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If you mowed in May – that’s ok

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If you mowed in May – that’s ok: If you didn’t follow the no-mow May advice don’t be alarmed.  One of Britain’s foremost lawn experts confirms that regular mowing is good for both the lawn and the environment. 

Richard Salmon (photographed below), the founder of ProLawnCareUK, is adamant that simply adjusting the mower and using it more frequently is good for both nature and the grass.

If you mowed in May - that's ok

If you mowed in May – that’s ok

“We have 20 million plus domestic lawns in the UK.  The vast majority are in inner city and urban areas where they are a vital green lung.   Anything we can do to keep them healthy is good for nature and humans, and regular mowing is key to this,” says Richard.

“I have no idea how many people continued to mow in May but they were doing no harm at all to the environment and really benefitting their lawns,” he added.

“Some wildlife feeding on lawns eat insects or seed, others prefer worms and other invertebrates.   Regular mowing will still allow clover and other flowering weeds to prosper but leave the grass longer and don’t scalp it.  Weekly mowing encourages the grass to tiller or thicken out.  This produces a greater green leaf area per m2 which, in turn, absorbs more Co2 during photosynthesis, keeping lawns green and releasing more oxygen to atmosphere.  The more dense the lawn the better for all food sources.”

“Not cutting the grass and simply leaving it to nature is not good for lawns or wildlife.  Leaving it is of value only to seed eating birds, although it takes several months of growth for the seeds to mature and, in any case, seed can be supplemented at the bird table.  As the uncut grass grows it discolours, significantly reducing photosynthesis which, in turn, results in less oxygen being produced.”

Richard promotes more regular cutting but not too short.  He also supports, where possible, instead of not mowing your lawn, why not dedicate an area for wildlife that benefits the insects and wildlife for 12 months of the year rather than a vain effort for 1 month ? Try leaving a small area of the garden to sow a wild flower mix which is bee friendly and can be left all year to provide a more valuable haven for a greater variety of fauna.

Richard Salmon has spent his entire career involved in lawncare and is one of the country’s leading authorities on the subject.  He is also a leading expert on the environmental value of grassland and is on record as confirming that: “Lawns lock-in carbon from the atmosphere, much like trees, and play a vital role in cleaning and cooling our environment.”

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Toro launches new robotic mower

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Toro launches new robotic mower: Toro is bringing new innovation to the residential garden care category with the launch of a robotic mower that offers cutting-edge, easy to deploy technology and never-before-seen features.

With more than a century of delivering innovative solutions for the outdoor environment, Toro’s new robotic, battery-powered mower represents the latest in smart, connected technology for homeowners and their gardens.

Toro launches new robotic mower

Toro launches new robotic mower

“Our commitment to alternative power, smart connected, and autonomous technologies will enable people to create an amazing space for their families and do more of what they love for generations to come,” said Peter Moeller, Vice President & General Manager, International Division at The Toro Company.

The new robotic mower, available to consumers in selected European markets in the first half of next year, is a culmination of years of research and development. Featuring industry-leading capabilities, such as the industry’s first vision-based localisation system and wire-free navigation, the setup is easy and tailored to each garden without a pricey and failure-prone underground boundary wire installation. This proprietary vision system uses multiple cameras to map and localise in the garden enabling the mower to navigate tight spaces and move around structures such as trees and landscaping. It is also capable of crossing surfaces, such as driveways and sidewalks, to maintain all areas of the property.

Another exciting feature is the dedicated smartphone app which allows users to customise their mowing schedule — whether it’s around work, sleep, or travel. The app can also recommend an ideal mowing schedule based on weather forecasts and patterns. In addition, the mower has third-party safety certification, theft-proof features, slope-friendly cutting abilities, and quiet functionality.

To give homeowners a lawn care system that works as effectively as possible, the robotic mower offers unmatched efficiency through its patented Smart ZonesTM pattern mowing system that can be controlled through custom settings in the app. Through this system, the mower will automatically keep the lawn at a consistent, owner-selected height by cutting the smallest amount of grass each day for optimal lawn health.

Addressing the growing demand for easy-to-use autonomous mowers that offer flexibility and can handle complex gardens, the category is expected to grow significantly in the next 10 years in Europe as the technology develops to deliver accuracy and efficiency.

The new mower will join Toro’s many other powerful and energy efficient garden care tools, including its 60V Flex-Force Power System™, a full lineup of cordless products with one interchangeable battery, as well as its new Revolution Series of battery-powered commercial lawn care equipment. Toro’s autonomous technology is expanding to other outdoor environments, such as golf courses, where field testing of the GeoLink Solutions Autonomous Fairway Mower is underway.

The new autonomous mower, available in red or charcoal gray, will be available for purchase in selected European markets from the first half of next year. Learn more at smartyard.toro.com.

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ISEKI’s fab four at Stowe School

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ISEKI’s fab four at Stowe School: Grounds Manager Steve Curley has revealed why Stowe School has purchased four different ISEKI machines in just three years.

Steve has been working at Stowe, a leading public school in Buckinghamshire for an incredible twenty-nine years. Overseeing a team of fifteen members of staff, Steve is responsible for three-hundred acres of sports fields and gardens including a nine-hole golf course.

ISEKI's fab four at Stowe School

ISEKI’s fab four at Stowe School

In maintaining such a vast area of land, Steve inevitably has a wide range of equipment, but he claims his ISEKI fleet covers most bases.

It all started with the ISEKI TG6675 compact tractor, as he explains.

“We needed something with a bit more horsepower to enable us to do heavier work,” said Steve. “After a few demonstrations of various tractors from our local dealer RT Machinery, we decided to get the TG6675, with 65-horsepower, and that has allowed us to use some implements and attachments that we were not previously able to. It’s been fantastic for us.”

The ISEKI TG6675 sets the benchmark for compact tractor performance. It is built to exceptional standards of quality, starting from the front lights through to the back three-point linkage. It is available with ROPS, or a factory fitted, fully air-conditioned category 2 cabin. All instruments and gauges are easy to read and indicate driving information like engine speed, travelling speed, and PTO speed can be viewed at a glance. All levers are ergonomically located around the driving seat and there is ample space for the driver’s comfort

Based on the success of the TG6675, he then purchased an ISEKI TLE3400 shortly after.

“This mainly does all of our trailer work and helps us pick up the rubbish,” said Steve. “With it being a boarding school, it is like a small town, and we must pick up the rubbish twice a day, every day. We end up with twenty trailer loads of waste per day and we put that in compactors – so this is ideal to pull the trailers.”

The TLE3400 is ISEKI’s new premium economy tractor. This 38 horse-power tractor has a three-speed hydrostatic transmission and a lift capacity of 1000 kg. It is supplied with agricultural or turf tyres as standard. An optional front loader is also available.

“After purchasing these two machines, we decided to purchase the ISEKI TG6490 IQ compact tractor for top dressing and slitting,” continued Steve.

“This has been very successful for us and one of the main reasons for buying it was because of the IQ gearbox which enables us to go up and down the gears very easily.”

As Steve says, the ISEKI TG6490 features an IQ dual clutch transmission which offers the control of a manual with the convenience of an automatic. There are eight main gears and three ranges. Gears are changed by simply moving the gear lever through the straight shift gate.

Steve purchased his fourth ISEKI machine when he felt the time had come to upgrade the school’s ride-on mower. The ISEKI SXG323 + is the ultimate in cut and collection mowers and offers power, performance, and unsurpassed productivity. A 48” (1.22M) mower deck provides a superior quality of cut while the large capacity, high torque 1123cc diesel engine is powerful and fuel efficient. Furthermore, the SXG323+ performs exceptionally even in the wet conditions, allowing you to work without the weather restricting you.

“The capacity of cut is a lot bigger than our old mower and we can get more grass in the box,” said Steve. “It also has a high tail lift which enables us to put it on a trailer straight away if needs be, so we are not double handling the grass. The other bonus is that it is costing us a lot less to run than our old petrol mower. We use this around most of the gardens and it performs brilliantly.

“Overall, these ISEKI machines have been fantastic value for money. They are very easy to service, and we’ve not had any problems whatsoever. The whole team has enjoyed working with them.”

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Suståne keeps Rushmore Golf Club ‘green’

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Suståne keeps Rushmore Golf Club ‘green’: While the course at Rushmore Golf Club may be a tale of two halves, the approach to nutrition is wholly focussed on sustainability – with Course Manager Jaime Acton very proud of the six years that the greens have now been completely chemical-free.

Alongside cultural practices and an overseeding programme, much of the success Jaime attributes to products from the Suståne range of organic fertilisers which have delivered outstanding plant health, strength and resilience.

Suståne keeps Rushmore Golf Club ‘green’

Suståne keeps Rushmore Golf Club ‘green’

With the county line between Wiltshire and Dorset cutting straight through the ancient estate within which Rushmore is situated, the course delivers mature parkland or a more modern challenge depending on which of the 18 holes you’re on! The estate has sustainability at its heart, an ethos which Jaime and his team share and put into practice with the Suståne products. “When I took over almost 10 years ago, I inherited quite a heavy feeding regime, largely based on synthetic fertilisers” explains Jaime.

“I had used formulations from Suståne in previous roles, and knowing what they could do, began ‘weening’ the greens away from the synthetic feeds and the additional chemicals this programme required, and onto a primarily organic regime.” Working closely alongside technical representatives from local distributor AGS, the Suståne programme has been refined over the years depending on the soil’s requirements – now consisting of 6-2-4 Turf Revival in the summer and 5-2-4+Fe for feeds throughout the cooler months.

Suståne 6-2-4 is specifically formulated to provide the right nutrients to assist with post-maintenance recovery and plant stress. In addition to water-soluble and organic sources of Nitrogen, 6-2-4 features Vesicular Arbuscular Mycorrhizae which has been enhancing the germination of Jaime’s bent overseeding programme. “We apply 6-2-4 every six to eight weeks at 25g/m2 which tends to correlate with our overseeding work meaning the seed is sown straight into that nutrition. The plant is strong and resilient enough to cope with the pressures of that period, including disease, and specifically Anthracnose.”

Jaime continues, “In the autumn and winter we continue the dormant feeding with Suståne 5-2-4 which keeps microbial levels up, allowing us to protect against disease rather than having to react to it. The small amount of Iron in this formulation also helps to give us good winter colour.”

“While we haven’t used any herbicides or fungicides for six years, that’s not to say we haven’t had disease! But what we do get we can manage by reducing the stress and encouraging the plant to grow again.” He concludes, “With our Suståne programme, we are feeding the soil rather than the plant, getting the nutritional needs right from the ground up and allowing the plant to take everything it needs to remain strong and healthy.”

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Nationwide dealer coverage from STAR EV in first year

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Nationwide dealer coverage from STAR EV in first year: The arrival of STAR EV, a leading global electric utility vehicles manufacturer, in the UK has achieved nationwide dealer coverage in its first year.

Reesink e-Vehicles, the UK distributor for the brand, is proud to confirm there are eight dealers stocking STAR EV alongside the company’s branches, meaning a total of 12 outlets are stockists in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.

Nationwide dealer coverage from STAR EV in first year

Nationwide dealer coverage from STAR EV in first year

Dave French, sales manager for Reesink e-Vehicles, says it’s a fantastic start: “The response to the STAR EV brand and the range of electric transport options it brings to the UK has surpassed expectation. We knew it would prove popular, as electric vehicles are a hot topic, but people have responded particularly favourably to Reesink e-vehicles, and STAR EV as a brand.

“Like us, dealers have recognised the market for all-electric products is buoyant, as is the range of customers they appeal to. In a year we’ve seen customers from golf clubs, sports stadiums, holiday/caravan parks, private schools and estates all invest in STAR EV, appreciative of the good mileage per charge, on-board charging and extensive warranty they bring.”

The dealers bringing STAR EV to businesses across the UK are: John Osman Groundscare (North Wales), Devon Garden Machinery (South West England), Cheshire Turf Machinery (North West England), Laird Grass Machinery (Northern Ireland), Terry Harrison Machinery (South Wales), Lloyd Ltd (North England and South Scotland), Russells (North/East Midlands England) and AJ Mowers (West England). Alongside Reesink Scotland, Reesink Burwell (East Anglia and Midlands), Reesink Sheffield Park (South East) and Reesink South West and Midlands.

The STAR EV range consists of 28 electric models for all green transportation needs and features passenger vehicles of up to 23 people and small, medium and large capacity electric UTVs.

Dave continues: “There’s so much choice within the range, alongside the option to configure vehicles to the exact requirements for the job. The Capella utility vehicle series, for example, has eight different standard configurations, offering payloads from 150-670kgs and carrying up to four people as well as cargo.”

With minimal maintenance and zero emissions, these machines are dependable and cost less to own than their fuelled equivalents, often lasting three to four times as long, it’s easy to see why so many dealers are taking on the range.

To talk to Reesink e-Vehicles about STAR EV, call 01480 226800 or go online at reesink-evehicles.co.uk

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