1. I. Application of General Certification Standards

   1. A. The General Certification Standards, Clemson University Regulation 27-190, are basic and applicable and together with the following specific standards, constitute the standards for certification of vegetatively propagated turfgrasses.
   2. B. The following specific standards constitute the standards for certification of vegetatively propagated warm season turf-grasses including bermuda, centipede, zoysia, St. Augustine and seashore paspalum.

   3. C. The General Standards are modified as follows:

      1. 1. Foundation Turf—shall be the vegetative increase of Breeder or Foundation turf.
      2. 2. *Registered Turf—shall be the vegetative increase of Foundation turf.
      3. 3. Certified Turf—shall be the vegetative increase of Foundation or Registered turf.

      4. 4. Life of Stand: The life of the stand will continue for all classes of vegetatively propagated turf grasses as long as the varietal and mechanical purity for the class is maintained, unless life of stand is more narrowly defined by the originator or sponsoring agency.

         *A grower of Registered turf may increase his acreage of Registered turf from his own production provided the increase is adjacent and planted on land under the control of the grower. The size of such increase is not to exceed a total of ten (10) additional acres.The grower can increase acreage by the equivalent number of original acres up to ten acres.

         OR

         Grower Application - Grower will submit application for certified turfgrass by published dates on the application. Applications can be obtained from the seed certification department or online. Payment will be submitted with the application prior to processing by the department. A late fee will apply after the application deadline. A map designating field identification must be submitted with each application. Fields will not be inspected without proper signage and maps. Those fields are subject to a reinpsection fee.

         II. Land Requirement.

   4. A. A field to be eligible for the production of Foundation, Registered or Certified turf must be free of all perennial grasses and objectionable/noxious weeds. This requirement may be waived only with the approval of the program manager.
   5. B. A field for production of Foundation or Registered sod shall be fumigated with a recommended soil fumigant.

   6. C. No animal manures or other material potentially containing seeds shall be applied on sod to be entered for certification.

      III. Field Standards.

   7. A. General requirements

      1. 1. Unit of Certification.

         A field or portion of a field may be certified. A sign must be posted in each field bearing the Kind, variety and field number year round.

      2. 2. Isolation requirements:

         Plantings of vegetatively propagated turf grasses must be isolated from any other variety and other perennial grasses by an artificial barrier and/or strip at least six (6) feet wide to prevent mixing during the growing season and harvesting operation.

   8. B. Specific Requirements (maximum permitted).

      Factor	Foundation	Registered	Certified
      Off-Types*	1/ 5 acres	1/ 2 acre	1/ acre
      Other Living plants**	50/ acre	100/ acre	200/ acre
      *Off-types shall consist of all other kinds and other varieties than the variety being produced
      If factor is found in excess of standards and area flagged by inspector, roguing and/or eradication by spot spraying will be permitted to bring turf within standards.
      If field or partial field is rejected three consecutive inspections due to genetic purity, the field will be subject to inspection penalty fees until it is brought into conformity. If partial field is removed from certification, a border strip must be installed promptly, prior to the next inspection.
      **Over-seeding with a non-persistent cool season grass is acceptable and the production field may be sold as certified if the field passed the last inspection.

      IV. Turf Standards.

   9. A. No noxious/objectionable weeds are permitted. Objectionable weeds are perinnial sedges other than nutsedge (grass) and Dicrondia spp.
   10. B. A complete record on the amount of certified turf sales will be maintained and made available to the official certifying agency. The record will include (a) class of certified turf sold (Foundation, Registered, or Certified), (b) Kind and Variety, (c) field number, (d) date of harvest, (e) amount of turf shipped (square feet, cubic feet, bushels, etc.).

2. V. Turfgrass Certificates.

   1. A. An official certificate or label will accompany each shipment of certified sprigs, sod or plugs, traceable to the map required in III above and the date of digging must be indicated. Certificates can be obtained for a fee from the Seed Certification Department or online using the free provided application.
   2. B. The tag shall show the number of square yards of sod or cubic feet or bushels of sprigs.
   3. C. Certified Turfgrass growers will elect an authorized representative who is responsible for issuing turfgrass certificates. The representative will attend a training once every two years hosted by the Seed Certification Department. Authorized Representative will follow the guidance outlined by the seed certification department to be certain turfgrass certificates are correct and representative of certified turfgrass.
   4. D. When grass is shipped in truck loads, one bag, block, or container of grass representing the lot shall be properly tagged to accompany the shipment.
   5. E. A complete record on the amount of certified turf sales will be maintained and made available to the official certifying agency. The record called the Producers Estimate, will include (a) class of certified turf sold (Foundation, Registered, or Certified), (b) Kind and Variety, (c) field number, (d) date of harvest, (e) amount of turf shipped (square feet, cubic feet, bushels, etc.).

HISTORY: Amended by State Register Volume 8, Issue No. 12, eff December 28, 1984; State Register Volume 25, Issue No. 5, Part 1, eff May 25, 2001; SCSR 46-4 Doc. No. 5032, eff April 22, 2022.