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John O’Conner Trusts In Toro

May 1, 2019/in Machinery, News, Press Release/by Izzy Cutler

John O’Conner Trusts In Toro: As one of the UK’s most successful and reputable grounds maintenance companies, John O’Conner Grounds Maintenance knows that having the best groundscare equipment is vital, which is why they put their trust in Toro to provide their clients with the high-quality service they expect. Having recently won the Toro sponsored […]

Irrigating During Heat

May 1, 2019/in News, Press Release/by Rosie Duckworth

Irrigating During Heat: Reesink Turfcare’s Robert Jackson discusses irrigating during warm weather. 2018 was certainly the year irrigation systems across the country had their work cut out. It delivered the hottest weather the UK had experienced since 1976 and in some parts of the country months passed without rainfall. Many clubs react to extreme weather […]

John O’Conner Trusts In Toro

May 1, 2019/in Machinery, News, Press Release/by Izzy Cutler

Irrigating During Heat

May 1, 2019/in News, Press Release/by Rosie Duckworth

Full Sized Blog Element (Big Preview Pic)

John O’Conner Trusts In Toro

May 1, 2019/in Machinery, News, Press Release/by Izzy Cutler

John O’Conner Trusts In Toro: As one of the UK’s most successful and reputable grounds maintenance companies, John O’Conner Grounds Maintenance knows that having the best groundscare equipment is vital, which is why they put their trust in Toro to provide their clients with the high-quality service they expect.

Having recently won the Toro sponsored Grounds Maintenance – Limited Public Access category at the BALI National Landscape Awards, and with the companies 50^th year coming up in June 2019, senior workshop manager Simon Redhead, who has been with the company for 35 years, tells us how Toro has become an essential equipment provider for the family run business.

“We have a wide range of customers, so we need flexible and reliable machines to deal with them all,” he says. “We look after grounds on the Isle of Wight all the way up to Scotland, so making sure we provide a consistent service no matter where in the country or what kind of client they are is really important and Toro helps us to achieve that.”

With 45 pieces of kit in the company’s grounds maintenance fleet, it’s clear Toro is highly valued.

“We have everything from pedestrian and ride on mowers to tractor drawn gang mowers. In particular the Toro LT3340 heavy-duty triple cylinder mower has been great and has been our front-line machine for many years. For example, when we have long wet grass and difficult conditions, the LT3340 comes into its own.

“The majority of our clients are local authorities and with increasing budget cuts, many of them now need areas to be cut less frequently while still providing the same finish. The LT3340 has proven over the years to be an integral part of our fleet of machines.”

And it’s not just the machines themselves that are highly valued by John O’Conner, but the service from Reesink Turfcare as well.

“Reesink have always been great, especially when it comes to their parts service and training. Anything you need they’ll get to you within 24 hours, which is great because it means we can get machines back in use almost immediately.”

The company is about to trial another Toro machine, the CT2240. “I know that Toro will always deliver durable, reliable, high-quality machines and are always looking at innovative ways to make things better for the operator and customer. They also come with excellent service to back that up.”

He concludes: “Toro fits in very well with what our customers expect with regards to cut, finish and appearance.”

For more information, visit: reesinkturfcare.co.uk

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

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Irrigating During Heat

May 1, 2019/in News, Press Release/by Rosie Duckworth

Irrigating During Heat: Reesink Turfcare’s Robert Jackson discusses irrigating during warm weather.

2018 was certainly the year irrigation systems across the country had their work cut out. It delivered the hottest weather the UK had experienced since 1976 and in some parts of the country months passed without rainfall.

Many clubs react to extreme weather by seemingly panicking that their irrigation system isn’t up to scratch, and then as soon as the weather’s back to normal quickly forgetting the frustration. My advice would be, don’t! Have an extreme weather programme in place and invest now to ensure that if the same happens again, you’re prepared.

An irrigation system is designed to supplement rainfall, not replace it. Even the most advanced and expensive irrigation systems may have dry and wet areas, particularly during prolonged dry spells. The proper irrigation management goal is to provide water based on the wetter not drier areas. When the system has completed its cycle, and if needed, dry areas can be supplemented with spot or hand watering, typical, for example, with greens and surrounds.

It’s long been recognised that a blanket application of water is not only wasteful, but during a heatwave sometimes not possible, and tackling this in practice is now made easier with improved sensor technology, control software and advanced sprinkler designs. The ability to accurately tailor water application to precise conditions and requirements can help ensure turf will respond as expected in relation to its localised environment.

Measuring changes in moisture, temperature and other variables such as salinity is not new. What modern technology can do is make this monitoring not only easier but integrate it into how the irrigation system is controlled. Take the wireless Toro Turf Guard soil monitoring system. The system employs self-contained sensor units that can be positioned without the need for wiring. Each sensor sends signals to monitoring software, repeaters and a powerful base station allowing large areas to be covered.

Data is recorded and enables more informed adjustments to irrigation schedules to be made. As well as water-saving benefits, accurate monitoring can help alert users to the conditions that can lead to other problems, drainage issues and turf stress. As the wireless sensors are not static, they can be moved around to easily optimise their positioning, taking into account changes in shading on a pitch through to moving to a different position on a green.

It follows that soil monitoring systems were primarily developed to prevent over- and under-watering. Equally important, information recorded by soil monitoring provides valuable data over extended periods. Using this information can help ensure an irrigation system can be adapted over time to make the best use of applied water, with the potential to decrease consumption and help maintain sward health.

Computer-based software, such as the Toro Lynx system, can be employed to deliver not just irrigation control, but detailed information when it’s in use. With portable tech, it allows the irrigation system to be ‘interrogated’ while other tasks are carried out.

For example, those systems programmed to set off the sprinklers late at night can be monitored remotely, with the software detailing which sprinklers are running and for how long. The system can be set up to work with soil sensors, to include Turf Guard wireless units, providing an alert when the sensor picks up a change in moisture that may need attention. This provides the information to support the decisions required to programme the irrigation control system.

The problem with an outline like this is that it can over simplify what’s on offer. The Toro Lynx programme is advanced enough to provide full mapping of a golf course, but equally at home looking after a single stadium football or rugby pitch. It is designed to fit user needs and be upgraded to take advantages in developing technology.

In conclusion, a modern irrigation system can deliver not just the correct volume of irrigation water to specific areas of turf, but also provide detailed information that can be of great help in monitoring overall turf health. The best irrigation systems optimise available irrigation water to reduce costs and will deliver reliable and upgradeable performance over its lifetime, no matter what the weather!

For more information, visit: reesinkturfcare.co.uk

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)

John O’Conner Trusts In Toro

Irrigating During Heat

John O’Conner Trusts In Toro

Irrigating During Heat

Full Sized Blog Element (Big Preview Pic)

John O’Conner Trusts In Toro

Irrigating During Heat

Irrigating During Heat: Reesink Turfcare’s Robert Jackson discusses irrigating during warm weather.

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