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A Major Step Forward

October 21, 2021/in News, Press Release/by Lucy Nicholls

A Major Step Forward: James Bonfield, the Course Manager at Hertfordshire Golf and Country Club, has revealed how utilising ICL’s range of ProSelect grass seed has resulted in vastly improved fairways and greens. James has been at the Hertfordshire Golf and Country Club for just over 12 years and claims that the new owners, Elysium […]

Verti-Drain helps Rudding Park

October 19, 2021/in News, Press Release/by Louise Challiss

Verti-Drain helps Rudding Park: The recent delivery of a Verti-Drain 7416 from Redexim is proving key in the pre-winter preparations at Harrogate’s Rudding Park Golf Course. According to Head Greenkeeper Richard Hollingworth there has barely been a day since the Verti-Drain arrived in August that it hasn’t been out – the versatility of 1.6m machine […]

A Major Step Forward

October 21, 2021/in News, Press Release/by Lucy Nicholls

Verti-Drain helps Rudding Park

October 19, 2021/in News, Press Release/by Louise Challiss

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A Major Step Forward

October 21, 2021/in News, Press Release/by Lucy Nicholls

A Major Step Forward: James Bonfield, the Course Manager at Hertfordshire Golf and Country Club, has revealed how utilising ICL’s range of ProSelect grass seed has resulted in vastly improved fairways and greens.

James has been at the Hertfordshire Golf and Country Club for just over 12 years and claims that the new owners, Elysium Golf Limited, have signalled exciting times.

A Major Step Forward

“We have new fleets of equipment, new budgets, new ways of working, new holes to build and it is a fascinating time to be here. The owners have really backed us and now the course is reaping the rewards.”

The 18-hole parkland course was designed by renowned course designer Jack Nicklaus II and has been in play since 1995. Membership has steadily risen over the years but has nearly doubled since the new owners came in.

“Our main goal is to give members great value for money,” said James. “Our targets have changed rapidly under the new management – we want to break into the top 10 clubs in Hertfordshire and then, in time, make it into the top 100 in the UK.”

With more resources at his disposal James was insistent on first targeting the fairways: “The fairways were always lacking behind everything else, so that was our main priority. Choosing the correct seed was imperative,” he said.

Working alongside Matt Nutter from ICL, James decided on the ProSelect Classic – a multi-purpose seed blend which contains Torsion TRT Perennial ryegrass offering the unique Turf Repairing Tiller growth habit.

He overseeded the fairways with this mixture in late April and explained that the sowing rate was adjusted dependent on the condition: “Some areas were weaker than others, so they needed more seed; others were stronger so needed less – each fairway got exactly what I thought was required,” he said.

Once the overseeding had been completed, James maximised the results of the seed by applying a granular feed to the fairways. The fertiliser he used, ICL’s Sierrablen Plus Spring & Summer CalMag 23-0-5, has proven to be extremely popular with many greenkeepers and course managers this year.

“The seed and the granular feed went hand in hand to give the full effect,” he said. “Sierrablen Plus allowed us to get nutrient into the soil to give the seed something to kick off and it came through beautifully. We now have a nice, uniformed consistent growth whereas before we had a lot of patches.

“This approach has resulted in much improved fairways that are far more tolerant to heat, stress and disease. The combination of the seed working with the granular nutrition has seen the fairways holding the colour a lot better, and they have great definition.

“In the space of six months we have gone from fairways that were really struggling to some of the most envied in Hertfordshire. That is a major step forward.”

Following his work on the fairways, James’ attention turned to the greens and alongside Matt, the two of them worked together to identify the most suitable seed.

“Based on the pH levels we have round here, which are between 6.5 and 7.5, we felt that creeping bent was going to be the best for the greens. Anthracnose is also an issue, and with this in mind, we felt that the ProSelect Piranha creeping bent would be the best option.”

A Major Step Forward

As James says, due to the genetics of the seed, Piranha has been proven to be excellent in combatting the likes of Anthracnose, Dollar spot and Brown patch disease. It is the latest creeping bent grass mixture to be added to the ICL seed portfolio and recently gained EU registration.

“The plan was to move away from fungicides where possible and to instead try and get more creeping bents into the greens because they will help with playability and ease the stresses that Poa can cause,” said James.

“We’ve seen great results from the Piranha already, but it is going to be a long-term commitment in which we overseed the greens twice a year. Matt and I have already discussed the possibility of sowing ProSelect Riptide creeping bent, at the start of the year and then continuing with ProSelect Piranha in September. The two of us will monitor the situation and will fine tune where needed.”

“That is the beauty of working with ICL – you get the whole package,” continued James. “Everything Matt and I have discussed and have applied has worked. His recommendations have always been spot-on, and his on-going advice has always helped to get the best out of the products.”

Please contact ICL on 01473 237100 or visit www.icl-sf.co.uk or www.icl-sf.ie if you are in Ireland.

For more news and insightful views, you can follow ICL on Twitter @ICL_Turf

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Verti-Drain helps Rudding Park

October 19, 2021/in News, Press Release/by Louise Challiss

Verti-Drain helps Rudding Park: The recent delivery of a Verti-Drain 7416 from Redexim is proving key in the pre-winter preparations at Harrogate’s Rudding Park Golf Course.

According to Head Greenkeeper Richard Hollingworth there has barely been a day since the Verti-Drain arrived in August that it hasn’t been out – the versatility of 1.6m machine making it ideal for work on all areas of the course including greens, fairways and surrounds.

Verti-Drain helps Rudding Park

As a corporate golf course and part of the Rudding Park resort, not only does the club have a very active membership, the surfaces have to be fit to sustain play 364 days of the year… which equates to somewhere in the region of 40,000 rounds annually! “Because of the volume of rounds, when it comes to aeration it is critical that we’ve got equipment that is not just fit-for-purpose on the greens. We need to be getting some holes into the clay-based fairways to deliver the perfect course on any given day” explains Richard, who heads-up a maintenance team of nine.

“We had the 7416 on demo last year from our local dealer F. G. Adamson & Son and used it on all 18 greens, and throughout that extensive trial period we could tell it was going to suit us and the various requirements of our course. It was light enough to aerate the greens with minimal surface disruption, yet strong enough to be effective on fairways and surrounds.” The superior build quality of the Verti-Drain 7416 makes it ideal for the full-range of aeration tasks; a range of tine options delivering flexible and accurate aeration down to depths of 350mm.

“To date, we’ve aerated all of the greens surrounds and multiple weak fairways with ¾” tines, as we tackle compaction and dry patches ahead of the arrival of winter. We’ve also purchased ½” tines for the deep, pre-winter work on the greens and needle tines for the summer.” Richard adds, “Spanning double the acreage of most regular courses, getting the job done well and quickly is so important. In my view, the Verti-Drain still leads the market in terms of ease-of use and performance, all backed-up with excellent support and service from Redexim and their dealer network.”

For the latest industry news visit turfmatters.co.uk/news

Get all of the big headlines, pictures, opinions and videos on stories that matter to you.

Follow us on Twitter and Instagram for fun, fresh and engaging content.

You can also find us on Facebook for more of your must-see news, features, videos and pictures from Turf Matters.

Half Sized Blog Element (Single Author Style)

Half Sized Blog Element (Multi Author Style)

A Major Step Forward

Verti-Drain helps Rudding Park

A Major Step Forward

Verti-Drain helps Rudding Park

Full Sized Blog Element (Big Preview Pic)

A Major Step Forward

A Major Step Forward: James Bonfield, the Course Manager at Hertfordshire Golf and Country Club, has revealed how utilising ICL’s range of ProSelect grass seed has resulted in vastly improved fairways and greens.

Verti-Drain helps Rudding Park

Verti-Drain helps Rudding Park: The recent delivery of a Verti-Drain 7416 from Redexim is proving key in the pre-winter preparations at Harrogate’s Rudding Park Golf Course.

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