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NEWS ARTICLES

Extensions Of Use For Herbicide

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Extensions Of Use For Herbicide: As of March 2018, the barrier acting, total herbicide, Pistol®, from Bayer, will be labelled with two new extensions of use, which will include applications by CDA (Controlled Droplet Applicator) as well as vehicle mounted sprayers, in addition to the current approval for knapsack application. 

Lewis Blois, Bayer national account manager, explains that treatments using a CDA allow for the herbicide to be applied evenly and effectively, so that contractors are not required to use a large amount of adjuvant or water.

Extensions Of Use For Herbicide

 

“This greatly reduces the overall weight of herbicide operators need to carry and saves a significant amount of working time, as they won’t need to continually stop to refill the tank.

“Vehicle mounted applications were actually removed from the Pistol® label in 2015, but the Bayer regulatory team has worked hard to bring about renewed approval. This will ensure that users can cover large permeable areas such as car parks, in a shorter space of time,” he says.

The updated label will not affect those currently using the product. However, those applying old-label products, with the extended application methods, should ensure that they have access to the updated label. This will be available from Pistol® distributors or can be downloaded from the Bayer website.

All Pistol® bottles will continue to be supplied with low drift nozzles, which allow amenity professionals to minimise chemical drift and ensure a targeted spray pattern.

“Using low drift nozzles is an essential part of pesticide stewardship, and without such practices we could see even more products removed from the market,” explains Lewis.

A key benefit of Pistol® is that it has a long lasting, systemic and residual mode of action. As well as killing weeds on contact, it continues to reside as a barrier in the upper soil profile to control and prevent germinating weeds from establishing for 3 months, post application.

“The updated label will offer all users the flexibility to apply the herbicide in the most appropriate way to suit their circumstances,” says Lewis.

To find out more about Pistol® and the label update, please contact the Bayer Turf Solutions Team on 00800 1214 9451, email turfsolutions@bayer.com or visit www.environmentalscience.bayer.co.uk

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Bones Found Under Football Pitch

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Bones Found Under Football Pitch: Workmen unearthed unidentified bones as they were preparing a new football pitch.

The remains were found underneath Ossett Albion’s Dimplewells pitch on Tuesday, as work was being carried out in preparation of the club merging with Ossett Town to form Ossett United.

And the discovery caused chaos, with one game being cancelled and police and forensic teams being called out to the scene.

But after initial tests, it was determined that they were fox bones and not human.

Phil Smith, chief executive at Ossett Albion, said: “I was thinking that someone had buried someone under our pitch.”

The bones were found during ground testing which was being carried out as part of plans for a new 3G pitch being laid at the site. The new pitch will become a training ground and will also be used by junior and ladies teams when the United merger goes ahead.

Workmen had taken a sample of grass and mud to see what lay one metre beneath it. But when the turf was lifted, the remains were revealed.

Mr Smith said police were alerted to the discovery and the area was taped off early in the evening on Tuesday. Investigations on Wednesday morning determined the bones were animal remains.

Mr Smith said: “There was uncertainty over what type the bones were. There was a shoe at the end of the longest bone.

“It turned out the remains were from a fox. The pitch is stood on what used to be a Victorian tipping ground. There’s all sorts under it.

“It was just a sheer coincidence that a fox died next to a shoe some 50 years ago.”

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New Customer For Toro

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New Customer For Toro: St Enodoc Golf Club has an impressive roll call. It is the premier golf club based in Cornwall, sixth in the country according to Golf World, and ranked 99th in the world by Golf Digest. Adding to that, is the fact that it is now a new Toro customer.

Based on that roll call it’s easy to see that this links course, based on the North Cornwall coast overlooking the Camel Estuary, has high standards to maintain. Simon Greatorex, general manager, explains why he and course manager Scott Gibson turned to Toro to help with that.

New Customer For Toro

Simon says: ”As a general manager I have spent a lot of time with the greenkeepers, and time and time again the preferred machinery choice is Toro. This is almost always down to their opinion on the brand’s reliability, build quality and machine support from the supplier and dealer, in this case Reesink Turfcare and Devon Garden Machinery. I happen to agree with them on all of these points.”

And that’s why the club has opted for Toro this time, and is in receipt of two Greensmaster 3400 TriFlex mowers, a Reelmaster 5410 and a Reelmaster 3100-D with Sidewinder, to tend the club’s greens, surrounds and fairways.

Of these machines, Scott says it’s the Reelmaster 3100-D with Sidewinder which is standing out for the club’s greenkeeping team of eight. In particular for “its versatility, excellent stability, clean and superior cut, and immaculate presentation,” says Scott. He goes on to praise all four machines for their ergonomic design.

Plus, there’s the service and support of Reesink Turfcare and Devon Garden Machinery. Scott says: “We have a long-standing relationship with Devon Garden Machinery who distributes Toro in our area, the service and support we get from them is second to none. And Reesink has made the whole process very straight forward, from the advice on the type of equipment we needed to purchase, to the many options that were open to us to finance the fleet, it has been nothing but easy.”

So why has St Enodoc opted for Toro now? Simon explains: “The club has an ongoing course improvement plan, plus the drive to attract some additional events to Cornwall. We already host the South West Ladies Match Week in July for Cornwall, Devon, Somerset, Dorset, Wiltshire and Gloucestershire, and in 2019 we will be hosting the English Senior Women’s Amateur Strokeplay Championship. With Toro on board we feel we stand in good stead for expanding this roll-call even further.”

For more information, visit: reesinkturfcare.co.uk

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New Doosan Dealer

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New Doosan Dealer: Doosan Construction Equipment has appointed Kellands (Plant Sales) Ltd, based in Bridgwater in Somerset, as the new Authorised Dealer for London and South East England for the Doosan range of crawler, wheeled and mini/midi excavators, wheel loaders and articulated dump trucks (ADTs).

The new appointment in London and South East England is an extension to the area currently covered by Kellands as the long-standing Doosan Dealer for the whole of South West England, covering the counties of Somerset, Dorset, Wiltshire, Devon, Cornwall, North Somerset, Bath and North East Somerset, Bristol and Gloucestershire.

New Doosan Dealer

Kellands is looking to purchase a new depot in the South East to cover the expanded area to add to the company’s existing depots in Bridgwater and Camelford in Cornwall.  Kellands has already recruited three additional salesmen and three new service engineers for the new area.  The engineers all work from new service vans fully equipped with workshop tools and extensive parts for on-the-spot service work.  Kellands is looking to take on two more service engineers as part of the new team for London and the South East.

Kellands’ customers benefit from the company’s on-site service network, covering everything from emergency repairs to routine maintenance.  Kellands’ factory-trained engineers have many years of hands-on experience of repairs and servicing of heavy plant and machinery.

As well as covering existing contracts, Kellands provides flexible service agreements, depending on the requirements of the customer.  The company is offering service and warranty work on all existing Doosan machines in the London and South East, backed by a full selection of genuine accessories and parts.  The company is also holding a stock of new and used Doosan branded machines, to respond quickly to customers’ needs.

Doosan Dealer For Over 30 Years

Kellands has been a Doosan dealer since 1987.  The company signed up as a dealer during a visit to the Site Equipment Demonstration (SED) Exhibition in 1987 when the Daewoo range of excavators and wheel loaders made its first appearance in the UK and successfully promoted the products over the years leading up to the purchase of the Daewoo range by Doosan in 2005.  The Doosan range of ADTs formerly branded Moxy was added in 2008.

Anthony Pearce, Doosan Regional Manager – Northern Europe, commented: “We are delighted to be able to appoint Kellands as the new Doosan dealer for London and South East England.  Over the last 30 years, Kellands has established an excellent track record as the Doosan Dealer in South West England.

“Kellands has been awarded the extended area purely on merit, despite very strong interest from other parties.  It reflects the focus at Kellands under Joint Managing Directors, Mark Payne and Tim Hill, on delivering an exceptional customer experience and strong, local leadership within the company.

“It is also tremendous testament to the professionalism at Kellands, that the company immediately put a new sales and service network into place for the extended area.  Kellands has begun very strongly with sales of Doosan machines throughout the London and South East area.”

Mark Payne said: “Both Tim and I have been with Kellands for over 20 years – this is an exciting time for the company and we are very pleased to be extending our representation of the Doosan brand.  We have been associated with it for many years and are passionate about the tremendous product line-up the company offers.  As a company, Doosan is very easy to do business with and they are as equally focused as Kellands on continuing the success in the London and South East market.”

For more information about Doosan construction equipment, visit the website www.doosanequipment.eu

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Spring is upon us!

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With winter turning to spring, sportsturf managers can look forward to the benefits this change of season brings to their playing surfaces.

We have experienced milder winters in recent years and the timing of spring has become less predictable but the concept of longer daylight hours, warmer rainfall, combined with rising air and soil temperatures benefitting cool season grasses remains the same. By definition, cool season grasses are grass types that thrive in areas with cold winters and relatively hot summers. These grasses grow best when temperatures are between 18 and 27°C, which is why they grow most in the spring and autumn. As you look to enhance and maximise the natural benefits of spring culturally, mechanically and biologically, we believe we have a number of products that can assist you at this key time of year.

As spring approaches you want to have the tools available to help your turf out of the winter doldrums and into spring vibrancy. Uniform soil moisture and balanced air to water ratios are critical in making sure your turf is healthy and has the greatest chance of a strong start coming out of winter dormancy.Whether you need to “wake up” the rootzone to get your turf off to a good start or to seed or turf to repair winter damage, don’t let water movement issues get in the way of great turf. Be in control of water movement in the soil profile, even early in the season. We offer a selection of soil surfactants to help ready turf for play as quickly as possible and can help you design an early spring programme so turf can rebound from winter and be healthy before the stress of summer heat. Start early for better turf throughout the year.

The symptoms associated with hydrophobic soil may not be expressed early in the year but the conditions that cause them may still be present in the soil profile. We know that hydrophobic soils are re-wettable and often this occurs naturally over the wetter wintermonths. The taking of cores, drying them out and carrying out a simple water drop penetration test (WDPT Letey, 1969) can indicate whether the hydrophobic-causing conditions have persisted through the winter. Using a soil probe, collect soil samples and air-dry them at room temperature for two weeks. Cores must be completely dry to determine degree of soil water repellency. Place water drops at 1cm intervals along the soil core as exhibited in Figure 1, time how long they take to move into the soil core.

Severity of soil water repellency may be determined using the below table. The more severe the soil hydrophobicity, the more difficult soils are to re-wet which precedes poor turf quality.

If the cores exhibit a level of repellency Aqueduct can be used as a pre-treatment tool to address the problem before starting a regular preventative programme. An application made at 25L/Ha in 500L of water can address these issues very effectively and significantly decrease the likelihood of hydrophobic problems such as localised dry patch during a regular preventative programme in the hotter/drier months by creating a “clean” profile so that everything performs uniformly.

Whether your winter has been wet or dry, starting a Revolution programme early will help optimize air-to-water ratios in the rootzone for a better growing environment and healthier turf. If it has been wet, Revolution will move excess water off of the surface and through the soil profile. If it has been dry, Revolution ensures rain and irrigation will get into the root zone so your turf gets the uniform moisture it needs. Revolution should be applied monthly at 19L/Ha in 800L of water. By starting with Revolution in the spring you can ensure your turf is healthy and ready for play in wet or dry conditions.

In summary, spring is a key time for turf managers, the natural change in the weather is obviously the dominant factor closely followed by sound integrated turf management practices. At Aquatrols we believe we have a number of products that enhance and maximise the benefits of the onset of spring and can assist managers of sports turf at this key time of year.

To find out more, visit www.uk.aquatrols.com

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