Cosmic ISEKI stars at Portrack House: A range of ISEKI machines are helping to maintain the Garden of Cosmic Speculation – an incredible 30-acre sculpture garden located at Portrack House, near Dumfries in South West Scotland.

Forty major areas, gardens, bridges, landforms, sculptures, terraces, fences and architectural works, the Garden of Cosmic Speculation is a sight to behold. The masterpiece features landscape work based on the Big Bang, geometric fractals, twisting DNA helixes, and black holes.

Groundcare Manager at Portrack House, Ben Wakefield, admits that he is fortunate to work at such a magical site, but it is safe to say he has his work cut out. In maintaining the vast area, Ben claims he needs every machine to be a ‘workhorse’ and it is for this reason that there was only one brand he considered when he needed a new tractor.

“We already had a ride-on mower and a tractor from ISEKI, and we wanted to extend our fleet,” said Ben. “The machinery we have had from ISEKI in the past has covered all the bases. We have found them to be reliable, trustworthy, strong and they have taken literally everything we have thrown at them… and even a little bit more.”

Ben recently added the ISEKI TXGS24 compact tractor to his fleet. Used in a huge range of applications where a small multi-use sub compact tractor is required, the TXGS24 is the ultimate compact multi-purpose tractor.  With 3-point linkage, mid and rear PTOs, optional mower decks and front loader the uses for the TXGS24 tractor are limitless.

“We use it for everything,” said Ben. “It has the digger bucket on it, so we use it for excavating and landscaping purposes. It also has a trailer attachment, so we use it a lot for collecting grass and leaves. We can run the PTO’s and systems off one tractor and can unload into a trailer attached to another tractor. It is our general-purpose machine – basically if we can attach something to it, then we can use it.”

Ben also has the ISEKI TXG237 compact tractor, the previous model, to assist him, as well as the ISEKI SXG323 ride-on mower. The SXG Range is the ultimate in cut and collection mowers, with the ability to perform exceptionally even in the wet conditions. Its large capacity, low revving 1123cc, 19hp, engine creates very little vibration and wear and tear on the engine itself, whilst also being very fuel efficient and powerful.

“We predominantly use this mower on all our flat areas, around our mounds, and riverbanks,” said Ben. “It is a very good bit of machinery, and it has a leaf collector and a grass collector on the back which certainly makes life a lot easier.”

To make disposing of grass cuttings easy, the SXG323 has a hydraulically operated high or low tip collection system which can lift up to a height of 1.97m – something Ben is particularly impressed with.

“The high tipper is very useful because it allows us to drop grass off in certain areas that may not be accessible by reversing trailers in,” he continued. “It is easy to pile it up, is a lot neater, and it saves multiple people leaf blowing or collecting it by hand.

“The adjustment in cutting height is a very good feature. There is also the hydraulic lifting which lifts the deck up and down, so when you are going over bumpy or rough terrain, you can easily adjust the height so that you get a nice and even cut the whole way through.”

While Ben and his team are surrounded by a garden inspired by modern cosmology, he admits that he has his very own set of stars.

“Quite simply, ISEKI has a range of machinery that caters exactly for what we need. We enjoy using them and they are comfortable and safe to use. I would recommend these machines to absolutely anyone.”

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