4turf® delivers a sustainable drought-tolerant sward

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4turf® delivers a sustainable drought-tolerant sward: Opened in late 2019, Stoneham Lane Football Complex comprises 64sq.Km of artificial and natural sports pitches – supporting grass roots football for players of all ages and abilities.

Part of the FA’s Parklife Project, the maintenance of the Complex falls under the remit of Hampshire FA Facility Operations Manager Pete Hussey who, in conjunction with seed from DLF, keeps the five grass pitches fit for more than 425 matches per season.

4turf® delivers a sustainable drought-tolerant sward

4turf® delivers a sustainable drought-tolerant sward

Alongside the Stoneham Lane facility in Eastleigh, Pete also manages operations at the Winklebury Football Complex in Basingstoke and the Front Lawn Community Hub in Havant – all designed to support and fund grass roots sport within the local area. “I’ve been in this role for three and a half years, but have worked with DLF for 17 years, having used various seed formulations at my previous venue” explains Pete.

“When Stoneham was constructed, one of the major focuses was on drainage – giving us incredible infiltration rates in the region of 52mm per hour. However, the flip side of that is that we have no irrigation meaning that in the dry months, pitches struggle to retain moisture and thin out quickly.” Foreseeing the challenges that lay ahead, Pete spoke to his DLF Regional Technical Manager Ian Barnett to explore more drought-tolerant varieties – and just in time, before one of the most prolonged droughts experienced in the UK, in the summer of 2022!

“We opted to switch from the 100% diploid perennial ryegrass mix to Johnsons J 4Turf 50, sown in May 2022, and we couldn’t have been more impressed with the results.” J 4Turf 50 incorporates 4turf® tetraploid perennial ryegrass, a larger seed with higher energy reserves to deliver deeper rooting, better establishing plants – including in cooler temperatures – with enhanced colour, disease resistance and drought tolerance. The 2023 formulation contains 50% 4turf® tetraploid rye and 50% diploid perennial ryegrass.

“The J 4Turf 50 established well before the hot conditions arrived. We were limited on how much water we could get onto the pitches and were thinking we would need to do a lot of recovery work ahead of the new season, however after the rain returned, the pitches recovered amazingly! We didn’t need to do any additional overseeding or fertilising, we relied on mother nature and the seed to do what it promised it would, and it did exactly that.”

Pete continues, “As the season progressed, the J 4Turf 50 coped with the high wear, recovered fast and remained strong enough that we saw no disease activity at all last year. In fact the pitches looked so good, we were able to wait until after Christmas to put a feed down.” He adds, “This switch has given us everything we want in terms of performance, but more than that, has moved us towards a lower input sward which is more sustainable to manage.”

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Retail area announced at GroundsFest

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Retail area announced at GroundsFest: Organisers of GroundsFest have announced a retail area – the largest ever seen at a groundscare event. This will allow visitors to purchase a wide range of products, tools, clothing, and accessories at a discounted rate.

The retail area is being organised by FR Jones and Son, a family run business that offers over 10,000 groundscare and arboriculture products from over 100 leading brands.

Retail area announced at GroundsFest

Retail area announced at GroundsFest

Commenting on the retail area, GroundsFest’s Sales Director Charles Neale said: “We know from our research that this retail area will be very popular with attendees. FR Jones and Son have an extremely large following and the area will attract thousands of groundscare professionals to GroundsFest. They have a wide range of products suitable for budgets of all sizes and it will be a fantastic opportunity for visitors to walk away with some incredible discounts which will only be available at GroundsFest.”

FR Jones and Son have been trading in the industry since 1963 and have expanded significantly in the last few years. It is now one of the leading suppliers of professional grounds maintenance and arboriculture equipment in the UK.

Managing Director Justin Jones is excited to be a part of the event.

“GroundsFest is a really exciting concept,” he said. “The industry has been crying out for a national event in the summer which features outdoor demonstrations and GroundsFest ticks every box. Many of our customers are already looking forward to it and I think the event is going to be very well attended.

“As a company, we are delighted to be involved. We are going to have a fantastic line-up of products on display at GroundsFest, and we will be offering exclusive discounts on selected items which will only be available for visitors throughout the two days. Our large team has plenty of experience and product knowledge and they will be out in force at GroundsFest to help visitors make the right decisions.

“We look forward to meeting thousands of existing and new customers in September.”

GroundsFest is taking place at Stoneleigh Park, Warwickshire on 20 and 21 September 2023.

For more information, please visit www.groundsfest.com

You can also follow GroundsFest on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram @GroundsFest for much more news, reviews and insightful views.

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Data crucial for new Harlequins head groundsman

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Data crucial for new Harlequins head groundsman: Using data and the GrasPro system, Harlequins F.C Head Groundsman Adam Witchell has made a quick start to his first job in rugby.

With decades worth of experience in football, Adam brings extensive turf knowledge to the role, but knew there would be a learning curve with changing sports.

Data crucial for new Harlequins head groundsman

Data crucial for new Harlequins head groundsman

Working on behalf of Nurture Landscapes at The Stoop, Adam started in July 2022. With the grow-in complete and no performance data to reference, he started collating information.

“The first thing I wanted was a data recording platform, and GrasPro is always the one I will go straight to,” he said.

“I’ve always been quite data-driven. If I don’t have the numbers, I can’t just look at the pitch and work it out. Without the numbers, it’s just an opinion.

“I think it’s beneficial straight away. For example, when recording the moisture levels and water, I could look back and think it seemed to get a bit more growth at these times. Using the weather reports, you can see the difference in temperature between the highs and lows and find out the evening temperatures were slightly colder at that time. So, it’s nothing to do with the products you’ve used. You just didn’t have the residual temperature in the evening that will help the grass continue.

“Regardless if there was performance quality data or not, I’d still be doing the same because this was all new to me. Even if there was data, I’d still want to see mine, because what I’m doing in rugby might not have the same outcome as it previously has on a football pitch.

“So, I’ll know the products that have and haven’t worked during the grow-in. Next year, I can look at what I’ve done on the GrasPro system and alter and change. Even if it’s just the amount of product I put down or the regularity of applying it.”

 Building Trust

For Adam, an early part of the job is gaining the trust of his new employers, Nurture Landscapes and Harlequins, and a large part of that is his monthly reports, which he sees as vital.

“I write a report to Nurture and Harlequins every month, and it details all the information on what I’ve done, when I’ve done it and the products and maintenance.

“I take that directly from GrasPro because you can download graphs, works and charts and put them in the report. It makes my monthly report writing much easier and much more in-depth.

“I could write a load down and bore them with war and peace and detail. But if you can see graphs and see what’s been done, it makes it easier and quicker for them. I find they are more receptive to visual reports.

“What I have found with rugby is the budgets aren’t quite as big as I’ve had with football. So, I have to get the most out of what I use because there isn’t the option of an unlimited budget.

“There’s always pressure to get it right the first time because I’ve got Nurture Landscapes who have employed me and Harlequins who have taken me on. Their previous groundsman was here for 12 years, and now, this new guy is coming who might do things a bit differently, which people will keep an eye on.

“You’ve got to get results or explain what you’re doing just to get that trust with Nurture and Harlequins.”

Setting Rugby Specific KPIs

Even though he is only six months into the role, Adam is in the early stages of collaboration with the playing and medical staff.

Moisture was one of the most significant learning curves early on, with Adam aiming for the standard 20%-24% used in football. He quickly discovered this caused digging up during scrums and mauls, and by referring back to his data, he was able to see a higher moisture level was required.

Sharing the data to prepare the pitch can also benefit the coaching staff, and eventually, Adam is hoping to benchmark the pitch to reduce injuries.

He explains: “I can look back on what was a good and bad game, then I can start speaking to the coaches about how I’m preparing the pitch.

“I’ll test it before just to let the coaches know the moisture, this is what it was like at this game, and this is how it held together better.

“Then they will find out going forward the more I take the data that they can set their players up slightly differently, maybe. So they are starting to engage a little bit more on the playing side with the data that I’m recording to help them set up for a game.

“Hopefully, moving forward, it will help with player recovery and development. If we find that players are cramping up at a certain time during games, we can start looking at hardness, traction and moisture as well. And when we start putting them together, I think we’ll start seeing data and values. And then working with the medical department and making it a bit safer, and then hopefully working to have a surface which they can use that does cause less injuries.

“That’s far off, and I haven’t got there with them, but I am hoping using GrasPro and all the data I record, I can push that forward and work with the sports scientists a little bit more in how we can set the pitch, so there are fewer injuries.”

Watch the YouTube video here

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Etesia’s Bahia recharged with battery upgrade

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Etesia’s Bahia recharged with battery upgrade: Etesia’s Bahia M2E – the world’s first 100% electric professional ride-on-mower with grass collection, is now available with a lithium battery option.

The Etesia Bahia M2EL is powered by a 51.2V, 100Ah lithium battery which enables users to get up to 3hrs 30 mins of action before it needs recharging. The new lithium option is also 85kgs lighter compared to the older lead acid battery version.

Etesia’s Bahia recharged with battery upgrade

Etesia’s Bahia recharged with battery upgrade

A pocket-size ride-on mower, just 0.82 m wide and 1.98 m long, the Etesia M2EL features an incredibly tight turning circle. It nips into every nook and cranny and can be easily transported.

With its low centre of gravity, the Etesia M2EL 33/67 weight distribution on the front/rear axles make it a highly stable mower that masterfully copes with slopes.

Furthermore, its 240-litre collection box is fed by a wide discharge chute ensuring very good filling of the material.

Further benefits include

  • Efficient in high or wet grass
  • Perfectly collects dead leaves
  • Mulching kit delivered as standard
  • Automatic gearbox for instant forward, reverse and braking
  • Easy maintenance with quick access to all mechanical parts
  • Perfect visibility on the working environment.
  • All functions are accessible from the driver’s seat
  • Mechanically welded support frame
  • A wide range of accessories available
  • Converter for 48 V electric accessories: hedge trimmers, edgers

It is also highly economical – the running costs are £0.35 against £3.57 for the petrol version and there are the obvious reduced maintenance costs – such as no engine belt, no filters, and no engine oil.

For more information, visit www.etesia.co.uk

For more news, reviews and insightful views, you can follow Etesia UK on Twitter @EtesiaUK and like the company’s Facebook page – www.facebook.com/EtesiaUK. You can also view the latest Etesia videos by visiting www.youtube.com/EtesiaUK.

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Where would the sporting world be without turf?

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Where would the sporting world be without turf?: Football, cricket, golf and the National Football League (NFL) are some of the world’s most watched sports. As of the 2021/22 season, the combined market value of these sports amassed over $105 billion. However without one crucial element, none of this would have been possible. 

The crucial element we’re talking about is turfgrass – a surface that many of the world’s sporting heroes have once graced: Lionel Messi, Shane Warne, Tiger Woods, Tom Brady, the list goes on.

Where would the sporting world be without turf?

Where would the sporting world be without turf?

Despite its worldwide use and lucrative nature, the turfgrass industry also has its challenges. For example, the industry is facing increasing pressure to reduce its environmental impact and implement more sustainable maintenance practices that utilise and/or optimise fewer agronomic-related resources.

A new book published by Burleigh Dodds Science Publishing promises to be the ‘go-to’ reference for those across the globe wishing to adopt more sustainable turfgrass management strategies.

Achieving sustainable turfgrass management has been edited by one of the world’s leading experts on turfgrass ecology, diseases and plant protection, Professor Michael Fidanza.

“As global populations grow, annual climate vagaries increase, and biotic and abiotic plant stresses become more uncertain it is now more important than ever to understand how factors like species selection, edaphic conditions and cultural management decisions influence the ecology and persistence of managed turf systems,” says Dr Cale Bigelow, Professor of Turf Science and Ecology at Purdue University, USA.

Turfgrass is used on more than 700,000 athletic fields in the US alone, however it isn’t just used for sporting purposes. In fact the turfgrass industry consists of such a diverse group of consumers, including general homeowners, lawn care managers, architects, parks and grounds superintendents and landowners.

With such a massive consumer base and tens of thousands of people relying on the industry for their livelihoods, there is now an even greater need to improve the industry’s sustainability credentials and reduce its contribution to climate change.

This new book considers the range of alternative, sustainable management practices that utilise fewer agricultural outputs, such as fertilisers, pesticides and fuel to power agricultural machinery.

A significant benefit of the book is its final part which contains five case studies on the establishment of good turfgrass management written by a combination of industry practitioners and academic researchers.

“The book’s inclusion of case studies on unmanned aircraft, variety selection, wildflowers, pollinators and irrigation scheduling provides a unique and interesting overview of the ways in which the industry can adopt more sustainable practices,” says Dr Peter Landschoot, Professor of Turfgrass Science at The Pennsylvania State University, USA.

The book also explores the challenge of treating diseased turf in the face of fungicide resistance and highlights recent advances in turfgrass disease, insect pest and weed management.

“This book contains the latest research-based information on turfgrass science and management and has been written by some of the world’s leading authorities in turfgrass science and ecology,” says Professor Michael Fidanza

“It should be a welcome addition to the bookshelf of every scientific researcher in the field of turfgrass science and management, industry practitioners and students as well and should be top of the list for those in charge of sporting pitches and playing surfaces as an invaluable knowledge resource,” he concludes.

Find out more about this new book here: https://shop.bdspublishing.com/store/bds/detail/workgroup/3-190-109531

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