Aqua-Zorb Eliminates Dry Patch

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Aqua-Zorb Eliminates Dry Patch: Having trialed a range of various wetting agents, Jonathan Smith, Course Manager at Cowdray Park Golf Club in West Sussex, found exactly what he was looking for in Sherriff Amenity’s Aqua-Zorb Liquid.

Golf has been played at Cowdray since 1904. A classic downland layout built on sandy soil, it has spectacular panoramic views of the South Downs. Renowned for being a fair test to all and a true year-round venue, it is a popular destination for visiting golfers. At the heart of the 16,500 acre Cowdray Estate, the golf club echoes the wider vision and values including a long term sustainability plan.

Aqua-Zorb Eliminates Dry Patch

Jonathan Smith has been Course Manager at Cowdray for 17 years and oversees a fully qualified and dedicated team of seven members of staff. As a team they are continuously looking for ways to improve the general condition of the course while keeping the Cowdray Estate’s vision in mind.

Therefore, in the summer of 2016 Jonathan and his team embarked on a series of wetting agent trials in a bid to reduce the carbon footprint without compromising on the overall condition of the beautiful golf course.

“After weeks of hot weather and no rainfall, areas of the course started showing signs of stress and Dry Patch,” said Jonathan. “Even with our fairway irrigation – slopes, high spots and mounds couldn’t hold any moisture – so we trialled various types of wetting agents on our problem areas and Aqua-Zorb Liquid by far had the best results.”

“Within 14 days, the majority of Dry Patch had gone and the turf had almost fully recovered. For the remaining part of the summer, and with equal amounts of irrigation, the non-treated areas remained hydrophobic and stressed. However the Aqua-Zorb treated areas thrived with vigour and general appearance.”

Aqua-Zorb Liquid from Sherriff Amenity is a concentrated non-ionic turf wetting agent that will enable water to move faster and deeper into the soil profile. One application can last all season and it is renowned for treating the cause of Localised Dry Patch. Aqua-Zorb can also improve drainage, alleviate compaction, reduce the quantity of irrigation required, suppress the formation of dew and greatly improve the quality of the sward.

Based on the success of applying Aqua-Zorb in 2016, Jonathan decided to apply it to the entire course in spring last year. In mid-April he applied Aqua-Zorb Liquid at a rate of 50 litres per hectare to the tees, approaches, surrounds and all the fairways. Jonathan applied it on a morning of expected rainfall and sure enough, approximately 4/5mm of rain fell that day, which washed the product in nicely.

Normally, Jonathan and his team would cease to spray wetting agent in September/October, but for maximum results he continued to apply monthly applications of Aqua-Zorb Liquid to the greens at a rate of 20 litres per hectare throughout winter.

“By continuing to apply Aqua-Zorb Liquid throughout winter, it made a remarkable difference because it kept putting surfaces significantly dryer throughout all the excessive rainfall,” he said.

On reflection of his use of Aqua-Zorb Liquid throughout 2017, Jonathan noticed a significant number of benefits.

“With record temperatures throughout June, all of our slopes, high spots and mounds held up perfectly. They would re-wet straight away, giving the course a constant solid green colour. All throughout the season there was no Dry Patch at all. We also noticed an incredible 55% savings on irrigation water when it was required – resulting in huge savings on electric power in the pump station.”

“Aqua-Zorb Liquid is an amazing product and the great feedback from the members and visitors on the overall condition of the course is testament to this.”

For further information, please contact Sherriff Amenity on 01638 721 888 or visit www.sherriffamenity.com

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Headland Keeps School Disease Free

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Headland Keeps School Disease Free: Thanks to help from Headland Amenity, the 17 hectares of grounds for rugby, tennis and cricket at Kings Bruton School have come through the winter of 2017 disease-free and stronger than ever before.  For a relatively small school, they punch well above their weight when it comes to sport and the facilities they offer their 350 pupils.

Grounds Manager, Adie Davis, and his team of 6 groundstaff are kept busy looking after the facilities. “I have been familiar with Headland products for a long time and have enjoyed success with their programmes here at the school for a number of years. On our cricket outfields & rugby pitches we’ve been using Multigreen 28-0-0 which delivers results for the full 5-6 months it promises it will.” Applied in April and then again in September for strength through the autumn/winter, this is complemented on the fine turf areas by C-Complex in various formulations: 4-3-4 used during renovation work; 7-0-7 through the cricket playing season and 5-2-10 as a spring-starter.

Headland Keeps School Disease Free

On the cricket squares, Adie has found success with the combination of Multigreen Mini and Headland’s 20/20/30 non-pesticidal tank mix. “We apply the Multigreen Mini in early autumn to take us through the winter and then once a month between October and March we supplement this with a spray of the 20/20/30 enhanced plant health mix.” Headland’s industry-leading 20-20-30 mix combines Seamac ProTurf Fe and Liquid Turf Hardener plant protectants and Turfite elicitor that work together to strengthen the plant against disease. The combination of products applied at Kings Bruton delivers enhanced root development, disease resistance and strong colour. “This programme has kept all disease, including Fusarium and Dollar Spot, at bay – which I know groundsmen at other schools are suffering from.”

As the school heads towards its 500-year anniversary celebrations in 2019, Adie is delighted with the success achieved with their current nutritional regime. “I’ve worked closely with Headland’s Alex Hawkes, who is very knowledgeable, for a number of years and it’s thanks to him that we now have a combination of products that are really working. We get a lot of comments from staff, parents and local clubs that they’ve never seen turf quite like ours, our cricket areas in particular, which makes all the hard work worthwhile.”

For more information, visit: www.headlandamenity.com

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New Agency For Adare Manor

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New Agency For Adare Manor: As its major renovation programme nears completion, Adare Manor has appointed Performance54 as its exclusive golf marketing agency, with immediate effect.

Performance54 has been commissioned to create and manage an international golf PR and Communications programme around the launch of the new Tom Fazio-designed golf course. Its team of dedicated golf marketing experts will work with Adare Manor sales & marketing representatives, developing an impactful narrative to position the property in the minds of golfers around the world.

New Agency For Adare Manor

“We are delighted to be working with Performance 54 as we unveil this next chapter in Adare Manor’s legacy,” said Colm Hannon, Chief Executive Officer of Adare Manor.  “The Golf Course at Adare Manor will provide an unforgettable experience for golfers when it launches this April. It has been masterfully designed to inspire, challenge, and captivate the most demanding golf enthusiasts in the world.”

Jed Moore, Performance54 Managing Director, commented: “We are delighted to be working with the team at Adare Manor. The name will be familiar to many golfers but, with the strategic investment made into this astonishing refurbishment, the golf course and hotel, alike, will immediately establish Adare Manor as a bucket list experience for discerning golfers at all levels of the game.”

Adare Manor re-opened to the public in November 2017, following an 18-month programme of redevelopment, which returned the historic Co. Limerick resort to five-star opulence.

Among the comprehensive improvements were the thorough refurbishment of the famous manor house, now a luxurious 104-bedroom hotel, and a complete overhaul of the golf course which, with each hole redesigned and reconstructed, now holds major ambitions of staging top-level tournament play over the years to come. Without question, the transformation has already seen the resort recognised as the finest Ireland has to offer.

Performance54 is a dedicated global golf sales and marketing agency, located in London and Singapore, providing a complete roster of services, including: Brand Development, PR and Communications, Event Management, Campaign Activation, and Sales and Trade Marketing. The company works on behalf of some of the world’s most recognised brands, destinations and events.

For more information, visit: www.Performance54.com

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New Ransomes Jacobsen Dealer

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New Ransomes Jacobsen Dealer: Andrew Symons Ltd has been appointed as a new Ransomes Jacobsen dealer, representing the Ransomes, Jacobsen, E-Z-GO, Cushman, Turfco and Smithco brands. Andrew Symons Ltd. will cover a territory that includes Devon, Cornwall and Somerset.

Ransomes Jacobsen, a Textron Inc. company, operates as part of Textron Specialized Vehicles Inc., the manufacturer of Jacobsen and Ransomes turf-care equipment, E-Z-GO golf cars, and Cushman utility vehicles. In addition, Ransomes Jacobsen is the distributor for Turfco and Smithco equipment in the United Kingdom.

New Ransomes Jacobsen Dealer

Andrew Symons is a major agricultural, construction and groundcare business, with an exceptional reputation in the area. The company was set up in 1987 by current owners Andrew and Lisa Symons. It has flourished over the years and is now one of the most reputable distributors in the region, employing more than 40 full-time staff and offering an impressive portfolio of agricultural and groundcare equipment.

Andrew Symons, Managing Director of Andrew Symons Ltd said,

“We are very proud of the addition of Ransomes Jacobsen to our groundcare portfolio. It is testament to the success of our business; we recently opened another depot in Crediton in 2017 which offers parts, service and sales in a first class, modern facility. Customers are the focus of everything we do, and we are very excited to be representing such reputable brands and backing them up with fantastic customer service.”

Speaking after the signing of the distribution agreement, Nathan Walker, National Accounts Manager at Textron Specialized Vehicles, said,

“Andrew Symons Ltd is a well-established and highly professional business in the area and we are delighted to welcome them as a new distributor. The level of service and enthusiasm for the industry that its personnel display is second to none, and I am confident that they will do a good job of enhancing our presence in Devon, Cornwall and Somerset.”

For more information, visit: www.jacobsen.com/europe

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Revenge Is Best Served… Fresh!

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Revenge Is Best Served… Fresh!: Remember last year, when pests decimated your carefully planned and sowed plants and flowers before you even had a chance to enjoy them? This year start plotting your revenge now, by ordering a season’s worth of fresh nematodes, to be delivered straight to your door to provide ongoing protection. 

Nematodes offer a biological solution to pest control, and the various species grown by BASF, in the only specialist nematode production facility in Britain, can protect your plants from a variety of pests.   Nematodes are naturally occurring microscopic animal organisms that act as natural pest controls.

Revenge Is Best Served… Fresh!

BASF grow a range of nematode products including Nemaslug and Nemasys Chafer Grub Killer, Leatherjacket Killer, Vine Weevil Killer and No Ants. There is, even, a nematode product, containing a variety of different nematode species, created specifically for fruit and vegetable pests, making it perfect for gardeners who are passionate about ‘grow your own’.

BASF grows fresh nematodes, rather than dehydrated, and is passionate about doing so as this ensures the quality of the product remains high and consistently effective.

Nematodes attack the pest by entering natural body openings, releasing a bacteria which quickly and safely kills it. The nematodes then reproduce inside the dead pest and release a new generation of hungry nematodes, which disperse and search for further prey.

Unlike alternative pest control solutions, nematodes can be used as a preventative control, so even if you are lucky enough to have not seen any damage yet, treating the garden to a dose of nematodes will keep the critters at bay before they become a real problem.

Simply mix with water and either apply from a watering can with a coarse rose or spray the nematodes onto the foliage and soil, depending on the variety. There is no need to keep children or pets away from treated areas and the whole programme is entirely biological so that all the Nemasys products can be used by organic gardeners.

All Nemasys products can be ordered online, with an entire season’s worth being ordered and sent out as and when needed. This means that all of your planning can be done now, and you can concentrate of planting and growing, safe in the knowledge that your pest control is taken care of.

For more information, visit: www.basf.com

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