Tag Archive for: Delivers

MM Seed Delivers Proven Performance

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MM Seed Delivers Proven Performance: Managing one of the busiest multi-sport facilities on the south coast is no small task – especially in a region increasingly defined by prolonged dry spells and intense seasonal wear. At Bournemouth University, Grounds Manager Alex McCombie relies on proven seed performance and trusted technical support to keep standards high across a hugely demanding site.

Alex has been in the post for four years, overseeing an extensive sports complex that includes eight football pitches, three rugby pitches, cricket squares and outfields, hockey pitches, a 3G surface and extensive surrounding landscapes. While the facilities serve students, around 75% of usage comes from the wider community, with Bournemouth Rugby Club, Bournemouth Sports Football Club and Bournemouth Cricket Club all calling the site home.

MM Seed Delivers Proven Performance

MM Seed Delivers Proven Performance

“We’re a university, but we’re also a massive community campus,” Alex explains. “We’ve got fixtures midweek and weekends, and on some days, we’ll have multiple matches on the same pitch. We’re talking around 5,000 users every week, so wear tolerance and recovery are absolutely critical.”

Situated on an extremely free-draining site, Bournemouth University benefits from excellent winter playability – but summer conditions are increasingly challenging.

“From Easter through to October we hardly had any rain at all,” says Alex. “That’s great in winter, but in summer it puts huge stress on the grass. We need something with genuine drought tolerance that can also stand up to relentless wear.”

That need led Alex to MM Tetra Sport, a specialist overseeding mixture consisting of tetraploid ryegrasses, designed specifically for high-quality sports turf.

“Tetra Sport has been a bit of a no-brainer for us,” he says. “It establishes quickly, it wears well, and it stood up incredibly well during a brutal summer. I was genuinely impressed.”

The mixture delivers fast germination, rapid sward establishment, and excellent winter and summer colour, while offering high disease resistance and strong wear tolerance. The inclusion of new, highly rated cultivars, exclusive to the MM range, has been particularly important at Bournemouth University, where pitches see continuous use.

Alex even took the unusual step of overseeding a rugby pitch in December.

“Soil temperatures here stay fairly good, and we usually have a short break after the last fixture before Christmas,” he explains. “We drilled Tetra Sport in just before that break, and it came through really nicely. The results exceeded my expectations.”

For cricket renovations and repairs, Alex turns to MM50, widely regarded as the leading mixture for end-of-season renovation work and mid-season repairs.

“We’ve used MM50 on our cricket squares for a couple of years now and had superb results,” he says. “The density we get is excellent, and it recovers really quickly from play.”

MM50 contains a blend of fine-leaved ryegrasses, producing an extremely hard-wearing, dense surface, and is treated with Headstart® GOLD to support faster establishment and stronger early growth.

“We don’t tend to spray for disease at all,” Alex adds. “We’re lucky, but disease pressure is minimal. The square we renovated with MM50 played probably the best it ever has last season, and the feedback from the cricket club has been very positive.”

Beyond product performance, Alex highlights the importance of strong relationships and reliable technical support – something he has found consistently with MM Seed.

“I’ve used MM Seed for years and had a long-standing relationship with Matt Gresty,” he says. “Matt’s absolutely superb – always on hand with advice, and he’s even helped put together specialist mixes specifically for our site.”

That bespoke approach proved invaluable following the university’s large annual rugby festival, where tailored mixtures were required to accelerate recovery across heavily worn areas.

“David Bevan from Agrovista Amenity, who I get the seed from, is brilliant as well,” Alex continues. “Between David and Matt, the service is excellent. They’re knowledgeable, approachable, and genuinely supportive. You feel like they understand what you’re trying to achieve.”

For a site facing intense usage, extreme dryness and year-round pressure, Bournemouth University’s experience shows how the right seed – combined with the right support – can make all the difference.

Visit the new and improved MM Seed website at www.mm-seeds.co.uk

You can also follow the company on X: @MM_Seed.

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Baroness delivers reliability and performance

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Baroness delivers reliability and performance: For over 20 years, Bristol’s Tall Pines Golf Club have relied on the consistency and quality of Baroness to keep their playing surfaces in pristine condition.

Head Greenkeeper Marc Rossiter currently runs a fleet of eight Baroness mowers to cut every blade of grass at the 18-hole course, praising the outstanding simplicity in operation and industry-leading reliability of cut the brand has delivered for over two decades.

Baroness delivers reliability and performance

Baroness delivers reliability and performance

Himself celebrating 30 years at the club next year, Marc knows firsthand the difference high-quality, reliable equipment makes. “Put simply, they cut better than anything we’ve used previously and the build quality with Baroness is brilliant. On our fairways, for example, we’re using the LM551B and have never had to change the bottom blade, whereas on other machines, you’d be changing it every season” he explains.

Running alongside the LM551B fairway mower is the GM2810A five-deck rough rotary mower, two LM315GC greens mowers, an LM331 for tees and surrounds, LM180 for banks and around trees and a pair of Baroness LM56GC hand mowers. “They all suit our situation really well” Marc adds. “Each machine gives us versatility, whether that’s working on different terrain and coping well with the course’s slopes and valleys or being able to easily adjust the height of cut to mow multiple areas, on different ground conditions, with one machine.”

“Our LM315GC greens mowers can also be equipped with rollers and scarifier cassettes, which we can quickly exchange with the cutting units and means we can conduct multiple maintenance operations saving both time and money.” Further budget-friendly benefits are brought about by the LM315’s cable-driven operation. “This not only reduces the risk of a hydraulic or oil leak but, in the 20 years we’ve had these machines, we’ve only had the occasional cable snap, reducing all-important downtime and costly repair bills.”

Marc continues, “The machines are not complicated or flashy, but they do exactly what we need them to do and that’s cut grass really well! The fact that there’s less to go wrong is a huge plus with us being a small team of five and not having our own dedicated mechanic.”

When support is needed, Marc and the team know they can call on local dealers Lister Wilder or their Baroness regional manager Paul Watson. “On the rare occasion we have a question or issue, the after-sales support is second-to-none. If it’s something that can’t be answered over the phone, someone will be with us that day or the next to get us back up and running nice and quickly.”

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Trilo M10 delivers cleaner, greener grounds

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Trilo M10 delivers cleaner, greener grounds: Glendale Services, one of the UK’s leading national grounds maintenance contractors, has strenghtened a longstanding relationship with Trilo by investing in a new Trilo M10 vacuum collector – supporting large-scale grass, leaf and debris collection operations across London and the South of England.

A vast and varied fleet of equipment facilitates Glendale’s work on contracts around the country, with around 1500 staff spanning their grounds maintenance, corporate and arboricultural divisions. The company has relied on Trilo equipment for much of their three decades in business, using a wide range of models including the M10, M12 and numerous SU40’s to meet the demands of its large-scale operations.

Trilo M10 delivers cleaner, greener grounds

Trilo M10 delivers cleaner, greener grounds

“We’ve used Trilo machines for basically as long as they’ve been available in the UK” said Neal Harper, Group Machinery Manager at Glendale Services. “Some of our units have given us more than 20 years of reliable service, so when it came to investing in something reliable, efficient and built to last to support a new, long-term contract, the M10 was the natural choice.”

The 10m3 capacity Trilo Multipurpose replaces a long-serving predecessor and was specifically selected for its combination of high productivity and compact dimensions, suiting the access requirements of key urban and parkland sites. “We looked at larger models, but our work often involves navigating tight paths or gateway so the M10 was the perfect fit – literally!”

Among its many applications, the M10 is equipped with a flail shaft for meadow cut and collect, and easily swapped to the brush attachment for grass and leaf collection and major event clear-ups, including post-race operations for the London Marathon. Equipped with an electronically controlled Wonder Hose, the new model enables single-person operation, improving efficiency and reducing staffing requirements on certain jobs. “This feature makes a huge difference on big clearance jobs, meaning one person can work quickly and safely” he adds.

Neal went on to praise the consistent customer support from Trilo’s Jeremy Vincent. “Jeremy knows the machines inside out and always finds an answer to our questions – even arranging for us to have a demonstration of the M10 with another customer when the demo unit was out of the country.”

For the delivery of the M10 Jeremy was supported by established Trilo dealer, and trusted partner for Glendale’s operations across the South, Lister Wilder. Neal concludes, “We couldn’t be happier with the service and performance of the M10. Our Trilo machines of all sizes and configurations continue to give us exactly what we need and deliver outstanding results for our clients on every job.”

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Rhenac RML 400 Delivers Full Spectrum LED Technology

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Rhenac RML 400 Delivers Full Spectrum LED Technology: Rhenac, the grow lighting specialists, has launched the RML 400, the latest addition to its CLS® (Complete Light Spectrum) product range, delivering scientifically optimised turf care across a 400 sqm footprint.

Designed for venues seeking compact, efficient and sustainable pitch management, the RML 400 combines industry-leading LED technology with lightweight rig design, to provide world-class turf growth under artificial conditions.

Rhenac RML 400 Delivers Full Spectrum LED Technology

Rhenac RML 400 Delivers Full Spectrum LED Technology

Modern stadiums and training centres are under increasing pressure to deliver consistent playing surfaces all year round, often under shade from stands and meeting demanding fixture schedules. For grounds professionals, maintaining health turf in these conditions requires tools that not only stimulate growth but do so effectively. The RML 400 has been developed to meet these challenges, providing an adaptable, high-performance solution that integrates seamlessly into the daily routines of venue managers and their teams.

At the heart of the RML 400 is CLS® by Rhenac®, the only patented LED system that replicates the full spectrum of natural sunlight. This unique approach is backed by over 12 years of plant research at the Technical University of Munich (TUM) and proven performance at elite stadiums, including the Santiago Bernabéu and Schalke’s Veltins-Arena.

The results are measurable with up to 100% more root growth, double the biomass, 40% fewer input requirements, and 30% more playable hours. With just three RML 400 rigs, pitch managers can achieve full-pitch width coverage with 90% light homogeneity, supporting faster germination and quicker recovery.

Horst Theisen, CEO of Rhenac, explains, “The RML 400, using our LED research from the Technical University of Munich, combines our latest footprint technology and the market’s best homogeneity across 400 square meters, meaning an even coverage with consistent turf quality across all treated zones.

“For us, it’s not just about one monochromatic light; it’s much more. It’s about creating balanced light recipes that replicate natural sunlight and adjusting temperature to support every stage of turf growth.”

“Red light stimulates germination and shoot growth, while blue light promotes root development, shear strength, leaf structure and density. White light enhances overall turf health and vitality, while far red drives length growth. The ability to create bespoke recipes with this mixture of light, combined with infrared heating, ensures the optimal conditions for turf recovery, resilience and consistent playability.”

“We also have analysers and real-time sensors that look deeper into the leaf to understand more about the reaction of the pitch to the light and its circumstances. This allows grounds teams to focus on branching, recovery, and pitch density, and that’s only possible by creating different light recipes.”

Alongside its advanced lighting technology, the RML 400 benefits from Rhenac’s collaboration with TLS, pioneers of single-row aluminium mobile lighting. This ensures a lightweight, easy-to-handle rig that’s practical for grounds teams to transport, deploy and store.

These design benefits translate directly into ease of use for grounds teams. Other features of the RML 400 system include intuitive controls, light sensor automation and smart remote operation from pitchside.

To ensure long-term reliability, Rhenac will provide spare parts for 10 years, and the product will be supported by a comprehensive service model, combining remote assistance with a dedicated international service team.

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GKB Combitool delivers year round excellence

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GKB Combitool delivers year round excellence: A GKB Combitool has proven the solution to improving surface quality, and reducing reliance on hired equipment, at Norfolk’s Langley School.

Senior Groundsman Phil Cook leads a team of four in maintaining 19 hectares of school grounds – made that much easier with the versatility of the 4-in-1 implement which has taken presentation of the sports pitches to new heights.

GKB Combitool delivers year round excellence

GKB Combitool delivers year round excellence

When Phil joined the co-educational day and boarding school 18 months ago, most of the maintenance machinery was hired in. Notification followed shortly after that prices were due to increase so a change of tact was needed. “It made sense to look at what we were using most often, and as a versatile all-rounder, we knew something like the GKB Combitool would make a big difference across multiple areas of the site” Phil explains.

Working closely with Stuart Paterson at Ernest Doe & Sons, the school built a package of machines – including the GKB Combitool – for delivery in October 2024.

“I hadn’t had any previous experience of GKB, but when I saw the brochure and the build quality of the unit, it was an easy decision. In practice, it has more than lived up to expectations. It’s incredibly solid, reliable and easy to use enabling us to brush, rake, roll and spike our 10 winter sports pitches year-round and, in springtime, our cricket outfields on a weekly basis.” He adds, “Because of the size of the site, we sometimes used to struggle with moving clippings. Now, we can follow the mower with a single pass of the GKB Combitool, rake the clippings up and leave an immaculately presented surface in its wake.”

The delivery also couldn’t have been better planned for Phil and the team, with the Combitool landing just in time for Langley’s annual rugby festival which attracts teams from across the UK. “With so many spectators and matches in a condensed period, presentation really matters. Running the Combitool between games was a real eye-opener. It lifted the grass, left a brilliant finish and helped us retain superb surfaces for the duration of the event.”

The quality and value delivered by the GKB Combitool has certainly left a strong impression, leading Phil to look at other areas of their maintenance programme. “The Combitool has become our go-to implement, and is raising standards so much, we’d like to see about adding more GKB Machines to our armoury to bring other areas up to a similar level – ensuring the facilities continue to meet the high expectations of our students, visiting clubs and national tournaments alike.”

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