Baroness a new AgriMetal distributor

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Baroness a new AgriMetal distributor: Baroness U.K. are pleased to announce they are the new sole importer and distributor for AgriMetal rollers for the U.K.

Adam Butler Sales Director for Baroness U.K adds: “We are extremely pleased and excited to be working with such a well-made and respected brand. We already produce market leading cutting technology for a wide range of mowing equipment but now we have added to our portfolio, in my option, one of the most affordable and well-made rollers on the market. To add the icing on the cake they will be rolling off the production line sprayed in the fantastic Baroness Red.

Baroness a new AgriMetal distributor

Baroness a new AgriMetal distributor

The range available will consist of the GR-400 & GR-660. The GR-400 model is the most affordable, high specification roller on the market with the GR-660 model providing an industry leading 66” width roll.”

Some of the exciting key features are as follows:

Hydro-Gear hydrostatic pump

The Hydro-Gear hydrostatic pump has been mated with Honda’s reliable 13hp engine ensuring maximum torque and efficiency. Each head is power by its own hydraulic motor in series to distribute flow and torque evenly.

Baroness a new AgriMetal distributor

Baroness a new AgriMetal distributor

Automatic chain tightener system

Thanks to the automatic chain tightener system, the chains are located inside a closed box, so grass clipping, sand or any other residue cannot get into the drive mechanism.

Easy maintenance

Each floating head has openings on the top front & back, making clean up simple. The easier it is the more likely it will get done.

Floating steering head

The roller’s floating head design effortlessly follows the contours of the most severe undulations, providing a higher roll factor and a better putting surface with minimal compaction.

Hydraulic assisted steering

The hydraulic assisted steering drive system make it easy for the operator to operate the roller, with the floating steering head providing the industries tightest turning radius.

This unique design has built in guides to ensure minimal overlap with maximum productivity.

Heavy duty trailer bed

AgriMetal’s heavy duty trailer beds are covered in a rubber mat for maximum traction, allowing easy climbing even in wet conditions.

Baroness a new AgriMetal distributor

Baroness a new AgriMetal distributor

Ramp self locking mechanism

The ramp self-locking mechanism provides safe transportation. Thanks to the ramp spring assisted hinge system. It’s easy for the operator to lift it back up before driving to the next green.

To book a demo please contact one of our fantastic dealers on the “find a dealer” section of our website.

https://www.baronessuk.com/find-a-dealer/

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New appointments at Els Club Malaysia

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New appointments at Els Club Malaysia: The Els Club Malaysia, managed by Troon International, the leaders in upscale golf course management have made two new senior appointments.

The championship venue welcomes Steven Thielke as General Manager of The Els Club Desaru Coast and Sean Kinsley as Group Director of Agronomy across The Els Club Malaysia – Desaru Coast and Teluk Datai facilities. Steven and Sean replace long term Troon veterans Stephen Havrilla and Terrance Mohamed who move onto new opportunities in the USA and South East Asia respectively.

New appointments at Els Club Malaysia

New appointments at Els Club Malaysia

Steven Thielke joins The Els Club Malaysia and Troon International with over 30 years of golf and hospitality industry experience. In 2019, Steven successfully completed his Club Managers’ Certification (CCM) with the Club Management Association of America (CMAA), a professional qualification and the gold standard in club management.

Most recently, Steven has spent the past eight years as CEO of TPC Kuala Lumpur, overseeing the club’s transformation process, and under the South African’s management, TPC Kuala Lumpur captured the golf world’s attention through staging PGA Tour, European Tour and LPGA events annually for over three consecutive years.

Steven Thielke commented of the appointment: “It’s a true privilege to be associated with, fellow countryman, Ernie Els’ brand and to be part of the Troon International family. The natural beauty, wildlife and high-quality of golf on offer at The Els Club Desaru Coast is simply spectacular. I have yet to experience anything equal in the world of golf that offers such world class facilities with uninterrupted views and a fresh sea breeze in an authentic tropical destination.

“I’m extremely excited to be part of team at The Els Club Desaru Coast and add value to the overall growth of the club and the destination, particularly in the recovery from the past year as we look to re-open borders and welcome golfers from outside Malaysia to Desaru Coast.”

The Els Club Malaysia’s second exciting appointment, Sean Kinsley, has been a part of the Troon family for the past 13 years. He joins as Group Director of Agronomy having truly embraced the international opportunities working for the leader in golf management brings. Prior to his new role in Malaysia, he previously worked in Australia, USA, Russia, India and the UAE.

Sean joins The Els Club Malaysia from Dubai where he was Cluster Director of Agronomy across Arabian Ranches Golf Club, Dubai Hills Golf Club, and Montgomerie Golf Club Dubai. During his tenure, Dubai Hills Golf Club was awarded ‘World’s Best New Golf Course’ at the 2019 World Golf Awards, a true recognition of the high standards Sean upholds across course conditioning and presentation.

The Els Club Malaysia’s new Director of Agronomy, Sean Kinsley, expressed his enthusiasm for the opportunity: “Having personally visited the location on more than one occasion I am delighted to be joining The Els Club Malaysia team. The opportunity to be involved in the management of such a strong group of courses located in such a stunning setting is one that I am eagerly anticipating. Each of the three courses is distinct in terms of style and the role certainly promises to be one that will require a varied approach when it comes to the maintenance of each property.

“Being aware of the growing portfolio of the golf courses and the recent progress made by the Agronomy team, I am very excited at the prospect of consolidating that momentum and continuing to drive and deliver further improvements in course conditioning and international recognition of each club over the years ahead.”

Managed by Troon under the Troon Golf brand and created by four-time Major Champion and World Golf Hall of Famer, Ernie Els, with the Valley Course being designed by Vijay Singh, the three golf courses across both properties at The Els Club Malaysia, in Desaru Coast and Teluk Datai, are all of the highest possible standard. Collectively, this has enabled the clubs to quickly assert themselves as one of the most talked about experiences in the golf market.

Additionally, with three clubhouses, each with their own distinguished F&B and Golf Shop outlets, as well as a dedicated team of hospitality professionals, guests are treated to five-star service from the moment they arrive to the moment they leave. With easy accessibility via road, air and sea, both destinations are growing in popularity and with the introduction of a series of luxury hotel brands it makes for an ultimate golfing getaway in South East Asia.

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A Winning Combination

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A Winning Combination: Stuart Lambert, Head Groundsman at Gloucester Rugby, says that a combination of two seed mixtures from Limagrain UK ensures that the pitch at the Kingsholm Stadium stands up to the rigours of training sessions and matchdays.

Having been in the turf industry all his career Stuart has been the Head Groundsman at Gloucester Rugby for nearly three years now. Prior to moving to the Kingsholm Stadium, he was already accustomed to the Limagrain range of grass seed.

A Winning Combination

A Winning Combination

“I had first used Limagrain’s MM50 seed in my previous role at Bromsgrove School,” said Stuart. “We used it on the cricket squares, and I was instantly impressed. When I first arrived at Gloucester, the club were already using Limagrain and I knew what it could do so I decided to stick with it.”

Stuart, who competes with up to three training sessions a week on top of matchdays, always starts the season with MM60; which is renowned for producing an excellent playing surface in a stadium environment. With the added benefit of being treated with Headstart® GOLD, a biological germination accelerator, MM60 delivers stronger more resilient seedling grass, giving turf the best possible start.

“We always use the MM60 mixture for our summer renovation and we will go with a rate of 50g per square metre – which is absolutely perfect,” said Stuart. “One of the biggest benefits of the seed is just how quickly it germinates. Last year, the grass was growing within five days of applying the seed and I couldn’t believe it.”

After his summer renovation, Stuart ensures that he has enough bags of MM60 left over so that he can overseed some of the high usage areas throughout the season. He will continue to overseed these areas with MM60 until October and it is at this point that Stuart switches to Limagrain’s Tetra Sport mixture to see him through the winter period.

“As soon as October comes, we switch to the Tetra Sport seed, because we find that it grows in a lot colder temperatures,” he said.

A traditional repair mixture, especially useful for overseeding of high quality sportsfields to improve sward composition and aid recovery from disease scarring, Tetra Sport consists of Tetraploid Ryegrasses and is ideal for when the cooler weather arrives.

Stuart undertakes a rather unique pre-germination process before even applying the seed mixture – as he explains.

“We start by tipping the seed into buckets; we then fill the buckets with water and leave the seed to soak for 24 hours,” he said. “The seed then goes from a light brown colour to a dark brown colour because it has absorbed all the water; and then we will drain the water off, leave it in a heated shed with a heat lamp, and it will stay there for two further days. We then apply the seed to the pitch immediately.

“Ultimately, this pre-germination process gives us a great head-start. I would say that it speeds the process up by about three weeks. On the particularly bad areas we will put the grow lights over the top and that helps in anchoring the seed and helping the grass to stand up.

“It is a process that not a lot of people do,” continued Stuart. “But a lot of lower league clubs could and should be doing it because it buys time and makes a big difference – particularly in the winter.

“Limagrain’s seed is the strongest seed I have come across and our soil samples prove that we get decent root growth as well. Quite simply, both MM60 and Tetra Sport tick every box for us. These two seed mixtures, combined with our feeding programme, certainly helps the pitch stand up to such heavy usage.”

For further information, please contact Limagrain UK on 01472 371471 or visit the company’s website www.lgseeds.co.uk/amenity – you can also follow the company on Twitter: @MM_Seed

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Control rats in 7 days

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Control rats in 7 days: BASF has launched Selontra®, a new rodenticide bait capable of controlling rodent infestations in just seven days. The bait features cholecalciferol, a new active with a different mode of action, which rodents have no known resistance to.

“Selontra is a new chapter in rodent control. Cholecalciferol is fast acting and stops rodents feeding within 24 hours. This minimises feed losses and the bio-security risk of rodents in farming. It is highly palatable to compete with other food sources on farms and can control even large infestations is just seven days, using the new BASF speed baiting method,” explains BASF Key Account Manager, Helen Ainsworth.

Control rats in 7 days

Control rats in 7 days

Concerns over resistance to anticoagulant rodenticide baits has created the need for a new active to be introduced to tackle so called ‘super rats’. “Some rats have developed resistance to difenacoum and bromadiolone actives which are used in a number of common baits. To help control resistant rats BASF has developed Selontra which contains cholecalciferol in a highly palatable bait matrix. This makes it more appealing to rodents than common farm food sources and in farm trials it was 13.2 times* more palatable than maize silage,” she says.

A new baiting technique, known as ‘speed baiting’, can reduce the time needed to control farm infestations. Using BASF’s 7-2-7 baiting method farmers can control even large infestations quickly, using less bait. Seven blocks of Selontra placed on day one and replenished on day two can be sufficient to tackle farm rats effectively. “By following the label and implementing the required number of bait stations, farmers can reduce the amount of bait needed and can control rodents in seven days,” she says.

Cholecalciferol is not persistent in the environment and so also offers an opportunity to reduce the effect of rodenticides on non-target species. “Selontra works by the rodent having too much calcium in the blood. This means fewer, less harmful residues which will help to minimise the risk to non-target species,” she explains.

Selontra is available from farm retailers and BASF has created an online course to help farmers learn about how it works and how to implement speed baiting. “This course provides all the information needed to use Selontra effectively in a rural environment. Rodenticides are a valuable tool to protect livestock and grain stores from rodents. Selontra is a cost and time effective solution that we hope will help farmers control rodents in the future,” concludes Miss Ainsworth.

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Top-Brush becomes Newark’s weapon

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Top-Brush becomes Newark’s weapon: The reduction in availability of curative chemistry has been a game-changer when it comes to the fight against worm casts. Recognising that cultural methods are going to become perhaps the only way to manage them, Newark Golf Club are the latest in a growing list to add the 6m-wide Redexim Top-Brush to their armoury.

For Course Manager Alex Clarricoates, its effectiveness at removing casts, as well as improving course presentation, made the purchase a no-brainer.

Top-Brush becomes Newark’s weapon

Top-Brush becomes Newark’s weapon

“Having gone through the autumn and winter struggling with casts on our fairways and surrounds, as soon as I saw the Top-Brush on social media I requested a demonstration” explains Alex, who has been at Newark for 12 years. “As well as the obvious issues with playability, from an agronomic perspective, the increase in casts means that they often get trodden on and lay like that throughout the winter, resulting in us entering into the new season with bare patches.”

The large working with of the Top-Brush means it can quickly and effectively rid large areas of not only worm casts, but also organic matter and dew. Its three brushes can rotate in or against the direction of travel and its working depth can be adjusted to achieve a light surface brush or more aggressive, deeper surface agitation. “This versatility means that throughout the spring and summer we’ll be using the Top-Brush for clearing dew and removing lateral growth, and during periods of drought it will be a key tool to deliver that extra little bit of surface presentation on the fairways without needing to cut. Come the autumn, we envisage the Top-Brush will be in use daily to clear any worm casts when they appear.”

On the day of the install by local dealer F.G. Adamson & Sons and Redexim Territory Manager Andy O’Neill, Alex also had a demonstration of the Verti-Drain 7416 which was purchased on the spot! “The club have been making major investments over the last twelve months, in more manpower and new equipment to help us elevate the course to the next level. We had always previously outsourced the work but by having our own Verti-Drain, we can now relieve even more areas of compaction and at the time when ground conditions are absolutely spot on.”

Alex concludes, “With these two new tools at our disposal, we are in a fantastic place when it comes to course condition. It’s only upwards from here!”

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