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SALTEX hailed a success by exhibitors

SALTEX hailed a success by exhibitors: The SALTEX 2021 post-show survey confirms the exhibition’s place as the must-attend event for everyone involved in grounds management and turf care.

This year, 93% of exhibitors said SALTEX generated new sales leads, while 96% believed SALTEX was perfect for promoting and maintaining their company profile. In addition, 81% of exhibitors said that exhibiting at SALTEX was important to their overall business strategy and 82% believed it was a perfect opportunity to meet existing customers.

SALTEX hailed a success by exhibitors

SALTEX hailed a success by exhibitors

When asked to rate their primary target audiences, the below sectors received the highest number of responses

  • Professional sports – 48%
  • Local authorities, councils, parish, town planning – 48%
  • Contractors – land construction, grounds – 41%
  • School, colleges, universities – 40%
  • Dealers, distributors, retailers – 40%
  • Landscapers – 33%

Furthermore, 71% of exhibitors stated that they will be returning to exhibit at SALTEX 2022.

In fact, many have already rebooked with a large percentage increasing the size of their stand. An influx of debut exhibitors has also been reported by the Grounds Management Association (GMA).

“For us it is the number one grounds industry show,” said Les Malin, managing director of Etesia UK. “There are a number of other exhibitions, but they tend to have their own sector that they work in. SALTEX on the other hand attracts a mix of customers right the way through the entire grounds industry.”

Ray McNally from AS Tractors chose SALTEX to launch Mitsubishi Tractors to the UK market and wasn’t disappointed. “This is our launch, and it has gone beyond our expectations,” he said. “Everyone in the horticultural and grounds industries attend this show and these are the demographics Mitsubishi Tractors is targeting. It’s the perfect platform for us and it has been wonderful.”

It was the first SALTEX for Origin Amenity Solutions since bringing together four major industry brands and Richard Fry, marketing manager, was feeling positive. “There was a lot of soul searching and sleepless nights before the opening day of SALTEX, but wow, it has been fantastic. There has been a two-year break since the last show, but the industry has responded. We are very pleased and there has been great footfall from the get-go.”

SALTEX 2021 celebrated its 75th anniversary and remarkably there were two companies on the show floor that have exhibited at all 75 shows – Lloyds & Co and Dennis Mowers.

“We value the loyalty that the Grounds Management Association has always shown us, and we’ve always stuck with them,” said Clive Nottingham, managing director of Lloyds & Co.

“I’m pleased that so many people have come through the door, and it has been a lively show. We’ve had lots of conversations, and there will be lots of quotations, enquiries and work to follow up.”

Ian Howard, managing director of Dennis Mowers also underlined the importance of exhibiting at SALTEX. “I think it is critical to come and meet existing customers, to meet new customers and to listen to what people have got to say. It is the customers that come up with the innovations at the end of the day and every Dennis product that we have got, both petrol and electric, is a result of what customers have said to us. SALTEX is an investment for the future.”

SALTEX 2022 will be held at the NEC, Birmingham on 2-3 November.

For more information visit www.gmasaltex.co.uk

Follow SALTEX on Twitter @GMA_SALTEX and Facebook – www.facebook.com/GMASALTEX

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Foundations of a first-class course

Foundations of a first-class course: Visitors to the DLF stand 270 located in the Red Zone at BTME 2022, can expect a range of market leading products from the world’s leading grass seed breeder and producer.

The MM brand and mixtures are now part of DLF UK and will benefit from access to the full DLF breeding and research programme. This will bring many benefits including a greater portfolio along with increased research and development.

Foundations of a first-class course

Foundations of a first-class course

BTME 2022 will also mark the launch of the exciting new MM Supreme Ryegreen mix which will offer golf course managers a 100% Ryegrass mixture for use on greens and fineturf areas. This unique new mixture benefits from the inclusion of Singapore Perennial Ryegrass, which is extremely fine leaved with good shoot density along with high disease and wear tolerance.  Furthermore, MM Supreme Ryegreen bring the main benefits of Perennial Ryegrass – fast establishment and wear tolerance in close-mow situations.

As the demand and pressure placed on the modern-day greenkeeper to produce a consistent playing surface continually grows, seed quality, purity and vigour are the essential ingredients for a first-class golf course and Limagrain’s MM range of seed mixture provides exactly these.

For over 30 years, greenkeepers and course managers have been enjoying the benefits by choosing the MM brand and the high-quality varieties used in MM mixtures. All varieties are thoroughly tested at the Sports Turf Research Institute (STRI) – ensuring that the finished product will meet your requirements for play, appearance and maintenance.

For golf greens MM9 – a three-way Browntop bent mixture continues to be a leading mixture for renovations and species exchange. For links style courses and sustainable golf, MM8 offers a great option – a three-way fescue mix with excellent disease resistance, drought tolerance and minimal fertiliser requirements gives course managers a fine, dense sward, MM Coastal is great option to MM 8 where salt spray is in issue, the 100% Slender Creeping Red Fescue mix provides excellent salt tolerance for golf greens and also tees and fairways.

If you are looking for a mixture ideal for tees and fairways, then the 100% Ryegrass MM50 should be considered. It is capable of rapid establishment and fast recovery from divot scarring plus high wear tolerance and has extremely fine appearance.

For links style fairways where damage and wear are lower, MM12 or MM13, are both well suited to this challenging environment as they are drought tolerant and have low maintenance requirements.

Visitors to the stand can also find out more about DLF Pro Flora and Colour Boost range Wildflower mixtures. The mixtures are ideal for those wanting to establish a traditional perennial flower meadow or a high impact colourful display of annuals and perennials.

The MM team of amenity seed specialists will all be on hand at BTME to discuss the products in more detail and will also be available to offer their expertise on any queries you may have.

For further information, please contact MM Sports Seed on 01386 791102 or visit the company’s new website www.mm-seeds.co.uk. You can also follow the company on Twitter: @MM_Seed

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Toro selected as a founding partner

Toro selected as a founding partner: The R&A has named The Toro Company as a Founding Partner and Official Golf Course Maintenance Partner for its planned community golf facility at Lethamhill in Glasgow, Scotland. The development aims to make golf more accessible, appealing and inclusive for people of all ages and backgrounds by creating an open and affordable pathway into golf that helps drive the future of the sport.

At the heart of facility, The R&A is committed to showcasing the gold standard in golf course maintenance, turf care, equipment innovation and development. To that end, they have selected Toro to join them in the development and fulfilment of their mission.

Toro selected as a founding partner

Toro selected as a founding partner

As part of this role, Toro will be the exclusive supplier of all course maintenance equipment to the new facility. Development is now underway for this new family-focused venue, which is to include a nine-hole course, putting greens, short game area, adventure golf and a driving range for visitors to enjoy a wide range of golf activities, including shorter forms of the sport.

In addition to providing an equipment fleet and irrigation products to the facility, Toro will have the first option to partner with The R&A on potential future developments. Toro also plans to provide a grant to be used toward the development of a greenkeeper apprenticeship, as well as for efforts that promote the global development of the game of golf.

“We are delighted to become a Founding Partner of this unique project,” said Peter Moeller, vice president of international at The Toro Company. “The R&A’s commitment to developing the game of golf and making it accessible to the broadest possible community is very much in line with Toro’s own mission and objectives. It is both humbling and exciting to see Toro’s equipment and irrigation solutions advance The R&A’s sustainability efforts, and we look forward to helping its team bring plans for the new facility to reality.”

Martin Slumbers, Chief Executive of The R&A, said, “Toro has a world-renowned reputation as a supplier of high-quality equipment and solutions for golf course maintenance and so was a natural choice for us in selecting a partner for the new facility. We look forward to working alongside them in the development of the new venue and providing golfers with excellent facilities so that they can fully enjoy playing the sport in a variety of formats with family and friends.”

For more information about The R&A and its initiatives, please visit randa.org. Toro’s full line of equipment and irrigation products for golf courses can be found at toro.com.

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Agrovista Amenity becomes a Jubilee Partner

Agrovista Amenity becomes a Jubilee Partner: Agrovista Amenity is proud to announce that it has joined The Tree Council as a Jubilee Partner.

Since 1973, The Tree Council has been working towards bringing everyone together with a shared mission to care for trees and our planet’s future. It is therefore fitting that The Tree Council is an official delivery partner of The Queen’s Green Canopy.

Agrovista Amenity becomes a Jubilee Partner

Agrovista Amenity becomes a Jubilee Partner

The Queen’s Green Canopy (QGC) is a unique tree planting initiative created to mark Her Majesty’s Platinum Jubilee in 2022 which invites people from across the United Kingdom to “Plant a Tree for the Jubilee”.

Everyone from individuals to Scout and Girlguiding groups, villages, cities, counties, schools and corporates will be encouraged to play their part to enhance the environment by planting trees during the winter tree planting season.

By becoming one of the Jubilee Partners, Agrovista Amenity will be playing an integral role in planting trees and hedgerows in honour of Her Majesty’s service to the nation, creating a lasting legacy which will benefit future generations for years to come.

The aim is to achieve 70 Jubilee Partners, whose collective impact will ensure the planting of an incredible 35,000 trees and 7 kilometres of hedgerows.

Ed Smith, Landscape Team Manager for Agrovista Amenity, revealed his delight at becoming a Jubilee Partner.

“It is such a wonderful initiative,” said Ed. “We see tree planting as a real benefit to the environment and with everything that is going on in terms of COP26, we have a real opportunity to make a change. The direction we are heading in terms of our bio-degradable tree guards, best practice and our commitment to sustainability reflects this.

“Our planet is changing. We are on a journey and want to play our part. Supporting the likes of The Tree Council is very much part of that journey.”

“This initiative will signal a huge amount of environmental, biodiversity and other eco-system services benefits.”

The Agrovista Amenity team will celebrate becoming a Jubilee Partner by attending a corporate planting day which is taking place in Bicester in Oxfordshire in early December.

For more information about Agrovista UK, visit www.agrovista.co.uk/amenity

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Aspen, fuelling a cleaner campus

Aspen, fuelling a cleaner campus: As part of an active campaign to reduce their impact on the environment, the grounds department at Chester University have recently made the switch to Aspen Fuel for their remaining petrol-powered equipment.

This is not the first time that Grounds & Gardens Coordinator Dan Cristofoli has used Aspen 2 and 4-Stroke petrol, however for his team, the improvements the fuel makes to both the running of the machinery and their working conditions are now being discovered!

Aspen, fuelling a cleaner campus

Aspen, fuelling a cleaner campus

Sustainability is a big focus across the University campus, with Dan and his team of six grounds technicians overseeing a number of wildlife and biodiversity projects, along with maintaining everything around the site that is green and growing! “We have been progressively switching some of our fleet over to battery powered equipment to reduce our carbon footprint” explains Dan, who has been at the university for three years. “However, there’s some items which are difficult to substitute and that’s where the Aspen product comes in – helping us to reduce pollutants, both for the operator and to the environment.”

Dan first heard about Aspen when he undertook a chainsaw training course in a previous role, with Phil Dunford of chainsawtraining.com. As an Alkylate petrol, Aspen is virtually free from benzene, as well as sulphur and many other harmful hydrocarbons meaning it burns 99% cleaner than ordinary petrol. Also being free from ethanol, Aspen maintains engine performance and preserves the life of component parts which can be susceptible to failure.

“We made the switch at the start of the growing season and straight away discovered the convenience and time-savings associated with having the Aspen fuel delivered by the pallet directly to our site. From a risk assessment perspective, reducing the need to make regular trips to the petrol station is a great plus point. On the ground, the operators have all commented on the reduction in odours when operating the equipment and with the chainsaws, they’ve noticed how much smoother they’re running.”

“As we head towards the winter months, another benefit is Aspen’s extended shelf-life” Dan adds. “We can continue to run equipment and then put it into storage and not have to worry about it clogging up, causing problems when we come to use it again in the new year.”

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