John Deere dealers commit to strengthening link

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John Deere dealers commit to strengthening link: More John Deere dealers have signed the Armed Forces Covenant in support of service leavers who can resettle into roles within the agriculture and turf industries. 

At a ceremony held at the National Transition Event at Silverstone Circuit, Hunt Forest Group and Ripon Farm Services added their names to the covenant, which had already been adopted by Ben Burgess and Tallis Amos Group, as well as John Deere itself.

John Deere dealers commit to strengthening link

John Deere dealers commit to strengthening link

Signatories pledge to ensure that those who serve, or have served, in the armed forces, and their families, are treated fairly and should face no disadvantage compared to other citizens in the provision of public and commercial services.

The move complements John Deere’s Military Hiring Programme, which offers service leavers new career opportunities to work on some of the world’s most advanced machinery used by farmers and turf professionals.

Members of the armed forces have been identified as ideal candidates to bring their unique skill sets and experience to technician roles within UK and Ireland dealerships.

Those who enrol in the programme are given free, tailored training and are supported to fill vacancies within the dealership network.

“We are passionate about finding a way to give back to those who have served our country,” says Allan Cochran, John Deere Branch Training Manager.

“The armed forces produce people who are highly skilled, motivated and extremely competent, and many already have the engineering skills needed to become qualified technicians.

“It’s the perfect fit for John Deere – we are able to play our part in supporting those resettling following careers in the armed forces while also attracting a different pool of people into the business.”

Interested service members and ex-service members can learn more and fill out a contact card by visiting www.deere.com/JDMHP.

After making contact, they will be put in touch with an individual from the John Deere network who has resettled following a career in the armed forces to discuss all potential options.

Ripon Farm Services 

“We are incredibly proud to support people transitioning from military service into new careers with us,” says Phil Gregg, Director of Ripon Farm Services. “Service leaders bring exceptional skills, dedication, and technical expertise that align perfectly with the needs of our industry, and our commitment to the Armed Forces Covenant reflects our belief that they deserve clear, meaningful pathways into civilian employment.

“We look forward to supporting them build successful careers with us and through the John Deere Military Hiring Programme.”

Hunt Forest Group 

“It was a privilege to represent Hunt Forest Group on the John Deere UK stand at the recent military hiring event at Silverstone,” says Nick Hill, Group Service Manager at Hunt Forest Group. “Meeting so many talented service personnel was a highlight and gave us a great opportunity to showcase our business and the career pathways available through the John Deere Military Hiring Programme.

“We were especially encouraged by the strong interest in technician roles from individuals bringing exceptional experience and technical discipline from their military careers.”

Tallis Amos Group

“After signing the Armed Forces Covenant more than a year ago, Tallis Amos Group continues to reap the benefits of offering resettlement pathways to service leavers who are often ready-made for our business,” says Guy Bunting, Recruitment Coordinator at Tallis Amos Group. “We are proud to offer opportunities to service leavers that include training and development further aiding their transition into civilian life.”

Ben Burgess

“Signing the Armed Forces Covenant reflects our core values as a business,” says Ben Turner, Managing Director at Ben Burgess. “We’re proud to support those who serve and have served, and we’re fortunate to have veterans already working across Ben Burgess whose skills and experience make a real difference every day.”

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Replay Strengthens Strategy with Origin Partnership

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Replay Strengthens Strategy with Origin Partnership: Replay Maintenance is stepping up its game in the natural turf sector with a new three-year supply agreement with Origin Amenity Solutions (OAS), reinforcing its commitment to delivering high-performance sports surfaces across an expanding portfolio of sites.

The agreement is a key part of Replay’s wider strategy to grow its Natural Turf Division.

Replay Strengthens Strategy with Origin Partnership

Replay Strengthens Strategy with Origin Partnership

Following a structured selection process, the partnership provides both stability and flexibility, giving Replay the confidence to plan for growth while maintaining consistent standards on every pitch. In its first year, the company expects to service over 100 natural turf surfaces, with ambitious expansion anticipated in the years ahead.

Under the deal, Replay secures a reliable supply of core OAS products, including perennial ryegrass seed mixtures, controlled-release fertilisers, herbicides, and specialist inputs designed specifically for professional sports turf. But the agreement goes beyond the basics.

Embedded technical and agronomic support means Replay teams have access to soil analysis, laboratory testing, application planning tools, seasonal guidance, and ongoing technical advice, ensuring every decision is backed by data and best-practice insight.

Commenting on the partnership, Phil Dewhurst, Regional Sales Director at Origin Amenity Solutions, said:

“Origin Amenity Solutions are proud to have won the contract with Replay Maintenance and are delighted to be working closely with the team. Together we will build a strong partnership to supply and deliver our trusted products to improve the quality and performance on newly renovated natural turf surfaces.”

Service and performance are central to the partnership. The framework incorporates clear delivery commitments, regular performance monitoring, and annual commercial reviews, helping Replay maintain quality, reliability, and operational accountability as the division grows.

The collaboration also opens opportunities for wider industry engagement. Demonstration days, technical seminars, and joint marketing initiatives are all part of the plan, giving Replay the chance to share expertise, showcase innovation, and strengthen its presence in the natural turf sector.

Matt Bartle, Group Head of Commercial Strategy at Replay Maintenance, believes the partnership will play an important role in supporting the company’s ambitions in the natural turf market.

“This partnership with Origin Amenity Solutions marks an important step forward for Replay. At our core, we’re committed to raising standards across all sports pitches, be it synthetic or natural. The opportunity to work alongside a trusted, forward-thinking supplier like Origin strengthens our ability to deliver consistent, high-quality outcomes for our clients.

By combining our national delivery capability and technical expertise with Origin’s innovative amenity solutions and product support, we can offer a more integrated approach to pitch performance, sustainability, and long-term asset care. Ultimately, this collaboration is about adding value for clubs, schools, and facility operators thereby ensuring their natural turf pitches are not only match ready, but built to perform week in, week out.”

For Replay Maintenance, this agreement is more than a supply contract. It’s a strategic move to build a robust Natural Turf Division capable of delivering consistently high standards across an increasing number of sites.

For more information, visit www.replaymaintenance.co.uk

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Tubex Shelters in The Carbon Community Project

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Tubex Shelters in The Carbon Community Project: One of the UK’s most significant long-term forestry research projects has used Tubex tree shelters to protect thousands of young saplings while allowing scientists easy access to measure growth.

The Carbon Community’s Glandwr Forest Carbon Study examines how trees and soil store carbon.  The project, now in its fifth year, aims to build a stronger evidence base for nature-based solutions that can increase carbon capture and improve woodland resilience.

Tubex Shelters in The Carbon Community Project

Tubex Shelters in The Carbon Community Project

Established in 2020, the 11.5-hectare study brings together scientists, forestry partners and volunteers to investigate how different tree species and soil treatments influence long-term carbon storage. More than 25,600 trees have been planted across 72 test cells, including oak, birch, cherry, alder and Sitka spruce, allowing researchers to compare growth and soil behaviours under controlled conditions.

The project focuses on approaches such as enhanced rock weathering, where crushed basalt releases nutrients and supports carbon capture, and soil microbiome inoculation, which introduces beneficial fungi from nearby healthy woodland to help young trees access nutrients more effectively. These methods together provide a growing dataset that will help clarify the role of soils and species selection in carbon sequestration.

Before the trial “we planted a few oaks grown from seed collected on site and they were eaten by rabbits within weeks,” said Heather Allen, Trustee at The Carbon Community. “When the trial was established, our forestry partner, Tilhill Forestry, strongly advised using shelters – and we agreed they were essential.”

Tubex Easywrap shelters were selected as a practical way to protect vulnerable saplings while still allowing researchers and volunteers to access each tree for measurement and monitoring. All the broadleaf trees planted use the shelters, helping maintain consistent establishment across the test cells and supporting long-term data collection.

As an environmental charity, The Carbon Community also considered the long-term implications of introducing material onto the site. The ability to collect and return the shelters for recycling once they were no longer needed was an important factor, ensuring the project could minimise waste. Each spring, volunteers remove shelters from trees that have outgrown them and collect any that have loosened during winter weather. These are returned through the Tubex recycling network, supporting a circular approach to material use. “We made a commitment to collect every single shelter when the trees were big enough,” Heather said. “We’ve been running volunteer removal days for the past couple of years – and those shelters have already made their way back for recycling.”

Community involvement has remained central throughout the project, with volunteers supporting planting, maintenance and data gathering to help researchers monitor conditions consistently across the site. “This is a long-term project,” Heather said. “We’re looking at how ecosystems can help solve the climate crisis. Good early protection has supported the research and helped us manage the site sustainably.”

Now in its fifth year, the study is beginning to analyse above-ground and below-ground data on how the treatments affect carbon capture. Strong early establishment across the site has created a stable foundation for long-term scientific assessment, with findings expected to support future woodland creation.

For Tubex, involvement in the project has centred on supplying shelters that meet the specific needs of the study. The Easywrap design has supported repeated access for measurements, helped maintain consistent establishment conditions and ensured that all used shelters could be collected and returned for recycling once no longer required. This combination of protection, practicality and material recovery has allowed the research team to manage the site effectively while maintaining the project’s sustainability commitments.

For more information about The Carbon Community and the Glandwr Forest Carbon Study, visit https://thecarboncommunity.org

For information on Tubex tree protection, visit https://tubex.com  

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MM Seed Delivers Proven Performance

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MM Seed Delivers Proven Performance: Managing one of the busiest multi-sport facilities on the south coast is no small task – especially in a region increasingly defined by prolonged dry spells and intense seasonal wear. At Bournemouth University, Grounds Manager Alex McCombie relies on proven seed performance and trusted technical support to keep standards high across a hugely demanding site.

Alex has been in the post for four years, overseeing an extensive sports complex that includes eight football pitches, three rugby pitches, cricket squares and outfields, hockey pitches, a 3G surface and extensive surrounding landscapes. While the facilities serve students, around 75% of usage comes from the wider community, with Bournemouth Rugby Club, Bournemouth Sports Football Club and Bournemouth Cricket Club all calling the site home.

MM Seed Delivers Proven Performance

MM Seed Delivers Proven Performance

“We’re a university, but we’re also a massive community campus,” Alex explains. “We’ve got fixtures midweek and weekends, and on some days, we’ll have multiple matches on the same pitch. We’re talking around 5,000 users every week, so wear tolerance and recovery are absolutely critical.”

Situated on an extremely free-draining site, Bournemouth University benefits from excellent winter playability – but summer conditions are increasingly challenging.

“From Easter through to October we hardly had any rain at all,” says Alex. “That’s great in winter, but in summer it puts huge stress on the grass. We need something with genuine drought tolerance that can also stand up to relentless wear.”

That need led Alex to MM Tetra Sport, a specialist overseeding mixture consisting of tetraploid ryegrasses, designed specifically for high-quality sports turf.

“Tetra Sport has been a bit of a no-brainer for us,” he says. “It establishes quickly, it wears well, and it stood up incredibly well during a brutal summer. I was genuinely impressed.”

The mixture delivers fast germination, rapid sward establishment, and excellent winter and summer colour, while offering high disease resistance and strong wear tolerance. The inclusion of new, highly rated cultivars, exclusive to the MM range, has been particularly important at Bournemouth University, where pitches see continuous use.

Alex even took the unusual step of overseeding a rugby pitch in December.

“Soil temperatures here stay fairly good, and we usually have a short break after the last fixture before Christmas,” he explains. “We drilled Tetra Sport in just before that break, and it came through really nicely. The results exceeded my expectations.”

For cricket renovations and repairs, Alex turns to MM50, widely regarded as the leading mixture for end-of-season renovation work and mid-season repairs.

“We’ve used MM50 on our cricket squares for a couple of years now and had superb results,” he says. “The density we get is excellent, and it recovers really quickly from play.”

MM50 contains a blend of fine-leaved ryegrasses, producing an extremely hard-wearing, dense surface, and is treated with Headstart® GOLD to support faster establishment and stronger early growth.

“We don’t tend to spray for disease at all,” Alex adds. “We’re lucky, but disease pressure is minimal. The square we renovated with MM50 played probably the best it ever has last season, and the feedback from the cricket club has been very positive.”

Beyond product performance, Alex highlights the importance of strong relationships and reliable technical support – something he has found consistently with MM Seed.

“I’ve used MM Seed for years and had a long-standing relationship with Matt Gresty,” he says. “Matt’s absolutely superb – always on hand with advice, and he’s even helped put together specialist mixes specifically for our site.”

That bespoke approach proved invaluable following the university’s large annual rugby festival, where tailored mixtures were required to accelerate recovery across heavily worn areas.

“David Bevan from Agrovista Amenity, who I get the seed from, is brilliant as well,” Alex continues. “Between David and Matt, the service is excellent. They’re knowledgeable, approachable, and genuinely supportive. You feel like they understand what you’re trying to achieve.”

For a site facing intense usage, extreme dryness and year-round pressure, Bournemouth University’s experience shows how the right seed – combined with the right support – can make all the difference.

Visit the new and improved MM Seed website at www.mm-seeds.co.uk

You can also follow the company on X: @MM_Seed.

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Kubota Powers Guards Polo Club with Reliable Fleet

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Kubota Powers Guards Polo Club with Reliable Fleet: One of the world’s most prestigious polo venues has revealed how it relies on a versatile fleet of M4, M5 and M6 tractors, alongside four RTV-X1110 utility vehicles from Kubota.

Based in Windsor Great Park, Guards Polo Club hosted more than 750 games in its 2025 season which was only possible thanks to a monumental team effort and the Kubota equipment which is at the heart of every element of polo field preparation.

Kubota Powers Guards Polo Club with Reliable Fleet

Kubota Powers Guards Polo Club with Reliable Fleet

Guards Polo is comprised of three sites and ten full-size polo fields, playing host to some of the highest levels of polo including frequent high goal tournaments. Regularly welcoming distinguished and royal players, the packed calendar from mid-April to mid-September places immense pressure on both the equipment and team of ten. Leading that team since March, is Grounds Manager Paul Brown.

“Our Kubota tractors are the heartbeat of our operations” Paul explains. “Whether we’re mowing, verti-draining or moving irrigation from field to field, we depend on these tractors.”

Paul was pleased to see a new suite of tractors, installed and supported by local dealers Lister Wilder on his arrival at Guards – put straight to work on one of the busiest seasons in the club’s history. “The two M4-073’s and two M5-112’s are the perfect blend of power and manoeuvrability, while our M6-142 picks up where the others finish, handling the heavier implements and largest-scale tasks across the farm and polo grounds.”

“They’ve stood up to every test, providing comfort and simplicity of operation for the team which is crucial given the intensity of our schedule” he adds.

With three separate sites and distances of several mile between them, the road-registered RTV-X1110s have also become indispensable – relied upon daily for transport, movement of tools and materials and general ground support. “The safety, speed and versatility of these four RTV’s is invaluable.”

Kubota’s reputation for reliability and durability was central to the club’s decision to renew its fleet earlier this year. Paul says, “Many of the machines these replaced had clocked up more than 15 years and thousands of hours of service. For us, Kubota strikes the perfect balance of dependability, performance and cost-effectiveness.”

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