John Deere dealer Sherriff acquires Greenlay

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John Deere dealer Sherriff acquires Greenlay: John Deere agricultural and turf dealer Thomas Sherriff & Co Ltd, whose headquarters are based at Haddington in East Lothian, has bought the professional turf business of Greenlay Ltd in Cramlington, south Northumberland.

This development extends the dealership’s trading area and takes to seven the total number of Sherriff outlets serving customers from the River Forth in Scotland, down through the Borders to Durham in north-east England and reaching out west to the Cumbrian border.

John Deere dealer Sherriff acquires Greenlay

Sherriff’s head office site at Backburn in Haddington, which replaced the previous facility in Dunbar at the beginning of 2017, brought both the dealership’s agricultural and turf divisions under the same roof for the first time. The other Sherriff outlets are based at Alnwick, Coldstream, Hexham, Jedburgh and Stow.

All 17 Greenlay employees have transferred to the renamed Sherriff Cramlington business, with outlet manager Eric Pattinson continuing to lead the dealership’s experienced sales, service and parts team.

“Originally founded by David Lowes and his wife Judith in 1972 before becoming John Deere Limited’s first professional groundscare dealer in 1986, Greenlay is а well-established, successful family business,” said John Deere Limited division sales manager Chris Meacock. “We would like to thank the Lowes family and especially Geoff Lowes for their commitment to John Deere over the past 33 years – it’s great to see this positive outcome for his team.”

Sherriff managing director Colin Weatherhead added: “This is а key addition to our business and а great fit for our organisation. Following the development of our head office at Haddington as part of our overall expansion and restructuring plans, this latest acquisition represents another considerable investment in our business, allowing us to expand our geographical presence in the north-east of England and the Durham area.

“Most importantly, this means that we will now bе serving our total John Deere area of responsibility with both agricultural and turf equipment, from the Forth to Teesside and out to the Cumbrian border. It ensures that we can maintain the highest level of support to our customers in both the important business sectors of agricultural and professional turf equipment sales and service.”

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Student greenkeeper an ‘inspiration’

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Student greenkeeper an ‘inspiration’: Kyle McClung, who started his career on home turf at Wigtownshire County Golf Club but is now working at Glenbervie, has been named as the top student greenkeeper in Scotland.

The accolade is awarded by BIGGA (British and International Golf Greenkeeping Association) through the Harry Diamond Award in memory of an Ayrshire greenkeeping stalwart.

The award, which is sponsored by the Sports Turf Research Institute (STRI), is open to greenkeepers in Scotland who are studying for a qualification to help them progress in their career.

McClung, who lives in Alva, completed an NC in Greenkeeping at SRUC’s Elmwood campus before taking up a work placement at Turnberry, which led to the offer of a full-time position. He then moved to Gleneagles Hotel and completed an HNC in Golf Course Management via distance learning, graduating in July.

“Kyle fought off some really strong peers to win the award,” said programme leader Mike Clark, who nominated McClung, a decent player himself, for the award. “He is an inspiration to all of SRUC’s Greenkeeping and Golf students, demonstrating how the right attitude and application can lead to a successful career.”

McClung added: “It is an honour for me to receive this award and it’s a nice recognition for the hard work I have put into my studies over the years. Thanks to Mike and all of the lecturers at SRUC Elmwood for giving me the platform to further my studies and hopefully progress within the industry.”

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Headland to launch new Turfite

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Headland to launch new Turfite: Headland Amenity will be launching an updated and improved formulation of their popular Turfite product at BTME 2020.

Visitors to Stand 272 in the Red Zone can hear how Turfite Elite is already showing excellent results in the company’s leading ‘20-20-30’ non-pesticidal tank mix, in the fight to minimise incidences of turf disease.

Headland to launch new Turfite

New Turfite Elite is based on potassium phosphite and Salicylic acid – a known systemic acquired resistance (SAR) elicitor which provides a clear disease suppression pathway, by triggering the SAR mechanism. By stimulating stronger root development, it has demonstrated in trials to contribute to a stronger grass plant that is less susceptible to stress-related disease. As well as ’20-20-30’, Turfite Elite is also fully compatible with a number of other Headland products including Seamac Ultra Plus and TeMag Elite. It is available in 10 and 100 litre containers, and cost and rates of use are exactly the same as the previous Turfite formulation.

As leaders in integrated disease management, Headland have been trialling effective non-pesticidal products with the STRI since 2007. These products and combinations have been refined over this period and now provide established results in the field. The company will use Harrogate as a platform to launch two new biostimulant, seaweed-based products, together with a new non-pesticidal disease management concept.

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200 Years of Johnsons Sports Seed

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200 Years of Johnsons Sports Seed: BTME in Harrogate signals the start of a year of celebrations for the Johnsons Sports Seed team, as 2020 marks the company’s 200th anniversary in the seed industry.

To commemorate, visitors to stand 214 in the Red Zone will have a chance to win big in a special ‘200 Years’ competition. It will also be the launch platform for the new ProNitro® Seed Coating from DLF, and a number of updated Johnsons Sports Seed formulations ready for the new season.

200 Years of Johnsons Sports Seed

ProNitro® seed technology was launched to much acclaim in 2016 and has proven itself to achieve a stronger germination and faster establishment, without the need to apply pre-seed fertilisers – saving both time and money. The coating now features DLF’s hydroactive water management technology which promotes sustainable water and nutrient availability through significantly improving the water distribution in the surrounding soil. Enhanced moisture availability during the early stages of plant growth gives each developing seedling the optimum conditions for strong root development and healthy, vigorous growth.

The new ProNitro® coating is available on a selection of mixtures across the Johnsons Sports Seed range, including J Premier Pitch and J Tee. Ideal for hard wearing, shaded golf tees & pathways, the 2020 formulation of J Tee now includes the new strong creeping red fescue Laverda. Laverda is the new number one rated fine fescue cultivar, that delivers unbeatable summer colour and shoot density. For golf, Laverda also features in the updated J Rye Fairway and J Premier Fairway mixtures.

For those turf managers with a focus on improving long-term sustainability, the brand-new J 4Turf 100 mixture will be of particular interest. A 100% tetraploid ryegrass mixture, J 4Turf 100 is ideal for the rapid renovation of worn sports turf areas. The increased chlorophyll density and greater root mass of DLF’s 4Turf ryegrasses optimise water and fertiliser inputs resulting in good looking turf, that’s cheaper to maintain and better for the environment.

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New Charterhouse launches at BTME

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New Charterhouse launches at BTME: A brand-new addition to the renowned Redexim Verti-Drain range will be a particular highlight on the Charterhouse Turf Machinery stand at BTME 2020.

Expanding the existing offering with a new 1.9m working width, it is ideal for use on a variety of turf surfaces. Visitors to stand 432 in the Purple Zone will also be able to find out about the new 6m wide Top-Brush for course presentation, removal of organic matter and dispersal of worm casts.

New Charterhouse launches at BTME

The Verti-Drain 2519 is considered the next generation of high-speed, high-productivity aerator. It combines it’s 1.9m working width with a variable working depth of up to 250mm (10”) and can accept a range of tine options including 12mm and 19mm solid tines, as well as hollow tines for coring. This versatility makes it a popular choice with greenkeepers, groundsmen and contractors alike looking for a machine suitable for year-round operation. As standard, the 2519 features user-friendly controls, an easy to adjust heave lever and a new draw rod system. Together with new features, it also comes with new styling and livery.

As well as updates to the aeration portfolio, Charterhouse will also be launching a new tool into their brush range. As an ever-increasing number of chemicals continue to be withdrawn from the market, Course Managers are turning to mechanical forms of maintenance to keep surfaces balanced and reduce contributing factors to disease. Brushing stands the grass plant upright, helping to achieve a cleaner quality of cut and can rid the surface of excess moisture and dew to maintain good airflow through the turf canopy.

The Redexim Top-Brush’s 6m working width makes it ideal for large areas such as golf fairways and sports pitches. It is comprised of 3 poly brushes, that can be accurately set to the desired depth to achieve a light surface brush-in or more aggressively loosen surface material. The ‘wings’ can then be hydraulically lifted and folded for convenient transportation and storage.

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