Tag Archive for: Castle

Johnsons J Tee helps Wenvoe Castle GC

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Johnsons J Tee helps Wenvoe Castle GC: The unique blend of cultivars in Johnsons Sports Seeds J Tee mixture is delivering the magic combination of rapid establishment and high wear tolerance required at Cardiff’s Wenvoe Castle Golf Club.

Head Greenkeeper Lucy Sellick cites the small tees and the sustained high levels of play as a major maintenance challenge, overcome with this mix incorporating tetraploids and a little extra spring ‘kick-start’ with DLF’s ProNitro® seed coating.

Johnsons J Tee helps Wenvoe Castle GC

Johnsons J Tee helps Wenvoe Castle GC

A team of four assists Lucy with the maintenance of the 18-hole parkland course, labelled as ‘one of the finest challenges of golf in Wales’. “The big challenge for us is finding seed that can germinate and establish quick enough to cope with the high number of rounds! I’ve been greenkeeping for a long time, and for our site, I’m yet to find anything that can compete with the establishment and consistency we get with the Johnsons mixtures.”

Johnsons J Tee incorporates 40% tetraploid ryegrass, in the form of Fabian and Tetragame, delivering significantly improved disease tolerance, shoot density and recovery, even under close mown conditions. It also incorporates Sabrena RSMG – which germinates like a ryegrass, has the fine leaf and density of a bent grass and delivers outstanding wear tolerance, even in shady conditions. “We’ve been using J Tee for the last few years now and continue to see germination in under two weeks, even in the cooler conditions with the J Nitro Tee option.” Featuring both fast and slow-release nitrogen, ProNitro improves nutrient utilisation during the early stages of plant growth for each developing seedling.

“We sow J Nitro Tee at the start of the season, when everything is a bit slower to give the seed a bit of a head start. We then switch to the regular J Tee in the middle of the season, and have achieved fantastic results.” Lucy adds, “We also use Johnsons J All Bent on our greens which, again, is great for high wear tolerance. The high wear areas around the perimeters of the greens are predominately Poa, but the combination of Arrowtown and Manor outcompetes that and helps us to achieve faster greens with improved disease resistance.”

“Another great thing about the Johnsons range from DLF is the fact that it’s backed by science. You know that behind every formulation are years of research and trials which for me is a big advantage.” She concludes, “The team, including my Regional Technical Manager Ian Barnett, are always on hand with the latest information and findings which reassures me that I’m always making the right choice.”

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Castle Stuart purchase a Ventrac

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Castle Stuart purchase a Ventrac: Castle Stuart Golf Links, situated close to Inverness and overlooking the Moray Firth, is the latest Scottish golfing venue to purchase a Ventrac 4500 all-terrain compact tractor and a selection of attachments.

Delivered by local dealer, Double A Trading Company Ltd, the package includes the 25 hp all-terrain compact tractor unit in its 8-wheel configuration, a Contour deck, a Tough Cut deck and Power Rake.

Castle Stuart purchase a Ventrac

Castle Stuart purchase a Ventrac

James Hutchison has been Head Greenkeeper since 2017, when he was promoted to the post from his previous position as deputy. He has been with the club for 14 years, since the beginning of the course build in 2007, so the course is in his DNA.

Commenting on the purchase of the Ventrac and attachments he said,

“This an excellent and versatile addition to our machinery fleet. Initially we’ve purchased three attachments, but I’m sure that over time we’ll be adding to this.

“The Tough Cut deck certainly lives up to its name. We’re using it extensively to take out the broom and gorse that has thrived here over the years. Its rapid growth tends to hide the undulations surrounding the fairways and can obscure the magnificent views over the Moray Firth, which is one of our strong selling points for visiting golfers. Some areas of the course are receiving their first cut in three years and it makes short work of a job that was previously done by a team with brushcutters. The combination of the 8-wheel tractor unit and Tough Cut deck feels really safe, especially when I’ve been using it on 30-degree slopes.

“We’ll be using the Contour deck as a replacement for our old John Deere rotary mower and this will maintain the semi-rough at around 38mm, with the option of raising the height of cut to 100mm, should it be necessary.

“The Power Rake attachment is going to save us time and money when it comes to maintaining the pathways around the course. These were constructed from basic hardcore and Type 1 aggregate when the course was built and do suffer from potholes caused by our machinery and the buggy fleet. I would usually send out three guys to fix potholes, but with this implement that will be reduced to just one.

“I’m now looking at a demonstration of the triple cylinder mowing unit to see if that will suit our future needs. There aren’t any other machines that can swap between rotary and cylinder units plus attach other implements such as trenchers, blowers and even stump grinders. This just demonstrates how versatile the Ventrac is!”

Designed by Gil Hanse and Mark Parsinen, Castle Stuart’s championship golf links opened in 2009 and features 18 holes with stunning views across the water to the Black Isle including Kessock bridge and Chanonry lighthouse. It has hosted the Scottish Open on four occasions and won numerous awards including the GEO Certified® ecolabel, an international accolade that recognises its high standards of performance in nature conservation, water and energy efficiency, ethical and environmental supply chain, pollution control and community engagement.

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Sherriff taking Bovey Castle back to the top

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Sherriff taking Bovey Castle back to the top: Scott Duff, head greenkeeper at Bovey Castle in Devon, is using a range of Sherriff Amenity products to help the club get back into the Top 100 Golf Courses.

Designed in 1926 by J F Abercromby, one of the finest British golf course designers of the last century, Bovey Castle’s 18 hole championship golf course is challenging and surrounded by the natural beauty of the Dartmoor.

Sherriff taking Bovey Castle back to the top

Scott, who has been at Bovey Castle for four years, started his turf career in football at Torquay United FC before switching to greenkeeping. He admits that it was somewhat of a challenging transition but claims that he has no regrets.

“When I was in football groundsmanship, I had always wanted to try greenkeeping but to be honest I was always worried that I would be out of my depth,” he said. “I went from looking after just one surface which had a fairly consistent maintenance regime to suddenly looking after a multitude of different areas – each with their own requirements. It was the biggest challenge in my career but also the best because I can confidently say that I love my job.”

Scott excelled in his new role and was rewarded two years ago when he was promoted to the position of head greenkeeper. Now, alongside Sean Bennett – course manager, the two of them have a very clear goal.

“We are a championship course which used to be in the top 100 but not anymore unfortunately. Quite simply our goal is to get back in there. I think with Sean’s knowledge of managing a course, his drive and his passion, along with the improvements he wants to make, I think it is very realistic.

“We are not a million miles away but we still have a lot of work to do and with people like David Chammings from Sherriff Amenity on-board then this will only boost our chances. David has really changed the way we approach our feed programmes and also some of the work we do out on the course because he draws up management plans which concentrate on what we should be doing throughout certain periods of the year.”

After consultation, David recommended a tank mixture consisting of iNTrench fertiliser 15.0.9 and GoGreen Energy bio-stimulant for the greens – two products which perfectly complement one another.

iNTrench is a controlled uptake nitrogen fertiliser designed specifically for the needs of professional sports turf. It gives up to ten weeks of improved blade colour and a higher quality turf with 66% the nitrogen rate of leading competitors. Its tank-mix partner, GoGreen Energy, is a concentrated bio-stimulant, formulated to assist plant health and relieve stress symptoms.

“Every course is different and you have to work out what is best for your site,” said Scott. “With iNTrench and GoGreen, we find that if we go at half rate (20 l/ha) every two weeks, then the greens seem to hold the nutrients a lot better. By applying it like this we notice healthier greens and also better longevity out of the products. This tank-mix has worked really well for us and there has been a big improvement in the greens.

“In fact, we also use this mix with the addition of seaweed on our tees if they need some instant colour-up.”

Scott also reported excellent results from Sherriff Amenity’s Aqua-Zorb 45 – a unique wetting agent, which helped him through a somewhat difficult summer last year.

“Last year, Aqua-Zorb was a real saviour for us. I would say that at least 90% of courses in the UK would say that the disease period for golf was horrendous last year and a good wetting agent could have saved money on fungicides and relieved the drought stress.

“We had such intense heat last year and Aqua-Zorb still worked incredibly well considering we were frequently seeing temperatures of 30°C plus.

“I feel we have been going through a massive transition period and this year we will see even more improvements to the course. The Sherriff Amenity products have played a big role in the success over the past couple of years and I can’t fault the service from David whatsoever.”

For further information, please contact Sherriff Amenity on 01638 721 888 or visit www.sherriffamenity.com

For more news and insightful views, you can follow Sherriff Amenity on Twitter @SherriffAmenity

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£40,000 Mower At Inverness Castle

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£40,000 Mower At Inverness Castle: Highland Council is planning to use a £40,000 remote-control lawn mower to target difficult-to-reach steep slopes around Inverness – including at the city’s famous Castle.

While the lush green banks by the castle and the River Ness are regarded as a major tourist attraction, they come with serious grass-cutting problems.

£40,000 Mower At Inverness Castle

The local authority, while aware that keeping these areas well trimmed contributes significantly to the visitor experience, acknowledges that the safe maintenance of the banks has presented significant challenges.

Over the last three summers it had employed a contractor with specialist equipment to safely maintain the steep slopes.

But next week, at the City of Inverness Area Committee, councillors will be asked to consider buying their own machinery and completing the work in-house.

Purchasing the equipment would also allow enhanced maintenance of similar locations throughout the city.

The health and safety concerns associated with cutting the steep banks including the castle and river banks are being drawn to the attention of councillors.

They will be asked to approve the funding from the Common Good Fund for the 2019 season contractor, costing £14,430.

But officers are recommending the direct purchase of their own machinery at a cost of £40,000.

This would include a contribution from the Common Good Fund of £20,000. The remaining capital cost, plus the annual maintenance and operational running costs of the machine, would be met by the service.

In a report before the committee members, amenities manager Debbie Sutton says: “If the option to purchase a remote mower was approved then the added value this could facilitate would be cutting at numerous locations throughout the city including General Booth Road, Suilven Way, Leachkin Road, Scorguie Drive, Overton Avenue and Balnafettack Road.

“In addition to this, numerous other steep bank locations could be identified which have not previously been considered as safe to cut.

“Furthermore, outright ownership of this machinery would give the council greater control over the timing of the operation to ensure that it takes place at the most appropriate time rather than depending on the availability of the contractor.”

Over the last three years, a contractor has been engaged to cut the north side of the castle banks and the banks of the River Ness two or three times per summer using a remote-controlled mower.

Ms Sutton continued: “Whilst this has resulted in a high standard of maintenance of these areas, better value for money for the council could be achieved through the outright purchase of this type of machine.”

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Killeen Castle Invest In John Deere

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Killeen Castle Invest In John Deere: Killeen Castle Golf Club in Co Meath, Ireland is celebrating its 10th anniversary in 2019, as well as its recent investment in a state of the art golf course equipment fleet deal with John Deere and local dealer Dublin Grass Machinery worth in excess €500,000, with finance arranged through Deere’s partner Bank of Ireland.

The machinery acquisition represents a significant investment on the part of Killeen Castle in the future of the Jack Nicklaus Signature Course, as the club enters its second decade of golf operations. The championship golf course opened in 2009 and was described by the 18-time Major winner and course designer as “one of my proudest designs”.

Killeen Castle Invest In John Deere

The upgraded equipment fleet includes tees, fairway, greens and rough mowers, utility tractors, Gator utility vehicles, sprayers, top dressers and bunker rakes – with the latest John Deere E-Cut hybrid electric mowers now playing an important part in future-proofing the work of course superintendent Mark Collins and his team.

Killeen Castle has hosted The 2011 Solheim Cup between Europe and USA in addition to three Ladies Irish Opens from 2010 to 2012. The 630-acre estate also features a number of signature residential properties, The Dave Pelz Scoring Game School, Fore Golf Custom Club Fitters and a Norman castle dating back to 1181.

The castle will become the focal point of the estate following a recent grant of planning permission for a 177-room luxury hotel, including the renovation and restoration of the original structure which will house 17 suites and a number of luxury dining rooms. The new three-storey structure partnering this renovation will incorporate 160 rooms, a day spa, function rooms and a winter garden restaurant.

The investment in new equipment also included an upgrade and enhancement of the club’s rental golf cars and trolleys to the latest state of the art GPS units, as well as re-kerbing of the entire clubhouse compound. This was in addition to significant works around the golf course and peripheral areas to enhance the sanding and drainage profile of the course, all designed to ensure championship standard golfing conditions for members and visitors alike all year round.

“There were many key factors in choosing John Deere equipment,” said Mark Collins. “The relationship with Dublin Grass Machinery and sales manager Noel Bennett was high up the list, with the excellent technical and back-up service provided for the past 12 years.

“The quality of John Deere machinery is quite simply second to none, and the company’s advances in technology with the hybrid electric mowers made the decision an easy one. The overall package will allow us to continue to improve our work practices and deliver even better standards of course presentation to our members and guests.”

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