Tag Archive for: Provides

Green-tech provides automated irrigation

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Green-tech provides automated irrigation: The latest 4-star hotel to open its doors in Bristol’s Old City area has a fascinating history. The Clayton Hotel sits just within the medieval walls of St Johns, on the site of the original Grade 2 listed Everards printing works, first built in 1900.

Visitors are greeted by a gloriously colourful, tiled Art Nouveau frontage, designed by W.J. Neatby, the Chief Designer at Royal Doulton. His design depicts several facets of Bristol’s history; the female figure in the centre representing Light and Truth, and the two figures to either side, printing and literature, for which Bristol was becoming increasingly known.

Green-tech provides automated irrigation

Green-tech provides automated irrigation

Situated in the heart of the old city, outdoor space is practically non-existent, so plans were drawn up to utilise a small space on the lower level at the back to create a rain-forest inspired sunken garden, planted with mature tree ferns, raised beds and seating.

Green-tech involvement:

Having a good working relationship going back over a decade, Bath-based landscape architects MacGregor Smith had no hesitation in specifying Green-tech’s lightweight intensive topsoil and subsoil for all the planting beds in the sunken garden.

For the tree pits at ground level, the decision was taken to use Green-tech’s Green-tree Amenity Tree Soil; a fertile, load bearing structural tree soil from Green-tech, specifically developed to BS3882:2015 for use in the urban environment. Having a naturally open structure, Green-tree Amenity Tree Soil allows for compaction without sacrificing any water percolation or aeration properties of the soil.

To complete the tree pits, MacGregor Smith specified the Fortress tree grille tray. This is designed to accept block paving to ensure a seamless transition to the surrounding paved finish. Each pit included an irrigation pipe topped with Green-tech’s Mono Relief Piazza aluminium filler cap, which was set flush into the paving.

To ensure that the tree ferns in the sunken garden received adequate irrigation, the decision was made to fit a fully automated Rain Bird irrigation system, also from Green-tech. The system was custom designed for the area and featured micro-sprays and drip-lines, along with the all-important pressure regulators and solenoids. The pressure regulators are critical to any automated system, as they ensure that each emitter or drip line provides the same amount of water no matter how far down the line from the water source they are.

Jamie Cusack, Senior Associate from MacGregor Smith comments, “This was a challenging project, not only with the sunken garden, but also the tight spaces in which to work and get deliveries in. On this project Green-tech were particularly helpful in respect of providing detailed design input into the automated Rain Bird irrigation system, which helped ensure the successful establishment and longevity of the distinctive tree ferns.

Alasdair Innes, Green-tech Specification Advisor adds, “It’s always a pleasure to work on any MacGregor Smith project, and we first visited the site in February 2022 as the exterior trees were going in but before the sunken garden was in place. It was great to go back and see that everything has come together, especially the automated irrigation in the sunken garden.

For any further product information or to request a CPD in person or remotely on any of  Green-tech’s urban or rural modules please contact sales@green-tech.co.uk or call 01423 332100

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GrasPro provides critical analytics

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GrasPro provides critical analytics:Leading Greek turf consultants and laboratory, Grassform, is using GrasPro as their analytical tool of choice on Greek Super League pitches.

Pitch inputs and usage are the main areas being tracked, with GrasPro’s detailed reporting function being used to deliver an insightful time and cost-saving maintenance strategy for clients.

GrasPro provides critical analytics

GrasPro provides critical analytics

Co-founder of Grassform, Antonis Grimotsis, started his career in 2004 as an agronomic manager in sports pitch construction and maintenance projects. As an experienced independent consultant, he was accepted to join the Register of Independent Professional Turfgrass Agronomists (RIPTA) in February 2022.

Independence has a large part to play at Grassform as a company that focuses on using the best options available, GrasPro for analysis being a must-have among them. Antonis, alongside co-founder Fontini Mentesidi, started Grassform in 2017 and now utilise Greece’s only ISO 17025 specialised mobile laboratory to evaluate the quality of pitches according to FIFA and EN specifications. Using GrasPro to process this data is now a crucial part of the Grassform process and one that Antonis’ clients have quickly benefitted from.

“In the upper echelons of professional sports, such as high-ranking football clubs and stadia, the client’s need to achieve the best standards of performance and gain the highest ROI remains a constant and goes hand in hand with technological advances in the sports turf industry,” Antonis begins. “Advisers, therefore, must satisfy expanded expectations while readily adapting their services and operations within this very demanding and ever-evolving sector.

“Monitoring the maintenance of a playing surface properly, especially for professional sports, is a key stage in the process of assessment, and to ensure playing quality and the safety of players.

“GrasPro is an immensely valuable tool when it comes to identifying issues and problem patterns and then working to resolve them quickly.

“When it comes to developing and evaluating the maintenance programme for a playing surface including renovations, repairs, irrigation, application of fertilisers and nutrients, turf problem diagnoses and treatments, a consultant needs a reliable tool to log and analyse all the important task-related information to monitor progress, report to the client, and devise solutions.

“GrasPro allows me to follow up on what’s being done step by step and the effects of inputs on the pitch conditions. Thus, it enables me to make informed decisions about further actions.

“Based on data, a consultant can propose tailor-made solutions and precise interventions. This includes limiting amounts to what is required, and a combination of products such as type of fertiliser and biostimulants, etc. So, by optimising the outcomes, both quality and cost-effectiveness are achieved.

“A comprehensive collection of data can facilitate a more insightful and time-saving management strategy, and I feel confident of my sources, knowing that the proposals I put forward are data-driven and based on measurable results.

“Importantly, the platform is easy to use with a straightforward interface that allows for quick data entry, and it was easy for administrative staff to pick up without prior knowledge.”

Since 2021 Grassform has been applying its three-axis of observation, evaluation and design to Greek Super League pitches as part of the league’s pitch upgrading scheme for 2021-2022. This includes 14 football pitches and their associated training grounds.

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Enstar provides concentrated control

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Enstar provides concentrated control: Enstar from Headland Amenity is a powerful three-way selective herbicide for the control of a wide range of weeds including Slender Speedwell, Creeping Buttercup and Yellow Suckling Clover. Suitable for use in both fine turf and sports turf applications, Enstar is also suitable for use on young turf when applied at a lower rate.

Part of the Headland selective herbicide portfolio, Enstar offers the safe, efficient and targeted control of invasive, broad-leaved and difficult-to-manage turfgrass weed species, without detriment to the health of the surrounding grass plants. It contains three active ingredients – 2,4-D, dicamba and fluroxypyr – to control weeds in golf fairways, sports pitches, lawns and other amenity grass.

Enstar provides concentrated control

Enstar provides concentrated control

Enstar is most effective when applied while weeds are actively growing, the soil is moist and temperatures are warm, at a rate of 2L in 200-1000L of water per hectare. It can also be applied safely on newly-sown managed amenity turf, at least two months after grass emergence, at a reduced rate of 0.95L per hectare. In addition to application through vehicle mounted equipment, Enstar is approved for use in boom and knapsack sprayers. Areas can be treated with Enstar up to twice per year, with a minimum interval of 21 days between applications.

At Heythrop Park in Oxfordshire, Estates Manager Paul Young has been using Enstar for the last three years, on an area of approximately 80 hectares – including estate lawns, and the fairways, tees & roughs of the 18-hole golf course. “Enstar is a fantastically versatile and simple-to-use herbicide that, after a single annual application, keeps everything in check” explains Paul. “While we’re not a particularly ‘weedy’ course, Enstar has controlled some issues we’ve had with daisies and dandelions, with minimal re-growth and the benefit of a second application if required.”

Daisies are also an issue for Darren Lee, Course Manager at Salisbury & South Wilts Golf Club. “Some of our 27 fairways suffer so badly that it becomes difficult for players to see their ball at times!” he explains. “We used Enstar for the first time this year, in a tank mix with Headland’s Xtend® 46-0-0 and Elevate Fe®, which we applied in mid-May. Along with fantastic results on daisies, it appears to have killed some Speedwell we had which, with previous products, we’d only really managed to knock back.”

Enstar carries a LERAP requirement, please refer to the label or www.headlandamenity.com for full details.

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Suståne provides the organic solution

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Suståne provides the organic solution: Organic solutions to plant nutrition and soil management are becoming an ever-increasing choice at leading sports facilities around the globe, as attention turns to both the impacts of more traditional chemicals and the benefits to the environment of more natural approaches.

Built on over 40 years of research, Suståne Natural Fertiliser has one of the largest ranges of organic-based fertilisers and soil builders developed for all landscape and turf applications.

Suståne provides the organic solution

Suståne provides the organic solution

Suståne is the most comprehensively researched organic fertiliser brand available in today’s market. Over 800 independent studies have been conducted in areas including turf establishment, disease suppression, environmental impact, effects on wildlife and soil improvement – the result of this research is a biologically-active, organic product range built for agronomic performance. Suståne’s aerobic, thermophilic composting process is the most environmentally sound method for recycling of agricultural residue, generating no methane and fewer greenhouse gases than other organic stabilisation processes. With the manufacturing impact on the environment low, the benefits of Suståne to the landscape are many.

Through the unique process, the organic feedstock is concentrated into a nutrient rich humus – rich in microbial diversity yet low in biological oxygen demand. Suståne’s microbial diversity index of 4.5 is critical to many soil and plant functions, providing optimal microbiology for plants to thrive. The release of nitrogen is slow, predictable and efficient, reducing loss to the environment through volatilisation, leaching or immobilisation and provides a long-lasting, sustainable source of plant nutrition and soil improvements.

There are formulations within the Suståne range suitable for every turf type and agronomic application, from 100% organic to higher nitrogen natural-base formulations, each with unique release rates and nutrient profiles. New to the range in 2021 is Suståne Soil Regen® – a soil amendment product formulated to improve soil structure by increasing infiltration rates and the profiles’ ability to hold nutrients and moisture.

The Suståne range is available through a network of approved distributors globally, with dedicated Regional Managers on hand to provide tailored, technical advice.

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Top-Brush provides worm cast solution

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Top-Brush provides worm cast solution: Constructed on a heavy clay soil profile, the two 18-hole courses at Welwyn Garden City’s Brocket Hall Estate fell victim last year to what arguably has become one of the biggest challenges for fine turf managers – worm casts.

Without available curative chemistry, Golf Course Manager John Moorhouse turned to his local dealer for advice who recommended the Redexim Top-Brush. Three months on from taking delivery, the Top-Brush has proven itself to be a true multi-tasker – not only tackling the issue of worm casts but leaves and surface moisture too.

Top-Brush provides worm cast solution

Top-Brush provides worm cast solution

Quintessentially British in their design, but very different in terms of their challenge to golfers and greenkeepers alike, the Palmerston and Melbourne courses are overseen by a dedicated team of 10. “The combination of our heavy soil and milder, wetter autumns has seen a huge spike in the number of worm casts we’re seeing” explains John. “I spoke with David Fisher of George Browns to see if there was a way of removing the casts prior to cutting. He straight away organised a demonstration of the Top-Brush.”

The Redexim Top-Brush is a six-metre-wide poly-brush, comprised of three sections, that can quickly and effectively rid large areas, such as fairways, of worm casts, organic matter and dew. Because the brushes can rotate in or against the direction of travel, it can be used to remove lateral growth and stand the plant upright – contributing to better airflow into the canopy and a cleaner quality of cut.

“It’s really easy to hook-up via the 3-point linkage and it’s quick and straight forward to adjust the rotation direction and working depth. It has not only done exactly as we hoped in clearing surface casts, but it also played a major part in leaf clearance on the heavily tree-lined Palmerston course – using the brushes anti-clockwise to lift and move the leaves and other debris such as pine needles out of play and giving us a great, clean finish.”

When used with clockwise rotation, John has been impressed with the Top-Brush’s ability to remove dew and improve course presentation. “It has given us a quick and effective method of reducing surface moisture, especially early mornings, not only contributing to improvements in plant health but giving us a beautiful striped finish on the fairways.” He concludes, “As we head into the spring, in addition to all of its existing uses, we plan to use the Top-Brush to help with incorporation of topdressing material. The versatility demonstrated by this piece of kit means it has done exactly what we hoped for, and so much more.”

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