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NEWS ARTICLES

Biggest Wellbeing Survey for UK Horticulture Industry

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Biggest Wellbeing Survey for UK Horticulture Industry: Perennial, the charity dedicated to supporting people in horticulture, is proud to announce the launch of its largest ever survey to gain a snapshot into the wellbeing of those working in the industry. 

Building on the success of the 2021 Health & Wellbeing Survey, Perennial is calling upon all those working across all sectors to participate in the 2024 survey as their feedback really will make a difference.

Biggest Wellbeing Survey for UK Horticulture Industry

Biggest Wellbeing Survey for UK Horticulture Industry

The charity wants to understand more about people’s daily lives, both inside and outside of work, and the pressures they may be facing – not only to develop their services but to inform others within the industry on the key issues and challenges being faced.

The anonymous survey will run from the 17th May until the end of June and is open to all sectors within horticulture. The results will be analysed and reported on by the University of Exeter and the findings shared with the industry this coming autumn.

For example, a key finding in 2021 was that 85% of people’s mental wellbeing was poor or below average. As a result, Perennial worked with key industry stakeholders to roll out a successful mental health first aid at work programme which saw nearly 100 people trained as mental health first aiders across 11 sectors and 48 companies.

Not only has this added to the number of people across the industry already qualified to provide invaluable support to their colleagues every day, it has widened the conversation and is helping to create a culture of positive mental wellbeing.

By sharing the survey findings, Perennial aims to support and empower the industry to take proactive steps to address such identified challenges. While acknowledging that not all issues can be solved single-handedly, Perennial believes in adopting a collaborative approach and working in partnership with the horticulture sector for positive change.

Julia Hayne, Perennial’s Director of Services, emphasised the importance of sector collaboration, stating, “The research will enable us to formulate more effective tools and support strategies to enhance wellbeing now and into the future. It’s a further step towards achieving our vision of building better futures for people working in horticulture and their families.”

Open to all who work in or have worked in horticulture, everyone is encouraged to take the time to complete the survey and to share with colleagues and friends from Friday 17th May 2024. 

perennial.org.uk/survey

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Top class cricket and irrigation

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Top class cricket and irrigation: The historic Rainham Cricket Club in Kent is all set for the 2024 season and once again the club’s reputation for providing some of the best prepared pitches in the Kent cricket leagues will be demonstrated. This is all thanks to hard working and dedicated volunteer grounds staff as well as the continued support of Holts Irrigation who in 2021 installed a Rain Bird irrigation system.

Glen Cook is the Club’s Groundsman and Secretary. Since retiring after a long playing career, he has dedicated much of his time to the club’s Berengrave Lane home. There are four Saturday teams which compete in the Kent Cricket League and a Sunday team in the Kent Village Cricket League. An extremely popular Colts section provides opportunities for the 9-17 age group of this family orientated club which has a very active social calendar and will celebrate its 170th anniversary in 2026.

Top class cricket and irrigation

Top class cricket and irrigation

Preparing pitches to the highest standard follows a procedure that can take anything from 10-14 days. There are 17 pitches on the Rainham square with at least two in use at any time. In 2021 it became clear that a new approach to pitch preparation was required with irrigation a key issue. This was reliant on connecting a hosepipe to the mains water supply and running across a 50+ metre square. Irrigation could take as long as two days to complete and could include overnight watering.

Not only was the water quantity that reached the square insufficient, but the pressure was too low. There was no prospect of irrigating the square uniformly and, with its slope, water would also run away. A series of long dry spells during that summer also meant that any surface water quickly evaporated.

The club was put in touch with Holts Irrigation, a company with extensive experience in sports turf irrigation. Andre Holt recommended a completely new approach based around the installation of a Rain Bird ESP-RZXe irrigation controller to manage six 950 Series pop up rotor sprinklers, as well as a 10000 litre water tank complete with a Grundfos submersible pump and controller. With close cooperation between grounds staff and Holts Irrigation, the full installation was completed within a week.

Four of the 950 Series rotors with double nozzles and 90º arcs are positioned at the corners of the square and the other two at the side which have 180º arcs. They can throw to a distance of up to 28.0 metres providing head to head 100% uniform coverage across the square. The  ESP-RZXe controller has a large LCD screen and a simple user interface. With its rapid programming feature it was simple for Andre to set up and is ideal for grounds staff to carry out additional manual functions.

The controller offers many irrigation scheduling options and in practice, during the playing season, it runs a minimum of two heads. The rotors are set up to irrigate the pitches that are to be used at the weekend and they are also turned on after play on a Sunday evening.

Glen also has the flexibility to apply additional manual irrigation throughout the season when required during dry spells or when carrying out pitch maintenance including reseeding and repairing used pitches. “ We can put down fertilisers and soil conditioners at any time we feel necessary as we now don’t need to rely on the weather to water it in if we have a dry early spring. We are also no longer reliant on waiting for the right weather before we carry out any renovation work and can simply turn on the irrigation system. This is flexible and convenient as well as helping with conservation, as water is applied only when and where it is needed,” says Glen.

Since the installation, Rainham Cricket Club has received praise for the quality of its playing surfaces. This is down to both the professional care afforded by the volunteer grounds staff and the irrigation regime which prevents the surface breaking up on the strips and helps to provide the right amount of water to repair and prepare wickets for second use during the busy playing season. This has resulted in predictable pace and bounce for bowlers and a consistent safe surface for batsmen. The irrigation system makes it much easier for the grounds staff to build on the great cricket surface already established over recent years by the previous groundsman.

Andre Holt carried out the pre-season checks of the irrigation system in late February 2024 at the same time as Glen and his team started pre-season pitch preparations for the new season. Electrical testing of  the irrigation controller and the pump start were carried out along with water pressure and leakage checks. The rotors and nozzles were checked for correct rotation and arc orientation as well as for  debris that could result in clogging.

The start-up checks and the reliability of the installation means that there will be no need for a return visit from Holts Irrigation until after the end of the season when the system is shut down. “Andre’s knowledge of sports turf irrigation has helped to transform the management and upkeep of our pitches. As the 2024 season progresses and the drier spells become more prolonged and frequent, the irrigation system will really come into its own. It’s been a very worthwhile investment and will virtually guarantee the quality of our playing surfaces throughout the summer,” says Glen.

For more information contact: Holts Irrigation, Heathfield, East Sussex, X: @AndreHotech  and www.rainhamcricketclub.com

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Origin Amenity Solutions Introduces Grandstand®

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Origin Amenity Solutions Introduces Grandstand®: Origin Amenity Solutions (OAS), a leading provider of innovative solutions for managed amenity turf, proudly announces the launch of Grandstand®, a groundbreaking selective herbicide designed to effectively control a wide range of broadleaved weeds.

OAS is the exclusive distributor for the UK market of Grandstand®, manufactured by Corteva Agriscience. Grandstand® represents a significant advancement in selective herbicide technology, featuring a new active ingredient to the UK amenity market, Arylex™.

Origin Amenity Solutions Introduces Grandstand®

Origin Amenity Solutions Introduces Grandstand®

Engineered to target stubborn weeds such as White Clover, Daisy, Dandelion, Ribwort Plantain, and Creeping Buttercup, Grandstand® delivers exceptional results, ensuring enhanced turf quality and aesthetics.

“We are thrilled to introduce Grandstand® to the UK market,” comments Mark De Ath, Plant Protection Products Team Lead. “As a company committed to innovation and excellence, we are proud to offer this new selective herbicide to our customers We are currently the only UK supplier to be able to offer a product with the active ingredient Arylex™ which is highly effective in cold, wet conditions and I feel will change the landscape for selective herbicides.”

Arylex™ is a synthetic auxin herbicide, co-formulated with florasulam to create a broad-spectrum solution. It is part of a new structural class of synthetic auxin herbicides and is effective in managing weeds that are resistant to other modes of action, such as the ALS inhibitor herbicides.

Grandstand® boasts unparalleled convenience, requiring just one application per season for optimal weed control. With application timing spanning from 1st April to 30th September. Grandstand® provides flexibility and ease of use, allowing turf managers to effectively tackle weed infestations throughout the growing season.

Available exclusively through Origin Amenity Solutions, Grandstand® is now in stock and available for dispatch to meet the needs of turf management professionals across the UK.

“We are delighted to offer Grandstand® as part of our comprehensive portfolio of turf management solutions,” added Mark De Ath. “With its unrivalled performance and ease of use, Grandstand® reinforces our commitment to delivering superior products that empower our customers to achieve outstanding results.”

For more information about Grandstand® and to place orders, visit Origin Amenity Solutions or contact the sales team at sales@originamenity.com

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Ashbury win golf facility award

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Ashbury win golf facility award: Yamaha Motor Europe (YME) has recognised The Ashbury Golf Resort, as their 2024 Golf Facility of the Year at a short ceremony, which took place recently at their golf and leisure complex, in Fowley Cross near Okehampton in Devon.

The Ashbury Golf Resort is the 9th largest golf complex in the world and owns and operates over 430 premium Yamaha golf cars, which are used across their four 18-hole courses, an 18-hole par-3 course and a 9-hole Academy course.

Ashbury win golf facility award

Ashbury win golf facility award

The Golf Facility of the Year award recognises the provision of an impressive and remarkable golf experience for members and guests, while being regarded as a first-class golf operation. It highlights the connection between Yamaha and its partners and recognises the excellent golfing facilities and the year-round maintenance which goes into making The Ashbury Resort such a leading golfing destination.

Roland-Jan Schippers from YME’s European head office in the Netherlands presented Steve Harris, Operations Director at the resort, with a crystal trophy, a signed certificated from Yamaha’s head office in Japan, champagne and a WaveRunner Safari experience.

The WaveRunner Safari is a marine outdoor adventure, utilising Yamaha Personal Water Craft, which will allow the golf team to spend a day exploring the Cornish coast, in recognition of their excellent efforts.

Commenting on the award, Operations Director Steve Harris said,

“We were delighted when we were recognised with this award; it was a complete surprise and reflects our close working relationship with Yamaha. With the size of our golf car fleet, we have to ensure that they are well presented and functioning as they should, so access to an excellent after sales team and all the various parts required is vital to us. In that respect, we are completely self-sufficient and use an online computer system which links directly to Yamaha’s UK headquarters in Woking for ordering Genuine Parts and Accessories. Our relationship with Yamaha works on every level and we share similar brand values such as integrity and dedication to satisfying the needs of our customers. We are delighted with this recognition.

Roland-Jan Schippers concluded saying,

“The Ashbury Golf Resort is a superb example of the dedication that is required to produce a great golfing experience at a large-scale destination. The partnership between ourselves and Ashbury is very strong and we are delighted that they appreciate the benefits that our golf cars bring to their operations.

“The build quality inherent in Yamaha golf cars is evidenced by the fact that some of Ashbury’s vehicles are over 25-years old and still going strong! This clearly demonstrates that a well-maintained fleet can bring significant benefits, not just to Ashbury, but to any golf operation. The all-round quality of build and components used, results in the lowest cost of ownership of any manufacturer, something the team at Ashbury clearly appreciate.

“The Ashbury Golf Resort provides a superior customer experience; the same ethos that we at Yamaha have at the core of our operations. We appreciate their loyalty, their commitment to the Yamaha brand and our excellent business partnership. They are deserved winners of this award.”

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Productive peace at Hillside Golf Club

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Productive peace at Hillside Golf Club: Having seen improved productivity from all-day course maintenance from using Toro electric machinery, Hillside Golf Club in Southport has subsequently invested in four more Toro all-electric eTriFlex 3370 greensmowers and two Toro Workman GTX-Lithium utility vehicles from distributor Reesink Turfcare.

When the club invested in its first eTriFlex three years ago, the aim was environmental to eliminate the risk of hydraulic leaks on the greens. Having used the machine for three years now there’s an additional benefit: it’s favoured just as much for the lack of operational noise, which has enabled greens staff to mow throughout the day.

Productive peace at Hillside Golf Club

Productive peace at Hillside Golf Club

Links manager Chris Ball explains: “The way golf clubs mow has changed, and it’s not always possible to fit in all the work we need to do before play starts any more. This is due to a post-COVID increase in members and visitors and the commonly held view that rounds played over the same course take longer than they once did.

“Work needs to happen all day – and the solution to that is simple, it’s silent electric power.”

The R&A agrees in its Pace of Play guide, stating that course maintenance during play is necessary and adapting maintenance schedules is vital to have as little negative impact on pace of play and the players’ enjoyment as possible.

“With the electric mowers, we can work around members and guests without disturbing them and gives us the ability to get in right behind tournament play as it happens which is essential in keeping on top of the course throughout an event,” Chris says.

When Chris bought the original mower, total cost of sale was a big factor, yet at the time it was an unknown. Thanks to Toro’s newly developed cost calculator, designed to compare operating expenses of alternative energy-powered machines, it’s now known that using the eTriFlex over five years will save £10,153 compared to its diesel equivalent.

“I can well believe it,” says Chris. “There’s a number crunching exercise to be done but I’d say we’re well on the way to that. It’s the absence of downtime and lack of repairs required that’s particularly noticeable, and how easy and quick maintenance is. And that’s without factoring in reduced running costs and no fuel.”

Seeing how this way of working improved productivity and elevated the condition of the course helped the club make the decision to boost its electric machinery fleet with Toro electric utility vehicles from distributor Reesink Turfcare, too. With the Workman GTX-Lithiums on board bunker work such as raking can also run alongside mowing throughout play.

All of this is part of a wider sustainable picture with Chris and the team working towards being non-reliant on chemicals, carefully choosing the perfect combination of drought-resistant organic feeds and disease-tolerant grasses. The goal is to use less water and fewer inputs and spend less money to get the same results.

“It’s important to make the investment now to reap the benefits in the future,” Chris concludes – and leading the way with electric machinery has been an integral part of that investment in the future.

To find out more about electric or hybrid machinery options, call Reesink Turfcare on 01480 226800 or visit reesinkturfcare.co.uk.

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