Blog Elements - Turf Matters

Half Sized Blog Element (Single Author Style)

Half Sized Blog Element (Multi Author Style)

ICL Combat Wear & Tear at Ely City GC

July 5, 2017/in Press Release/by Lucy Nicholls

ICL Combat Wear & Tear at Ely City GC – Andy Baker, Head Greenkeeper at Ely City Golf Course in Cambridgeshire, believes that his use of ICL products have significantly improved the high wear areas on the course despite facing unfavourable weather conditions and heavy usage. Andy, who has been at Ely City GC for over […]

Moortown Ready To Take Off With Irriplan And Hunter Pilot

July 4, 2017/in Industry News, Press Release/by Giles Wardle

Moortown ready to take off with Irriplan and Hunter Pilot – The storied Moortown Golf Club in Leeds in the north of England has completed the installation of a new irrigation system, replacing a failing 35 year old system. Moortown, which was the first British club to host the Ryder Cup, in 1929, chose a Hunter […]

ICL Combat Wear & Tear at Ely City GC

July 5, 2017/in Press Release/by Lucy Nicholls

Moortown Ready To Take Off With Irriplan And Hunter Pilot

July 4, 2017/in Industry News, Press Release/by Giles Wardle

Full Sized Blog Element (Big Preview Pic)

ICL Combat Wear & Tear at Ely City GC

July 5, 2017/in Press Release/by Lucy Nicholls

Andy, who has been at Ely City GC for over twelve years, tends to the 55 year-old, 18-hole parkland course. Designed by the legendary Henry Cotton, the course boasts a large membership and is heavily played on all year round, as Andy explains.

“We’re in a good catchment area – there is no other course for about 15 miles, and with more golfers comes more wear. The course sees a couple of hundred rounds each day at the weekends so it is very busy. We get a lot of wear on the tees, wear around the greens and on narrow points across a lot of the ditches.

“The course is a heavy clay site with a lot of ryegrass and we’re 15 to 40 metres above sea level so we get a lot of moisture and it is incredibly wet in the winter. Admittedly it can be a struggle dealing with so much wear under low-grow and wet conditions – therefore it all comes down to having the right products in place.”

Andy relies upon three core products from ICL in which he applies an annual base feed to the tees and approaches of Sierrablen Plus 24-5-8 +2MgO to provide a long-term nutrient release. To ensure the health of the turf remains in optimum condition, every four weeks he then applies a combination of Primo Maxx plant growth regulator and either Sportsmaster WSF High N 35-0-14+0.13Fe or High K 15-0-43+0.13Fe, This combination is used every 5 weeks on the fairways.

This tank-mix delivers the correct amount of nutrients through Sportsmaster WSF while at the same time Primo Maxx reduces top growth and boosts sward density and root mass. The popular combination has proved to be a winning formula for greenkeepers throughout the UK and beyond and Andy is no exception.

“We put the Sierrablen Plus down at the beginning of March at about 30g per square metre. It offers excellent longevity – 9 months comfortably, so it keeps us in a good strong condition going into the winter period.

“From when we first apply it in March, the quality just shows straight away and then of course we keep that topped up with the Sportsmaster WSF and Primo Maxx combo. We started this approach on tees to start with and saw great results from that, so the following year we then took it out to our approaches, fairways and other high wear areas.

“We’ve noticed a big difference and have seen an improvement in sward density, presentation and colour and we are also getting less worm castings as a result. Generally, the overall quality of the course has improved, the signs of wear on those areas has decreased and the members have noticed the results.

“Since using these ICL products, the quality of the greens has improved so much that they are now as good in winter as they are in the summer. If you’re cutting your grass at 3mm you’re putting a lot more stress on it so you need to be putting the correct nutrient into it and this is what we get from the Primo Maxx and the regular feeding.”

Andy has also been involved with some ICL and Syngenta trial work, which he believes has only reinforced his decision to use the products.

“By trialling these products it puts me in a position where I can say whether a certain product is better than another one because it has gone head to head on the same area. My job is to make the course the best it can be and if there are new products coming out then of course I want to be trialling them and comparing them. It proves to me that I am using the finest products and I also share my thoughts with other greenkeepers.

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

For the latest industry news visit turfnews.co.uk

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

Follow us on Twitter 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.

Moortown Ready To Take Off With Irriplan And Hunter Pilot

July 4, 2017/in Industry News, Press Release/by Giles Wardle

Moortown, which was the first British club to host the Ryder Cup, in 1929, chose a Hunter irrigation system installed by Knaresborough-based contractor Full Circle Irrigation. Irrigation engineers Irriplan provided design and project management services.

“Our old irrigation system was very old, and it was failing miserably,” explains Moortown secretary Peter Rishworth. “We were constantly getting leaks in the underground pipework due to age, and regularly seeing other faults too. On top of that, the system was very inefficient in its use and distribution of water, leading to a lot of hand watering to compensate. The old system was basically on or off and we were limited by a lack of automatic control over the individual heads.”

Moortown made contact with Irriplan and had just signed a contract for the design of a new irrigation system, when the old equipment suffered a particularly major breakdown at the start of the 2015 golf season. “Giles Wardle of Irriplan, and also Full Circle, jointly helped us out by patching up the existing system, but we knew replacement was the only way forward,” says Peter. “Full Circle, who we know as they are local, had recommended we work with Irriplan, and Steve Robinson, our course manager, saw the strength of the Hunter system, and in particular the Hunter Pilot control system.”

Installation of the new system began in October 2015, but the majority of the work was completed during the winter of 2016-17. “The project was completed in two and a half months, including new mainline pipes and coverage to tees, approaches, surrounds, greens and our practice facilities,” says Peter. “We switched on the new system during April 2017, and we actually just put the control system live on the internet this week, so Steve and his team can control it via their phones, when they are walking round the golf course. Obviously, it is very early days, but we can see that the level of monitoring and control we have is 100 times better than with the old system. We’re very pleased with the help we have had from Irriplan and Full Circle.”

For the latest industry news visit turfnews.co.uk

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

Follow us on Twitter 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)

ICL Combat Wear & Tear at Ely City GC

Moortown Ready To Take Off With Irriplan And Hunter Pilot

ICL Combat Wear & Tear at Ely City GC

Moortown Ready To Take Off With Irriplan And Hunter Pilot

Full Sized Blog Element (Big Preview Pic)

ICL Combat Wear & Tear at Ely City GC

Moortown Ready To Take Off With Irriplan And Hunter Pilot

RESOURCES

CONTACT

CONNECT