MM50 Is ACE For Devonshire Park

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MM50 is ACE for Devonshire Park: Following a successful trial period, Danny Negus – head groundsman at Devonshire Park International Tennis Centre in Eastbourne, has decided to use Limagrain’s MM50 grass seed exclusively across all three of the sites he maintains.

Danny has been working with sports turf throughout his whole career and after initially entering the industry as a greenkeeper, eleven years ago he got the opportunity to work within the sport he claims to love.

“I simply love tennis and I think it makes a difference. If you understand what the end use is, you can better perfect your craft. So when the opportunity came up to work at Devonshire Park – I just had to take it.”

MM50 is ACE for Devonshire Park

Danny has now been the head groundsman at Devonshire Park for the last eighteen months and admits that he is always striving for perfection.

“As the sport of tennis is getting more demanding, players are putting so much into their diets, their mentality and their approach to everything. Therefore it is only fair that we provide a surface for them to play on to do the same. I was looking for a grass seed to beat the standard we were currently at and that is why I decided to embark on the trial work.”

Along with four other members of staff, Danny oversees the maintenance of not just the facilities at Devonshire Park but also the grass courts at the Meads Lawn Tennis Club and Moira House School – both of which are in Eastbourne. These various establishment offered Danny the perfect opportunity to put the seed to the test in three very different conditions – as he explains.

“I trialled Limagrain’s MM50 last year throughout the three sites which consists of approximately 27 courts. We did this because I wanted to see the reaction of the seed on different sites in different conditions. There are a lot of micro climates around here and it enabled us to see how the seed responded in a tournament situation, and also from a club and a professional use. The results I got back from the trials revealed to me that it was absolutely a no-brainer to continue to use MM50 across all three sites.”

Danny is just one of a number of groundsmen who has benefitted from using MM50 as it possesses exceptional shoot density along with tolerance to close mowing making it particularly suitable for grass tennis courts. Other key features include fast recovery from wear and damage and high disease resistance.

This superior mix contains the perennial ryegrass cultivars, Venice, Alison and Malibu, which are renowned for providing a great sward. MM50 is also treated with HEADSTART® GOLD – Limagrain’s unique seaweed based seed treatment which helps to ensure rapid and even germination. This tried and tested grass seed treatment helps the seed get off to the best possible start – therefore it is ideal to use in the less than favourable conditions that can sometimes be found on tennis courts during renovations.

“What impresses me with MM50, is that within three days we can actually start to see the germination process,” says Danny. “This is brilliant for us for when we have a short turnaround time of 15 days between tournaments.

“It has a recovery rate which I am really impressed with – every time that gets knocked the recovery is huge. The colour is fantastic and its reaction to light has been far superior compared to other grasses I have used. I think the blends are really good.

“Simply put, MM50 is the only seed that I use and will continue to use. That is throughout the season – in between the tournaments, any bits of minor renovation works such as baselines and for the main renovation works at the end of the season.”

For further information, please contact Limagrain UK on 01472 371471 or visit the company’s website www.lgseeds.co.uk/amenity

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Duralock Sports Performance Fencing

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Duralock is the market leading manufacturer of PVCu sports and equestrian fencing systems; including post and rail, movable barriers, gates and crowd barriers.

Duralock Sports Performance Fencing has been developed specifically with sports clubs in mind and is approved by governing bodies Worldwide.

We’ve designed it to flex under impact, reducing the risk of injury and concealed fixings and smooth rounded surfaces make the whole system exceptionally safe. The award winning PVC-u construction withstands heavy use in all weathers without warping, splitting or breaking.

All of our fencing systems are suitable for use on all surfaces, from natural turf to AGP and 3G and are available as permanent or removable fixtures. Specially developed ‘feet’ for 2 metre sections are available for temporary boundaries making them ideal for multi-use sports facilities.

Competitively priced, with a 15 year guarantee, Duralock offers the perfect choice in Performance Fencing for all applications.

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Bowood GC Succeeds With All Bent Programme

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Bowood GC succeeds with All Bent programme thanks to J All Bent mixture from Johnson’s Sports Seed: Bowood’s championship golf course near Chippenham is set in 2,000 acres of glorious parkland and is renowned as one of the finest courses in Wiltshire.

To introduce some biodiversity into their greens, Course Manager Jaey Goodchild began an all bents programme on the courses 18 greens 3 years ago. To give them the best chance at success, Jaey put his trust in the highest rated cultivars, employing the J All Bent mixture from Johnsons Sports Seed.

Bowood GC Succeeds With All Bent Programme

“The decision to go for an all bent overseeding regime wasn’t one that was taken lightly” explains Jaey. “A huge amount of work went into solving any agronomic issues and preparing the ground before we could consider introducing the seed.” A dedicated aeration and topdressing programme was conducted to tackle issues with thatch, creating an environment which would give the seed the best chance to establish. “Once we were happy the ground was ready we looked into mixtures and cultivars. With it being such a commitment, we wanted a mixture with the highest rated cultivars.”

In addition to using the STRI turf grass booklet as a guide, Jaey used his first-hand experience to make his decision. “Prior to joining Bowood, I worked at Richmond Golf Club and there we built a USGA trial plot where we would trial various varieties. One variety that sticks in my mind is Manor – it performed very well, especially in the colour it produced. That, coupled with its high performance in other trials means it’s a must have for me.”

Johnsons J All Bent mixture contains 60% Arrowtown, the top rated browntop bent, and 40% Manor. “This year was our 4th year of overseeding with J All Bent and we’re all very pleased with the results it’s delivering. The main benefits for us are the performance characteristics, particularly early in the season when the poa is struggling, plus these varieties provide us with fantastic fineness of leaf and colour. The overseeding approach, together with our cultural management programme is helping the bent species outcompete the Poa annua, helping us achieve our goal of switching to bent dominated greens.”

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Hybrid Is Pitchmark’s New Line

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Hybrid Is Pitchmark’s New Line: Following trials with a number of the leading Premier League clubs, Pitchmark will be introducing their new Hybrid sports pitch line marker at Saltex, complete with a lifetime warranty.

This is a real breakthrough for turf professionals and their clubs, offering a wide range of benefits compared to traditional methods.  Mark Rodman, Pitchmark Managing Director, has been working closely with groundsmen at top clubs to create a new approach with a product that offers the benefits of both a transfer wheel marker and a spray marker.

Hybrid Is Pitchmark’s New Line

“A large number of top stadia groundsmen use transfer markers for many good reasons,” says Mark, “it’s easier to lift the back wheels up to mark over intersecting lines, there’s balanced weight and groundsmen like to walk slowly, with more control. With a transfer wheel marker you are using the same amount of paint on a pitch no matter how slowly you walk.”

The problems with transfer markers, Mark points out, is that they only tend to coat the leaf-tips of the leaf, and in order to cover more of the leaf to get the required result it is double marked. This can also result in a ‘trenching’ effect due to the continuous heavy weight of the front roller, coupled with the loss of grass coverage due to overdosing of paint. The end result is the paint becomes so thick on the leaf it takes much longer to dry. With many modern ‘hybrid’ pitches requiring regular watering, ‘ghosting of paint over the pitch is highly likely.

The Pitchmark Hybrid overcomes these problems with a three-wheeled spray design for ease of use, especially on intersecting lines where a conventional four-wheeled machine requires awkward manoeuvring over wet lines. The Hybrid feels like a transfer marker: well weighted and perfectly balanced. With a range of nozzles to suit the user, you never use too much paint while still being able to walk slowly.

“The Hybrid cone nozzles give perfect deep leaf coverage, “Mark says: “you only need one pass and, because of the depth of the leaf coverage, the line isn’t cut out fully week to week. It’s based on the proven Pitchmark Eco Club and Eco Pro markers spray system. The thin coating of paint dries extremely quickly so there are no issues with irrigation, rain, or ghosting.”

The Limited Edition UK manufactured Hybrid uses a 12V 14ah SLA battery which gives up to 4 hours from one charge. The clever, highly-engineered front discs act as the front wheel, leaving crisper lines, and wide, low ground pressure solid puncture-proof rear wheels never go flat-and leave less of a mark on the pitch. Designed for use with Pitchmark’s Direct and Ecoline+ advanced low-volume, ready-to-use paints, the Hybrid also features adjustable line width to suit different competitions and goal post widths. Paint is contained in a 25L moulded tank and you can bleed the system into the paint tank for cleaner operation with no wastage. The patent pending Hybrid comes with a lifetime warranty, providing Pitchmark paints are used.  Pitchmark are taking pre-orders now and welcome groundsmen to come along to stand E125 at Saltex where they will be launching the Hybrid alongside their existing range of paints, machines and accessories.

You can call 01454 776666 or email sales@pitchmark.com to arrange a demo. www.pitchmark.com

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Lynx Control For A Links Course

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Lynx Control For A Links Course: Easy Toro irrigation for Portmarnock’s challenging Links course

The 27-hole private members club, Portmarnock Golf Club, has updated its previous irrigation system with a Toro Lynx control system and 1,220 Toro Infinity Series Sprinklers across the site. Irrigating the challenging course is now easy thanks to round-the-clock access to course conditions via apps synced to the new Lynx control system.

Portmarnock Golf Club not only offers golfers a stunning view of Velvet Strand beach, but the William Chalmers Pickeman, George Ross and Mungo Park designed course makes the most of the natural terrain to keep players on their toes. Links manager of ten years Gary Johnstone also thrives on the challenges presented by the course, saying it: “keeps the job interesting.”

Lynx Control For A Links Course

So when the club’s cable network started to degrade, leaving the old irrigation system unreliable, those at Portmarnock Golf Club saw it not as an obstacle but an opportunity to update the system to suit the course down to a tee.

Gary explains: “We looked at all the irrigation products on the market over a two-year period to find out which company had the best products to suit our needs, and Toro was the clear winner.”

He continues: “Local contractor Aquaturf Solutions Ltd installed our Toro irrigation system and carried out the work over six months with minimum disturbance to the course, in a very professional manner.”

According to Gary, setting up the new system was simple: “With Lynx, it’s easy to set up specific irrigation programmes to meet the needs of Links turf.”

Gary’s favourite aspect of the new system is the accessibility: “The control system is easy to operate and can be accessed anywhere via apps, allowing us to monitor the course’ water needs at all times. This gives us greater control over our irrigation management, as real-time adjustments can be made to give turf the right amount of water.”

The 1,220 Toro Infinity Sprinklers installed course-wide have impressed too: “The Infinity sprinklers have so many good points: their ease of operation, that you can access the top of the sprinkler for repairs, and they are future proof,” says Gary.

“Before, it was difficult to keep the course up to Championship standard with our failing irrigation system. Now irrigation is easy thanks to Toro and we can focus on the challenges ahead, such as hosting the Amateur Championship in 2019, knowing the grass plants will be healthy and play will be great.”

For more information, please visit: reesinkturfcare.co.uk

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