Get The Edge With Toro

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Get The Edge With Toro: To be blunt, Toro’s new bedknife is anything but. Thanks to the use of hardened tool steel, Toro’s EdgeMax bedknives stays sharper for longer, therefore bringing a crisper cut and less wear to Toro greens and fairway mowers, whilst also ensuring significant time and cost savings. 

Brought to the UK market by Reesink Turfcare, EdgeMax bedknives provide up to three times longer edge retention than a standard bedknife and means 50 percent less time is required adjusting, backlapping, grinding and replacing, tests performed by Toro confirm.

Get The Edge With Toro

There are multiple benefits to this: a cleaner, crisper cut for healthier turf, unrivalled after-cut appearance, significantly lower parts costs and a reduction in maintenance time. What’s more, bedknives that maintain their sharpness ensure the machine incurs less wear, enabling it to work more efficiently and smoothly.

Michael Hampton, parts manager at Reesink, says: “It will come as no surprise that together this combination equates to long-term cost and labour savings.”

By buying Toro, rather than a will-fit competitor, means you can also be reassured of consistent hole alignment on every bedknife, certified and trackable steels coils and computer controlled machining and finishing, thanks to Toro’s leading manufacturing process.

Available across Toro’s Greensmaster and Reelmaster ranges on models fitted with DPA (Dual Precision Adjustment) cutting units, EdgeMax bedknives bring a 9.5mm and above height of cut to fairways and a 1.59mm and above height of cut to greens. To find out more or place on order, contact Reesink’s parts department on 01480 226870.

For more information, visit: reesinkturfcare.co.uk

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Trilo A Help At Mid Herts GC

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Trilo A Help At Mid Herts GC: Located in the Hertfordshire countryside, Mid Herts Golf Club is one of only a few heathland courses based in Hertfordshire. After being neglected for a number of years, a project is underway to re-establish the native heather around the 18 holes by Course Manager Jody Wilson. Assisting Jody in creating the ideal growing conditions, is his team of five greenkeepers, and a fleet of machinery from Trilo. 

“I first came across the Trilo product during my time at Woburn Golf Club, where we purchased one of the first machines in the UK” explains Jody, who has now been at Mid Herts for 13 years. “In my opinion they are leading the market for leaf and debris collection so when our previous machine started causing us problems, I turned to Trilo to look at alternatives.” With two Trilo BL740 blowers already in the shed, he added an S4 vacuum sweeper to his collection over the winter of 2017/18.

Trilo A Help At Mid Herts GC

The club has been working closely with Herts and Middlesex Wildlife Trust on a plan to open up woodland areas to encourage the regeneration of heather, which has been a big project for Jody. “We have a lot of oak trees which have encroached on the course over the years which means our leafing season goes on and on. Heather and long grasses don’t like organic matter, so in an effort to create the right conditions, we collect every single leaf that falls – a daily task in the winter. We use our BL740’s to blow the debris off the course where it is then collected up in the S4.” In use from the moment it arrived, the S4 collected over 140 loads (or 560m3!) of leaves over the autumn/winter period.

While mainly used for leaf collection, Jody also has the flail attachment for the S4 meaning they can now cut and collect the long roughs in one pass, which was previously conducted by two separate machines. “Now we can do both jobs simultaneously, we’re saving time and manpower and the interchangeable attachments make it a versatile, year-round machine.”

“Where we’ve been clearing the leaves away, the heather has been naturally reoccurring across the course. It’s been an ongoing project for me for the last 10-11 years, but we’re now making real progress. Both us as greenkeepers, and the players, are delighted.”

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Toro “The Best” At Huntercombe

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Toro “The Best” At Huntercombe: Huntercombe Golf Club, celebrating the recent success of being named the number one course in Oxfordshire by the Top 100 Golf Courses, has switched to Toro for its irrigation system because according to course manager Grant Stewart “it’s the best on the market” for covering compact tees and vast greens.

The historic golf course designer Willie Park Junior designed and owned Huntercombe, and to this day the course continues to be played to the original 1901 layout. With some greens on the 18-hole course near Henley-on-Thames over 1000m2, finding the right sprinklers to guarantee thorough, even coverage was of the utmost importance says Grant:

Toro "The Best" At Huntercombe

“Huntercombe has large greens. Altogether they cover 1.7 hectares, with some up to 1000m2! We chose Flex 55 for the job because of the distance they can cover. We installed a ring main around the larger greens to control the pressure, which allowed us to feed the heads with water to cover two directions. The heads on my fourth green put out 16 litres of water a second, guaranteeing every inch of that big green is well watered.”

Applying equally efficient irrigation to the small tees are the Toro T5 sprinklers. Grant continues: “We have the opposite problem on the tees in that some of them are quite small, so we needed to find a sprinkler that would work well in a much smaller area.”

With an operating area of 6.5-12m, it’s easy to see why the T5s fit the bill. But something all the sprinklers have in common, including the FLEX 35 also used on the greens, is their maintenance and ease of use, as Grant explains: “The best feature of all the sprinklers we’ve chosen are the heads which allow us to change the arcs when they are running with no tools. I can move the heads to water any area and don’t have to be concerned that the gears will be damaged.”

The brains behind this irrigation brawn is the Lynx central control system chosen because trying it at another club showed Grant just how easy it was to use. But surpassing all these reasons for opting for Toro irrigation is the fact that Grant, who has been at the club for two years, with previous deputy roles at Sunningdale in Ascot and Fairmont St Andrews has the support of a greenkeeping team of eight, knows and trusts the brand:

“I looked to Toro irrigation to get the same quality of irrigation product as the machinery we use. I have always used Toro machinery and know it to be reliable, so when the time was right to invest in a new irrigation system there was no question I’d go with Toro, it was more a case of which items in the range would best suit our needs.”

Completing the order with Reesink Turfcare is a selection of Toro machinery including the Groundsmaster 3500-D, two Greensmaster TriFlex 3420 mowers, a Multi Pro 1750 and a Workman MDX-D, all of which will no doubt play some part in helping Grant and the team in their endeavours to reduce thatch in the greens. The aim being to improve the species of grass in the playing surfaces and aid regeneration work over the next couple of years, with Grant concluding: “We’re very proud to now be a ‘Total Solutions’ club.”

For more information, visit: reesinkturfcare.co.uk

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AL-KO Gardentech Acquire Rochford

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AL-KO Gardentech Acquire Rochford: German manufacturer AL-KO Gardentech have acquired Rochford Garden Machinery. The deal was announced after completion on Wednesday (1st Aug) this week.

Rochford say that 100% of the company has been acquired, with all divisions, staff and product lines remaining unchanged.

AL-KO Gardentech Acquire Rochford

Both parties have agreed to confidentiality regarding the financial terms of the arrangement.

Rochford, based in Wincanton, Somerset, is one of UK´s leading garden machinery suppliers, both in imports and sales of domestic and commercial garden machinery. The family run business founded in 1976 in Bruton, Somerset, has been an importer of AL-KO products for almost 15 years.

Elizabeth Rochford, wife of founder Peter Rochford said of the acquisition, “We are pleased to have AL-KO Gardentech, our long time partner, as our new owner, which helps us to take Rochford to a new level of profitability, sales and market penetration.

“With this merger, we have taken the necessary steps and passed our business on to experienced hands to ensure sustainable future development for employees and customers.

“We have every confidence in AL-KO Gardentech that our company will be led into a stable future and that Rochford will remain a professional home for our employees. Furthermore, the management team around managing director, Stewart Anderson, will stay the same.”  This management team includes Mark Rochford and sister Kerry Moore.

Managing director of Rochfords, Stewart Anderson says: “This exciting acquisition gives us the opportunity to take our business to the next level and develop our portfolio of brands which include AL-KO, DR, Mitox, and Weibang. The company and its ranges will continue as they are, with the added benefit of developing new product categories from the AL-KO company in new channels.

“We are embarking on 10 dealer shows across the UK in September to showcase our new product ranges, technical updates, and competitive trade terms, details of which will be released shortly.”

Dr. Wolfgang Hergeth, COO of AL-KO KOBER SE, said, “We are pleased to be able to win Rochford, one of the strongest trading partners in the UK garden machinery market for the AL-KO KOBER GROUP. Like the acquisition of the New Zealand garden equipment manufacturer Masport last year, this investment is a clear signal for a strong future of AL-KO Gardentech. The transaction significantly enhances our organic and inorganic growth targets and thus continues our positive business development over the last few years.

“The good economic situation of Rochford shows a well-established and managed company. Services such as customer services, repair offerings or spare parts management fully meet the AL-KO standard ‘Quality for life’. Rochford will now be able to continue its development under the modern entrepreneurial AL-KO KOBER GROUP and to provide customers with first-class and innovative products as well as service and support.

“The entry into the British market is a logical consequence of the great market potential in specialist trade and DIY, the British affinity to online trade as well as significantly increased interest in robotic garden machinery. Thanks to its strong customer relationships on all channels, Rochford provides direct customer access to AL-KO Gardentech, which gives further impetus for substantial growth in the UK.

“With this merger, we will now be able to further develop the DIY and e-Commerce business and, at the same time, consistently force the innovations of smart gardening and future battery technologies. Within the corporate group, there is simply more development potential for AL-KO Gardentech and Rochford. This acquisition offers a long term perspective for employees to work in a dynamic and fast growing business.”

Rochford Garden Machinery’s roadshows take place between 10th September to 21st September.

Makita’s Hole-In-One

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Makita’s Hole-In-One: The greenkeepers at Chipping Sodbury Golf Club in Bristol have praised Makita’s fast, powerful and brilliantly handy grass shears.

The club has recently had several new revetted bunkers installed on The Beaufort Course.  These are a common feature on a vast number of courses across the British Isles where the embankment of the bunker is faced with masonry, or other material such as sods, placed on top of each other to create a layered effect that helps to fortify the bunker.  It was advised that a traditional line trimmer could not be used to maintain the edge of the bunkers as in doing so would risk damaging the face of the bunkers.  An alternative needed to be sought and following a demonstration of the Makita 18v LXT Grass Shears, Head Greenkeeper John Keenaghan purchased two of the units to help keep the revetted bunkers in tip-top condition to remain in-keeping with the rest of the beautifully manicured parkland course.

Makita's Hole-In-One

John Keenaghan says:  “These Makita grass shears do a fantastic job and are exactly what we were looking for.  We will be recommending them to fellow greenkeepers that have revetted bunkers.”  The Makita cordless grass shears can be seen in action at the golf club in this video https://youtu.be/arP1DsAa2Jc

The Beaufort Course, designed by Fred Hawtree, was opened in 1971 and subsequent maturing, development and care has achieved a superb course which presents a challenge to all levels of golfer.  Chipping Sodbury Golf Club is situated in an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty at the foot of the Cotswold Hills and adjacent to the historic, characterful 17th century market town of Chipping Sodbury.

Makita’s latest offering of the 18v grass shears is the DUM604Z.  The shear has a double blade action, a cutting width of 160mm, and a 3-stage cutting height adjustment from 15 – 25mm for really fine work.  With an ergonomically designed soft grip handle and light in weight at just 1.8kg, including the battery, user comfort is guaranteed while low noise emissions will ensure Sunday morning peace and quiet.  This model is available as a body only machine and a compatible hedge trimmer attachment is also available that has a tool-less blade change.

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