Soil Scout celebrates US expansion

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Soil Scout celebrates US expansion: Wireless underground soil monitoring solution Soil Scout has officially launched its full integration package with US-based provider of autonomous aerial intelligence services GreenSight.

The technology partnership gives turf and agronomical professionals a real-time understanding of how to create optimal above and below-ground conditions while increasing efficiency in water and nutrient usage.

Soil Scout celebrates US expansion

Soil Scout celebrates US expansion

“Our technology partnership has combined Soil Scout sensors with GreenSight’s TurfCloud platform, providing a cutting-edge machine vision analysis of the entire grounds captured by drone-mounted sensors. Now it’s possible to see everything in their soil – and be able to plan their day’s work – before setting foot outside. This is a major step forward in both smart farming and turf management sectors in the US for Soil Scout” says Soil Scout CEO Jalmari Talola.

GreenSight’s drones have three high-resolution infrared-NDVI cameras, and a radiometrically calibrated thermal camera; paired with an industry-leading flight time of 60 minutes. Combined with Soil Scout’s soil sensors that have solar-powered base stations and repeaters that have a 20-year in-ground battery life, we can provide users with a comprehensive, real-time understanding of their grounds through the GreenSight dashboard.

GreenSight CEO James Peverill commented, “We look forward to helping customers manage their soils more efficiently and improve their facilities across the world. We’re equally excited to be able to distribute their intuitive soil condition sensors to our growing customer base.”

Soil Scout has also expanded its US operations with an aim to accelerate its go-to-market efforts and combat the ongoing drought in California while adding feet on the ground in New England, Texas, and Arizona with the new hires of Kevin Hauschell, Dan Jennings, Zach Sevens, and Joe Lazzaro.

“I’m excited to join the team and bring this incredible technology to farmers, turf managers, vineyard managers, and orchard managers alike throughout the US. In drought years like we are experiencing currently in the Western US, making more informed decisions with regards to water is vital. If we don’t start monitoring and becoming more efficient in our water use in industries like golf, viticulture, and farming; we will see golf courses close, farmland sit barren, and wineries close their doors,” says Kevin Hauschel, West Coast Sales Lead for Greensight Ag / Soil Scout.

“Industries will have to justify their water use to ensure the sustainability of the golf, viticulture, and farming industries in California, so the time is now to use tools that conserve water, improve fertilizer timings, decrease fungicide and chemical use, and increase profitability,“ continues Hauschell.

A report from the Drought Monitor shows 97.5% of California is in some stage of drought, with 87% of the state in severe drought and 52% in extreme drought. In addition, the past two years in California have been extremely dry and the state relies on ‘wet years’ to replenish its water supply.

“Plants are sucking water out of the soil to survive, and that dry soil needs to be irrigated more and more to keep them alive. Agriculture relies heavily on groundwater during droughts in California, but until recently, groundwater hasn’t been regulated so they haven’t had a chance to recharge. More sustainable groundwater management is needed to maintain these key drought reserves. Understanding when and how much to irrigate with smart solutions such as Soil Scout and GreenSight is critical if places like California are to sustainably improve their water usage,” says Adam Sedgwick, VP of International Sales at Soil Scout.

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Bernhard strengthens relationship with Delta Turf Care

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Bernhard strengthens relationship with Delta Turf Care: Industry-leader in turf sharpening equipment and management solutions, Bernhard and Company, has strengthened its relationship with Saudi Arabia-based distributor, Delta Turf Care, which has been appointed as the official distributor for the United Arab Emirates, Oman and Bahrain.

New to the UAE, Delta Turf Care has been the company’s distributor in Saudi Arabia for over a decade and has played a crucial role in the development of the Bernhard and Company brand and product presence in prestigious golf venues throughout the country.

Bernhard strengthens relationship with Delta Turf Care

Bernhard strengthens relationship with Delta Turf Care

This appointment comes as Bernhard and Company looks to ensure it can service current customers more efficiently, while also helping to increase sales through improved contact with new prospects. Delta Turf Care will be responsible for direct sales and customer relations in the Middle East and will demonstrate the knowledge and passion that Bernhard and Company possess for its grinding philosophy.

David Murphy, Managing Director of Delta Turf Care, said: “We are delighted to be strengthening our partnership with Bernhard and Company to help them take their business to the next level in the Middle Eastern region.”

Scott Purdy, Business Development Manager EMEA for Bernhard and Company, added: “It’s crucial to us that we align ourselves with partners that reflect our core values of support and education. Delta Turf Care has been a fantastic partner to us in years past and we are proud to be expanding our relationship.

“We look forward to growing our presence further in the Middle East and working with some of the area’s most prestigious venues to deliver first-class turf management solutions.”

Bernhard and Company grinding machines are used by more than 65 of the world’s top 100 golf courses to ensure perfect, tournament-ready playing conditions year-round, while the company’s turf management solutions and educational support are utilised at major sporting events around the globe.

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Terrain’s deep aeration in Yorkshire Sculpture Park

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Terrain’s deep aeration in Yorkshire Sculpture Park: Situated near Wakefield, West Yorkshire, the Yorkshire Sculpture Park is an open-air gallery that showcases work by world-class British and international artists, including Yorkshire-born Henry Moore, Barbara Hepworth and Damien Hirst.

The park has one of the largest open-air collection of Moore’s bronzes in Europe. Spread over 500-acres of 18th century designed landscape of Bretton Hall, YSP opened in 1977 and was the first UK sculpture park based on temporary open-air exhibitions that were organized in London parks from the 1940s to 1970 by the Arts Council and London County Council.

Terrain’s deep aeration in Yorkshire Sculpture Park

Terrain’s deep aeration in Yorkshire Sculpture Park

Today, the ‘gallery without walls’ has an ever-changing exhibition programme and preparing to reopen after lockdown presented an opportunity for remedial work to be done. Following a site visit by hydrology consultants inspecting a waterlogged area, they brought in Terrain Aeration with their deep aeration treatment system. The area in question was an important part of the Lower Park and a popular area for visitors and curators. It suffers from compaction due to footfall and the weight of sculptures, resulting in the build-up of standing water.

“It is unusual for the area to be cleared,” says Mark Chesman, Head of Estates and Parks at YSP, “but the sculptures in that area were removed for conservation work, and we seized the opportunity as part of a wider project. In all, it took two-and-a-half days and they treated 4,000 square metres of land.”

Terrain Aeration’s Terralift hammers a hollow probe one metre into the soil using a JCB road breaker gun. At depth, the ground is usually so compacted it needs the hammer to break through. Compressed air is then released to a maximum of 20Bar (280psi) to fracture and fissure the soil and the process is repeated in two-metre spacings, to ensure the fissures interlink. On the end of the air blast, dried seaweed is injected which sticks to the fissure walls, expanding and contracting with moisture content in the soil and keeping the area ‘breathing.’ The 1.5-inch probe holes created by the Terralift machine are backfilled with aggregate to provide a semi-permanent aeration/ventilation shaft, helping to keep the whole aeration process working. The park’s groundkeepers then overseeded the area to finish.

We tend to take trees for granted, in our parks, public spaces and estates but they are often subjected to stress as a result of several factors, such as nutrient shortage, surface compaction due to foot traffic, and waterlogging where water drains off hard surfaces. Yorkshire Sculpture Park features lime trees, beech and Atlas cedar amongst others and these were given Terrain Aeration treatment as well. Breaking up the soil around the roots, and beyond, means excess water will drain away from the roots to help stop anaerobic conditions and rotting of the root system. “We’re confident with what’s been done,” says Mark, “and will be looking at further areas to be treated, probably in the autumn.”

Terrain Aeration 01449 673783 www.terrainaeration.co.uk

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Lawn Association – the brand new ‘True Range’

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Lawn Association – the brand new ‘True Range’: The Lawn Association is proud to introduce a new and exclusive, sustainable product range which will be available via their online shop from the end of May.

The ‘True Garden Range’ is a specifically designed fertiliser and soil conditioner range for domestic use. Formulated using composted food waste, this product will not only keep your plants happy and healthy but also your soils. The composted food waste, creates a stable humus, which is naturally high in organic matter, as well as rich in amino, humic, and fulvic acids and contains all the essential minerals, vitamins and N, P & K required to aid and increase the plant’s healthy growth, root development, disease resistance and overall function whilst also providing a food source for the beneficial microbes within your soils.

Lawn Association - the brand new 'True Range'

Lawn Association – the brand new ‘True Range’

Within the range are three tailored products, for specifically targeting certain areas of the garden:

• True Grass for your lawns
• True Bloom for flower beds, pots, and hanging baskets
• True Yield for the vegetable plots, fruit trees and bushes

The ‘True Garden Range’ offers a completely revolutionary and sustainable way to enhance and support all areas of your garden, including your vegetables and flowers as well as offering a truly unique lawn fertiliser for all year long care and all can be used as often as is necessary.

This exciting new sustainable product range comes in a compostable tube with a recyclable applicator and costs £16.99 per tube. See the whole True Garden Range on the Lawn Association link here: https://www.lawnassociation.org.uk/true-garden-range/ 

For more information or images please contact Francijn Suermondt at rabbitattackpr@gmail.com or on 07895184395.

Our core mission at the Lawn Association is to make accurate lawn care information readily available via our website and through our Free Membership Scheme for gardening enthusiasts. Go to the @LawnAssociation Facebook page to join the Lawn Enthusiasts Group, and get free association membership via the website, www.lawnassociation.org.uk

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Gator helps keep the coast clean

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Gator helps keep the coast clean: A John Deere Gator utility vehicle supplied by dealer Seamus Weldon Groundcare Equipment to Ireland’s largest Clean Coasts group is adding extra muscle and pulling power to beach cleaning efforts along a 25-mile stretch of the east Cork coastline.

The multi award-winning Clean Coasts Ballynamona Group bought the XUV 855M Gator to help step up its ongoing fight against the scourge of marine litter. Group founder Proinsias Ó Tuama says the vehicle is an essential piece of equipment in tackling the tonnes of litter that wash up on their coastline every year.

Gator helps keep the coast clean

Gator helps keep the coast clean

The Gator has a towing capacity of 680kg and can carry over 450kg of cargo. It is mainly used for helping to pull heavy marine litter such as old, abandoned fishing nets and ropes that wash up on the shore, as well as carrying anything from bags of plastic rubbish to rubber tyres.

Founded in 2015, Clean Coasts Ballynamona is now part of the Sea and Land Trust. It has over 300 regular volunteers that clean and maintain an area representing 1.5 per cent of the total Irish coastline, including two Blue Flag and three Green Coast beaches.

Alongside this effort, the group manages 34 acres of meadowland spread across the county, which is grown to encourage pollinators and wildlife. This is maintained by a John Deere X950R rear discharge/rear collect diesel lawn tractor, also supplied by Weldons. In addition, the group consults with businesses and landowners on biodiversity plans covering a further 600 acres of private and public spaces, so these can be managed more sympathetically to benefit the environment – all free of charge.

“In our first year as a group we lifted 12 tonnes of marine litter on less than a mile of beach at Ballynamona – multiply that up by the entire Irish coastline and you can see the scale of the problem,” says Proinsias Ó Tuama, who is a teacher with the Cork Education and Training Board. “We were using a quad bike and trailer before, which were adequate for the job, but the group is very health and safety conscious so we set about looking for a more effective replacement.

“Having had a good experience with the lawn tractor, it made sense to go back to Michael Weldon at the John Deere dealership, so we sold the quad bike and also got Fisheries Local Action Group funding to help pay for the new Gator and a wider trailer. I’m proud to say we have a 100 per cent safety record to date in the volunteer beach cleaning operation, so the Gator’s proved to be an ideal solution.

“When you’re picking up plastic bottles for example, very often they’re full of sea water, sand and other debris, and this can make the collection bags very heavy to carry safely along a long stretch of beach. This is not ideal, particularly for very young children, so it makes sense to use a four-wheel drive vehicle with a load bed and a decent capacity to carry the full bags back to the beach car park for safe disposal.

“Over the years the group’s been active, we have brought more than 1000 people beach cleaning voluntarily. We’ve always tried to be as inclusive as possible of everyone that wishes to help, and we find kids of all ages get hooked from the start. Educating young people about the environment is a key element of our work and effort, so we liaise with local schools and colleges and are very much engaged with the community.

“Pristine coasts are essential. They are not just very important ecosystems, they are also crucial for the local economy. The addition of this new John Deere Gator has really expanded our beach cleaning capabilities, as well as making the job more efficient and safer for our volunteers.”

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