Tag Archive for: H2Pro

Praise For H2Pro TriSmart

Praise For H2Pro TriSmart: ICL’s H2Pro TriSmart provides everything required from a wetting agent, believes Stuart Hogg, Course Manager at The West Lancashire Golf Club.

Founded in 1873 and featured in the top 100 golf courses in Great Britain, The West Lancashire Golf Club is one of England’s truest seaside tests. There are few golfers who come away from this revered links course, midway between Liverpool and Formby, in any doubt that every aspect of their game has been suitably examined.

Praise For H2Pro TriSmart

“The West Lancashire Golf Club is an amazing place to work,” said Stuart. “It is steeped in history and very well respected. You don’t appreciate how close the course is to the sea until you come and see it.”

Stuart, who has been in greenkeeping for just over thirty years, has been the Course Manager for four years and has worked exclusively at Links courses throughout his career.

“Does the sea bring challenges? No, because having grown up on Links courses I’m used to it. However, we probably dry out a lot quicker, we get wind burn, we get salt burn and we have to be more mindful of height of cuts.

“Choosing products that can work to fit our circumstances is the key. I’ve had a lot of experience with different products and I believe in finding an optimum product range. For me, that is predominantly ICL.”

Praise For H2Pro TriSmart

The most recent addition to Stuart’s range of ICL products is the H2Pro TriSmart wetting agent, but it was a decision that he did not take lightly.

“I used to use a different wetting agent and there was nothing really wrong with it except I felt it was perhaps just holding a bit of moisture in the top. The decision to change to TriSmart could have come back to bite me but Phil Collinson (ICL’s North West Technical Area Sales Manager) had every confidence in it.”

Containing three water management technologies consisting of surfactant and polymer blends, TriSmart is renowned for providing great water penetration and an even water spread through the rootzone.

Stuart starts the programme at the end of February and applies TriSmart at a rate of 10L/ha every four to five weeks, depending on weather, until the end of July. Last year, he applied TriSmart to all of the greens and surrounds, which equates to an area size of 4 hectares, but due to the successful results the areas for treatment is set to significantly increase.

“With TriSmart I believe I got everything I was looking for in a wetting agent,” said Stuart. “Considering the season we encountered; we had improved rooting and I believe that was due to the fact that TriSmart was pulling the soil moisture down a little bit more. I also didn’t have to hand-water those areas at all which really helped in reducing irrigation and labour.

Praise For H2Pro TriSmart

“This year we will be increasing the applications of TriSmart to use it on the greens, surrounds and now the fairways – which is a big jump for the club considering that we will be going from using it on a unit size of 4 hectares up to 16 hectares. Ultimately the club has backed me and given me the funds to commit to this increase because I have shown them the difference TriSmart can make.”

Stuart also praised the support he receives from ICL.

Over the last couple of years working with Phil and ICL, it has helped make this decision easier. I have every confidence if I ever needed any help or support from ICL as a company, then it would be there which I believe is important.”

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

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ICL Launch H2Pro SaltSmart

ICL Launch H2Pro SaltSmart: ICL is expanding its leading range of H2Pro wetting agents with the launch of H2Pro “SaltSmart”.

Utilising advanced polymer and surfactant technology, the H2Pro range of specialist wetting agents have been carefully formulated and tested to help turf managers achieve maximum control of their moisture management.

ICL Launch H2Pro SaltSmart

The existing H2Pro’s DewSmart, TriSmart, FlowSmart and AquaSmart have been designed to achieve specific goals, each with a different blend of surfactants. The four products have been widely commended for offering a number of solutions such as; preventative and curative action against Dry Patch, providing a drier surface in wet conditions and significantly reducing irrigation requirements.

H2Pro SaltSmart is the latest addition to the H2Pro range and is set to provide turf managers with an even wider range of options for their moisture management strategies. A unique blend of penetrant surfactant with Calcium macro-polymer, H2Pro SaltSmart has been designed to move water and exchange cations thus reducing the impact of salt on turf. This specialist product works by allowing water to penetrate and dissolve and flush salts below the rooting level or out into the drainage system.

The build-up of salt levels in rootzones can be problematic in sports turf and H2Pro SaltSmart will be a welcome addition for venues such as links courses which may be situated close to the sea or for those who encounter high evaporation and low rainfall.

The product could also be extremely beneficial for low CEC sand-based rootzones that have limited buffering against salt influx and for turf managers who have poor quality groundwater for irrigation.

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

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H2Pro Praised At Blairgowrie GC

H2Pro Praised At Blairgowrie GC: The Lansdowne course at Blairgowrie Golf Club in Perthshire, Scotland, have been reaping the rewards of using ICL’s H2Pro, with Course Manager Craig Stewart full of praise for the moisture management products.

Craig Stewart is the man responsible for maintaining the magnificent championship course and has six full-time staff with two seasonal workers alongside him. As a long-term user of ICL products, Craig first started applying the H2Pro range of products five years ago after a successful trial.

H2Pro Praised At Blairgowrie GC

“Essentially, our aim was to keep the surface and the profile dry on the greens and approaches throughout winter. We tried a few products and then Jamie Lees (ICL Technical Area Sales Manager, Scotland) suggested trialling H2Pro TriSmart. We trialled it for two months in the middle of that summer, saw great results and we just carried on from there. I like the fact that you can go from TriSmart to FlowSmart carrying on the moisture management programme all through the year.”

Craig first applies H2ProTriSmart in April at a rate of 10L/ha. He continues with monthly applications before switching to H2Pro FlowSmart in September or October depending on the weather conditions.

“As soon as the weather begins to change and it turns a bit cooler then we know that it is time to switch to FlowSmart. We then use that for as long as it’s needed just to pull the moisture through the surface and the profile to dry the greens out.

“It is such a flexible programme and you can tailor it to your everyday conditions rather than having a fixed plan. If we get a wet spring or summer then we use FlowSmart until it starts to dry up a bit and then we switch back over to TriSmart, but it can work both ways.

“We’ve also noticed a big reduction in irrigation and hand watering. Since using H2Pro TriSmart we very seldom use another wetting agent because quite simply we have no need. It is labour saving because we no longer have guys out with hoses looking for dry patches on the greens and of course we are saving money on water usage too.”

The H2Pro range of products are not the only ICL products that Craig uses and he gave his reasons as to why the company plays such big role in his maintenance procedures.

“The majority of the products we use at Lansdowne are from ICL. Jamie helps me put a programme together every year and if we ever have any problems then he is always around for support. From a technical point of view, I just cannot fault the advice I get.

“We know the amount of money and research that goes into their products and I think that gives you confidence. Every product is consistently good. For example, when we get a bag of fertilizer from ICL we know exactly what we are getting – it is always consistent.”

Please contact ICL on +44 (0)1473 237100 or visit www.icl-sf.co.uk or www.icl-sf.ie

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