivars as long as precautions are taken to account for the possibility of seed lot effe ct.