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New ICL launch at BTME

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New ICL launch at BTME: ICL is looking forward to welcoming visitors to its interactive stand at BTME 2022 (Purple Zone 426) where the team will be talking all things turf and providing an exclusive look at an exciting new product for the golf market.

Gronamic Golf 6-2-4, a new organic based fertiliser is a unique blend of credible and sustainable ingredients to provide a natural turf response and is the latest product to be added to the Gronamic range.

New ICL launch at BTME

New ICL launch at BTME

The organic content of Gronamic 6-2-4 is 100% plant based and is formulated as a fine granule. It contains:

SeaMax, the sustainably sourced seaweed concentrate that has been shown in trials to improve turf colour, turf quality, root development and stress tolerance.

Struvite, a recycled blend of magnesium, ammonium and phosphate that is collected from wastewater, is another sustainable component that provides real turfgrass benefits. 

Polyhalite, which is exclusively mined by ICL ensures that essential macronutrients are available to maintain healthy turf and reduces the possibility of nutrient deficiency.

Visitors to the ICL stand will have the opportunity to gain expert advice on granulation, water soluble fertiliser and surfactant technologies.

Often a vibrant hub of discussion and networking, the stand will also feature the famous ICL barista, who will be on hand to serve coffees and other hot drinks throughout the event.

Aside from the exhibition, ICL is once again proud to support BIGGA’s Continue to Learn education programme. The ICL Continue to Learn Scholarship, sees five BIGGA members receive three nights’ hotel accommodation and 15 hours of training and personal development opportunities.

ICL’s very own Dr Andy Owen and Henry Bechelet will also be hosting two informative sessions in the Continue to Learn programme. In the first, a half-day class entitled ‘What’s in a soil analysis?’ Andy and Henry will examine the process of soil sampling and the interpretation of soil analysis results. Actual results will be explained and discussed, and the critical information highlighted to provide a guide to getting the most from the process. The class will also provide advice on how to utilise soil results as part of your annual golf course management.

In the second seminar, entitled ‘Research Matters’, Andy and Henry will be updating delegates on four university‑based fundamental turf research projects being managed by ICL. There will be a focus on presenting the key results and practical outcomes on the subjects of managing plant parasitic nematodes with seaweed extracts, utilising recycled nutrients, contrasting the plant and soil health benefits of organo‑mineral fertilisers and the very latest science on wetting agents and plant water uptake.

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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Capillary Bunkers project at Marienburger

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Capillary Bunkers project at Marienburger: Germany’s largest Capillary Bunkers installation so far has just been completed at the Marienburger Golf Club in Cologne, by architect Christian Althaus and contractor Sommerfeld.

Founded as Cologne Golf Club in 1906, the club moved to its current site in Marienburg in 1909. The construction of an autobahn (motorway) to Aachen in the thirties saw the course reduced to nine holes, which it has remained ever since. The club called in architect Althaus to advise on course improvements several years ago, and in 2021, the upgrade project got underway, incoporating the reconstruction of all nine greens – which were not properly drained – as well as bunkers, and the regrading of fairways to provide better drainage and more interest.

Capillary Bunkers project at Marienburger

Capillary Bunkers project at Marienburger

“The course is within a kilometre of the Rhine River, and is thus partially sandy, but even so it was clear that we needed a bunker liner,” says Althaus. “Even on the parts of the site that have a sand base, the steep faces of the bunkers would erode quite badly without it, and also the sand of the sub-base and the bunker sand would intermingle and contaminate the bunkers.”

Althaus considered various liner options, but was led to select Capillary Bunkers on environmental grounds. “We considered various liner options, but I knew I needed a very strong and stable liner on environmental ground, which led us to choose Capillary Bunkers,” he explains. “The strength and neutrality of the Capillary Bunkers product made it the right choice.”

Construction work is complete, and the project is growing in – the course will reopen in spring 2022.

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Grass is greener at AZ Alkmaar

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Grass is greener at AZ Alkmaar: The AQUA4D® system rented by Lescrauwaet BV has contributed significantly to solving turf issues at the AFAS Training Complex in Wijdewormer, home of AZ Alkmaar football club (Eredivisie). “We now have no more dead grass spots,” says groundsman Wouter Uitentuis. “That’s because the AQUA4D® water system creates smaller water clusters, so they get into the smallest pores.”

“In the first year when the training pitches were delivered, five years ago now, nobody could have foreseen how badly the grass would grow. There were a lot of bare patches of grass, especially near the overlap of the sprinklers,” explains says the groundsman, who manages the training fields. After the first season, 2 cm of the grass layer was milled off with a fieldtop maker, reseeded and fertilised. Due to the hot and dry summer the following year, the emerging grass burned immediately. Uitentuis: “We wondered what was causing this and started looking. We found out that it had to do with the salinity in the irrigation water. With this knowledge, we started spraying the fields much more to push away the salt, sometimes as much as 40 to 50 ml/m2 per night. Normally we give between 10 and 15 ml/m2 depending on the time of year.”

Grass is greener at AZ Alkmaar

Grass is greener at AZ Alkmaar

Getting the ball to roll faster

After a large amount of water, there was no watering for a few days until the turf dried out. That was the moment to start watering again. “As a result, it took longer than desired, also from the club’s point of view, before there was a reasonable grass surface. But at the overlap spots of the sprinklers we saw that the grass didn’t want to grow because of the salinized soil,” explains Uitentuis.

AZ Alkmaar turf, before AQUA4D

There was a second problem: AZ requested that the pitches should also be wet during the day, to help the ball speed. “In order to make the grass wet, we had to spray water in small doses even on a sunny summer day. This keeps the salty water on the blades of grass. The result was that the salt residue in particular burned into the leaves, causing the grass to turn yellow and die.” Later in the season, more rain did turn the grass green again. “As soon as the grass received fresh rainwater, the grass was back to its normal green colour within a week.”

The search for innovative irrigation technology

In order to remove the salt from the irrigation water (with an EC of 7.0), a Reverse Osmosis system was considered. But this system could not handle the amount of water from the pump, which has a capacity of 60 m3/hour. Tap water was not an option either, because there was no adequate connection to be made, and using drinking water would be expensive.

Two years ago, the groundsman called in Westhoven Agro Advies who put him in touch with AQUA4D® BeNeLuxDu importer Lescrauwaet BV in Hilversum for treatment of the surface water. With the AQUA4D® water system, the irrigation water is treated with resonance fields, which improves or refines the structure of water clusters.

The Swiss-based firm have more than 4,200 water systems operational in 40+ countries, in horticulture, sports fields, landscapes, and sustainable buildings.

A test was Conducted by connecting and disconnecting sprinklers to the AQUA4D® water system. “At first we were sceptical, because we thought that no system could do it properly,” explains Uitentuis. But we soon saw a difference with AQUA4D. With the sprinklers whose water had not been treated, the grass quickly burned.”

Smaller droplets roll off leaves

According to the groundsman, this watering system has the required capacity, is affordable, and has a positive effect on bare grass areas. “The water surface tension is lower, so the water droplets are smaller and less spherical. We can also see this in the water that is sprayed more when watering the grass. Due to the change in water clusters, the water droplets no longer remain on the leaf. Because they roll off, we also no longer have any salt residue. As a result, the grass no longer burns.”

A new approach to water management

The AQUA4D® system has made a significant difference to the grass patches that refused to grow. “Every year is different here – it can be warmer or colder, more or less sunlight and drier or wetter. Water is one facet of the whole picture, but the most important one. In summer, we now have a different fertilisation policy with more coated fertilisers, which are released slowly, and we spray urea fertiliser on the leaves,” says Uitentuis.

“We are pleased with the beautiful green turf this summer. It really is a picture,” he concludes.

Find out more about sustainable water management for football: https://www.aqua4d.com/news/sustainable-football-irrigation/

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Vandals strike at golf course

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Vandals strike at golf course: Vandals have struck at a Herefordshire golf club as a car is driven across two of the course’s greens.

Read the full article from County Times here

Groundsman to play on his 'sacred' pitch

Groundsman to play on his ‘sacred’ pitch

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Kubota showcases latest innovations at BTME

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Kubota showcases latest innovations at BTME: Kubota returns to BTME at Harrogate from 25-27th January, where the company will once again join forces with Baroness to showcase outstanding Japanese technology and engineering.

A selection of Kubota’s extensive range  of machinery for golf and turf will be on show, including some of the raft of new products introduced in 2021.

Kubota showcases latest innovations at BTME

Kubota showcases latest innovations at BTME

Heading up the launches is the new LX Series, a range of multi-purpose compact tractors from 35-40hp that allow users to handle a wide variety of tasks ranging from mowing and snow clearance to materials handling and cultivations. With an impressive lift capacity, optional front loader, front linkage and pto, this is a tractor for all seasons that will be the perfect workhorse for golf clubs and sports pitches.

Kubota’s mowing equipment is the mainstay of leading grounds maintenance contractors and local authorities across the country, and latest addition to the renowned F Series front mowers, the 38hp F391, will be revealed offering unmatched output and performance for commercial mowing.

Leading the way in utility vehicles for demanding applications, the RTV-X1110 will be on show and Kubota specialists will be on hand to discuss the many ways that it can be deployed and the multitude of attachments available for work on greens, tees and fairways. With a powerful 24hp engine, Kubota’s VHT-X variable hydrostatic transmission and dynamic engine braking, the RTV-X1110 is built for hard work and difficult terrain.

Kubota looks forward to welcoming visitors to stand Red Zone 230.

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