Obituary – John Shepherd

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Obituary – John Shepherd: It is with great sadness we announce that John Shepherd has passed away after an 18 month battle with cancer. John fell asleep peacefully for the last time with his family at his side on Sunday 2nd February 2020.

John was a close friend and colleague to me and many people in the irrigation industry. He was always positive and had a smile looking for the best solution for customers.

Obituary - John Shepherd

Obituary – John Shepherd

John started his career, after studying at Myerscough College, at Turf Irrigation Services (TIS) Ltd and this is where we met for the first time. John was a Technical Sales Engineer/Designer and I was a junior in the drafting office preparing design and as laid plans for projects undertaken by TIS. He always had time to spend with me. Indeed without the kind opportunities, education and experience given to me by Robin (Hume) and John I would not be where I am today. The irrigation and indeed turf industry seems large to many on the outside, however, it is actually a small and personal industry.

John once told me that when he started working for TIS he was conscious of his stammer and that he spoke to Robin about this. Robin responded in saying “People recognise me for my size and people will recognise you for your stammer”. Indeed Robin once told me that people would recognise me for my red hair, something which many still do, and I know many will always remember John’s stammer.

In his career John also spent many enjoyable years working for Hunter Industries as a Technical Sales Manager in EMEA [Europe, Middle East & Africa] before returning back to his roots to finally setup his irrigation design company, Irrigation Project Management [IPM], and working closely with myself at RHA.

Football was a passion and often a topic of conversation with many who knew him.  He was an avid supporter of Preston North End with a season ticket and seat on the nose of Tom Finney.

John is survived by his wife Nicholette and two children Chrissie and Joseph. His funeral will be held at Crewe Crematorium on the 27th February at 13.45 followed by a wake at the Hunters Lodge in Crewe. All are welcome to celebrate John’s life. John requested no flowers, and that any donations made in his memory will go to Macmillan Cancer Care and Help for Heroes.

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Reesink’s new tractor specialist

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Reesink’s new tractor specialist: Reesink UK has recruited Jim Maynard as a tractor specialist, a position created due to the company’s growing prominence in the sector.

Jim has worked with customers, machinery manufacturers, dealers and distributors in his extensive career. He spent 16 years specialising in John Deere machinery and has strong experience in customer services and a sound technical ability, the company says.

Reesink's new tractor specialist

Reesink’s new tractor specialist

Steven Haynes, sales manager at Reesink, comments: “Jim has worked in the industry for many years repairing land-based equipment and we’re confident his technical knowledge and customer relations experience will translate well to his new position at Reesink.”

For Jim, this role was just the opportunity he was looking for, he says: “I’ve always wanted to work for Reesink and with so much of my career focussed on tractors – selling them and dealing with the maintenance and servicing of them too – when news of the job reached me, I felt it would really suit me. It will be great to be specialising in tractors, it’s an area I am really comfortable in and have a wealth of experience and knowledge to hopefully benefit Reesink customers.”  Jim will be delivering technical support to Reesink’s dealer network and golf, sports, grounds and farming customers across the country with Steven and the now five-strong team, as well as upholding the company’s reputation for providing award-winning aftermarket support to customers.

Steven concludes: “The trajectory of Reesink’s debut into distributing tractors in the UK just seven years ago has surpassed expectation and that’s why we’re expanding the team. Having Jim on board ensures we can continue that into the next decade.”

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New appointments from Indigrow

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New appointments from Indigrow: Indigrow are delighted to announce the appointments of Andre Erlah, Andy Miller and Greg McLellan as area sales managers, helping us expand and enhance our areas of operation within the UK.

Andre began his career working on rugby, football, cricket and athletic facilities at his local college. He moved to Trentham Park Golf Club where he progressed from assistant to head greenkeeper. After spending 16 years as the course manager at Easingwold Golf Club, Andre returned to his native Staffordshire to run his own landscaping and consultancy business before joining Indigrow.

New appointments from Indigrow

Andy has worked as a greenkeeper throughout his career, spending 10 years across Clitheroe Golf Club, Nelson Golf Club and Burnley Golf Club, before making the step to head greenkeeper. Andy has most recently been head greenkeeper at Marsden Park Golf Club.

Greg started in the industry early, spending his summers working on golf courses whilst still studying. After leaving school, he took an apprenticeship at Callender Golf Club, where he excelled, passing all of his qualifications. More recently, he has been working at the prestigious GWest Resort, but has decided to take on a new challenge on the other side of the industry.

Andre will be responsible for the Midlands, Andy for the North West of England and Greg for North & East Scotland. Their knowledge and expertise from the world of sports turf and agronomy are priceless to us and invaluable to our customers. If you wish to contact any of them, their contact details are as follows:

Andre Erlah 07483 053 216 aerlah@indigrow.co.uk
Andy Miller 07483 053 217 amiller@indigrow.co.uk
Greg McLellan 07483 053 218 gmclellan@indigrow.co.uk

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Andrew de Wet joins Symbio

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Andrew de Wet joins Symbio: Andrew de Wet has been appointed by Symbio as Technical Sales Manager for the Midlands.

A former Golf Course Manager with a passion for sustainability and ecology, Andrew went on to launch a successful turf care and landscaping company before joining an organisation whose ethos and products he has long advocated. He is looking forward to working with a broad range of customers in his area which extends from Leicester to Birmingham, up to the Peak District and across South Yorkshire.

Andrew de Wet joins Symbio

Andrew de Wet joins Symbio

He comments, “Recognising that golf courses are such valuable urban ecosystems, good environmental stewardship was at the heart of everything I did as a greenkeeper. I committed to reducing inputs and with Symbio’s help I was able to, growing finer grasses in a healthier rootzone and redirecting that expenditure to other areas of the golf course. I’m looking forward to giving confidence and support to other turf managers looking to do the same.”

Established in 1990, Symbio was the first company to combine soil biology and chemistry to develop a range of industry-changing products, including Thatch Eater to convert thatch to plant food, mycorrhizal fungi to promote perennial grasses and in some cases more than halve fertiliser use; Liquid Aeration to oxygenate the rootzone, and compost teas to restore life to chemically damaged and compacted rootzones.

Andrew can be contacted on 07513 125554 and by email at andrew@symbio.co.uk

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Symbio appoint Biological Science Specialist

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Symbio appoint Biological Science Specialist: Symbio has appointed biological science specialist Dr Deidre Charleston, Ph.D. as Research and Technical Manager, bringing over 20 years’ extensive experience of field trials, data collection, new product development, testing of compounds and mixtures and fulfilment of UK and EU pesticide regulatory and labelling requirements.

Growing up in South Africa, the daughter of a game ranger, Deidre’s early experience of wide-open spaces and respect for the natural world later developed into a life-long passion for biological science. After graduating from university, her early career was spent working as a research scientist in Africa investigating ways to improve integrated pest management (IPM) in agriculture.

Symbio appoint Biological Science Specialist

Symbio appoint Biological Science Specialist

Her career path has included managing trials programmes at Microspore and Arysta Life Science as well as laboratory trials in plant pathology and entomology. At Scotts Miracle-Gro, she was responsible for managing the Levington Research station in the UK, running 100-200 field trials a year and leading international biocide projects.

Prior to joining Symbio, in her role as Curriculum and Quality Manager at Easton and Otley College, her responsibilities included academic and subject leadership for land-based studies, and delivery of plant and soil science, pest control and PA01 training for NPTC qualifications.

She comments, “I’m very excited about joining Symbio which really takes me back to my roots in scientific research but combines that with a focus on the value of education. My role has three key aspects to it. Firstly, to review our current product portfolio and run new, rigorous trials so that we are continually updating and adding to our knowledge with scientific data. Secondly to focus on education; making the science more accessible by running seminars and events, talking about soil biology and helping users understand how our products work best. The restrictions on pesticide use will only keep increasing so we need to be looking at equivalent, sustainable alternatives. Lastly, I’m going to be improving and developing new products, with science-based innovation that will make a difference to the way we manage sportsturf in the future”.

Dr Deidre Charleston can be contacted on Tel: 07968 344029 and by email at deidre@symbio.co.uk.

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