Tag Archive for: Solution

Tree Hugger®: A Sustainable Solution for Tree Protection

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Tree Hugger®: A Sustainable Solution for Tree Protection: As we enter National Tree Week, there’s no better time to highlight the importance of sustainable tree care. Trees are vital to our environment, but their early years require protection from animals, harsh weather, and competing vegetation. While traditional plastic guards have long been the go-to solution, they come with significant environmental and logistical downsides.

Enter Tree Hugger®, exclusively available from Agrovista Amenity, the eco-friendly, biodegradable alternative that’s set to revolutionise how we safeguard young trees.

Tree Hugger®: A Sustainable Solution for Tree Protection

Tree Hugger®: A Sustainable Solution for Tree Protection

Why Not Plastic?

Plastic tree guards, typically made from non-biodegradable petrochemicals, pose numerous problems such as:

  • Environmental Impact: Traditional guards break down into microplastics, contributing to pollution and bioaccumulation in ecosystems.
  • Animal Safety: Broken plastic fragments can harm small animals.
  • Aesthetic Issues: As trees outgrow their shelters, abandoned plastic guards create unsightly litter.
  • Removal Burden: Retrieving plastic guards is costly and labour-intensive, with recycling options often limited and expensive.
  • Tree Health: Plastic guards can sometimes trap excessive heat and promote weed growth, both of which can hinder healthy tree development.

The True Cost of Plastic

Beyond environmental concerns, plastic guards come with hidden costs. Recycling programmes, while helpful, often have stringent requirements and fees. Labour and transportation costs for removal can range from £1 to £1.50 per guard—excluding VAT—and escalate further for guards located in challenging areas such as roadsides or railway embankments.

Tree Hugger®: The natural choice

Available exclusively through Agrovista Amenity, Tree Hugger® guards provide a much-needed solution. These innovative products are made from biodegradable materials, including loomstate organic cotton and pine rosin from FSC-certified Scandinavian forests. Designed to last a minimum of five years, they protect young trees without the need for collection or recycling.

Key Benefits of Tree Hugger® Products:

  • Plastic-e: Completely biodegradable, eliminating microplastic pollution.
  • Encourages Growth: The unique visible light spectrum within the guards promotes tree development.
  • Durable: A lifespan of at least five years ensures long-term protection.
  • Animal Protection: Guards are strong enough to resist prying animals, including voles.
  • Ease of Use: No removal or recycling logistics, saving time and costs.
  • Sustainable Design: Made from organic and recycled materials, meeting international sustainability standards (ISCC PLUS certification).

Product Range

Tree Guards: Available in various sizes (0.6m–1.8m heights and 70–110mm diameters), these guards protect trees during their critical establishment period.

Vole Guards: With diameters of 45–50mm, these guards shield young trees from vole damage by forming a barrier at the soil level.

Shrub Shelters: Designed for shrubs and trees with larger diameters, these shelters improve survival rates and are secured with stakes.

Hedge Wraps: Quick-to-install wraps that protect hedges, vines, and trees during early growth, supported by bamboo canes.

A Greener Future with Tree Hugger®

For every 8,000 trees planted with Tree Hugger® guards, approximately 700kg of plastic is avoided—equivalent to saving 35,000 single-use 330ml plastic bottles. By choosing biodegradable solutions, farmers, landowners, and local authorities can significantly reduce their environmental footprint while ensuring robust tree protection.

By offering Tree Hugger® guards, Agrovista Amenity reinforces its dedication to reducing environmental impact while delivering practical, high-performance products.

This National Tree Week, make the sustainable choice. With Agrovista Amenity and Tree Hugger®, you’re not just protecting trees—you’re protecting the planet.

For more information about Agrovista UK, visit www.agrovista.co.uk/amenity

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Redexim proves the solution for safe synthetic surfaces

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Redexim proves the solution for safe synthetic surfaces: A combination of the RTC plus and Verti-Top® TB from Redexim have been entrusted with protecting and preserving the lifespan of the synthetic surfaces – along with the health and safety of the students – at Emanuel School.

With the recent addition of an all-weather pitch at their Blagdon sports ground, the school opted to purchase a maintenance set-up for both this and the main site in South-West London to retain performance and keep the surfaces clear of contamination.

Redexim proves the solution for safe synthetic surfaces

Redexim proves the solution for safe synthetic surfaces

Sport plays an integral part of life for students at Emanuel School, reflected in the ongoing investment into the quality facilities available to pupils and a number of clubs and organisations in the wider community. Estates Director Chris Wright heads up a number of teams responsible for the upkeep and maintenance of the grounds and sports surfaces across the three sites. “With one artificial surface at the main school, our second at the Blagdon site came online in September 2023 which really made us look at how we were going to maintain these, along with the synthetic lawns we’ve introduced into our ornamental areas” Chris explains.

“The maintenance was previously contracted out, but from a cost and practical perspective, it became logical to invest in equipment that would give us the flexibility to conduct regular brushing and a more intensive deep clean more frequently.”

After speaking to local dealers Lister Wilder, Chris and the team opted for two RTC plus brush units and two Verti-Top® TB cleaning systems from the award-winning Redexim synthetic range. Powered by a 22hp petrol engine, the RTC plus features a 2.7m wide underslung, winged brush to make routine brushing a breeze. This is then complemented by the more intensive cleaning delivered by the Verti-Top® TB which lifts and separates contaminants from all types of infill material using a combination of vacuum and sieve.

“This partnership gives us flexibility and effective cleaning for the shorter-pile, sand-dressed surfaces as well as the ornamental carpet which has a longer pile. The RTC plus is out once a week and then we can affix the Verti-Top® TB to the RTC for a thorough clean once a month.” Chris continues, “The Verti-Top® has really impressed us with the amount of detritus it collects – everything from paper clips to jewellery which are removed in a single pass.”

The purchase also means the maintenance teams have eliminated contamination risks when switching equipment between natural and synthetic turf. “We don’t want to be putting a tractor with muddy tyres onto the artificial pitches which could then go on to cause other playability or safety problems.” He adds, “We’ve been really pleased with the performance and results to date, and as we’ve come to expect from Redexim it’s a well-built, well-designed solution which will help us to present good, clean surfaces for many years to come.”

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Jacobsen® unveils fully electric mowing solution

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Jacobsen® unveils fully electric mowing solution: In 2024, Jacobsen will become one of the first manufacturers to offer a fully electric golf course mowing service solution. With the Eclipse 2 ELiTE™ walking greens mower, ELiTE lithium outfront and AR1 ELiTE articulated rotary mower joining the already successful Eclipse 360 ELiTE and SLF1 ELiTE models.

Jacobsen has scaled up the power requirements for fairway and rough machines using tried and tested Samsung® Lithium SDI technology. By partnering this technology with Jacobsen mowers, turf professionals can cut all day on greens, tees, fairways, or roughs, while always maintaining Jacobsen’s famous quality of cut.

Jacobsen® unveils fully electric mowing solution

Jacobsen® unveils fully electric mowing solution

Extending the benefits of lithium to the entire course enables golf organizations to reduce their carbon emissions further, but there are also significant user benefits. With noise and vibration greatly decreased, a day of cutting fairways or rough will have less stress on the operator, bringing increased comfort and productivity.

To enhance the efficiency and productivity of these machines, Jacobsen has added PACE Technology™, an equipment management and geofencing system that is a screenless web-based solution. PACE can be accessed from any device and features real-time tracking and task management to maximize the effectiveness of your operation. Users can track and measure the power output per hole of the machines to maximize their performance and develop a bespoke picture of how they work on the course.

Testing these innovations and their capabilities has been a big consideration. Jacobsen, Cushman®, and PACE have collaborated with 26 courses across three continents in 2023, including Sage Valley Golf Club, South Carolina, Loch Lomond Golf Club, Scotland, and Peninsula Kingswood in Australia.

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ECO 135TT is the solution for Pro Axe

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ECO 135TT is the solution for Pro Axe: After four years of hiring woodchippers, with ‘mixed’ experiences, the time was right for Dan Snaith of Pro Axe to invest in a machine to call his own – that being an ECO 135TT from GreenMech.

Opting for the turntable model, the ECO 135TT has brought new-found convenience to day-to-day operations, not just available when he needs it, but rotatable to be exactly where he needs it too!

ECO 135TT is the solution for Pro Axe

ECO 135TT is the solution for Pro Axe

Dan has used various makes and models of woodchipper during his two decades in the industry, half of those operating under DS Grounds Maintenance – recently rebranded and relaunched as Pro Axe. “We undertake all manner of domestic and commercial tree-works for customers across South West Wales, which had put a lot of pressure on an aging GreenMech we previously had at our disposal” explains Dan. “We’ve therefore been relying on hire centres for the last few years which was unreliable and inconvenient to say the least!”

“I got in touch with Martin Lucas at GreenMech who responded quickly and arranged a demonstration of the ECO 135TT for the following week with our local dealer Powercut. The whole process was seamless and as soon as I saw the machine, I was sold!”

Defined as entry-level but delivering an impressive 5” chipping capacity, GreenMech’s ECO 135 range is ideal for a wide range of arb and landscape applications. The road-tow ECO 135TT model features a 24hp Loncin engine and full 360o turntable for powerful performance and unbeatable manoeuvrability.

“For me, this was one of the main selling points – it’s lightweight, easy to transport and when we arrive on site we can simply turn the ECO 135TT to face in any given direction, improving efficiency and safety for the operator especially when working at the roadside. Being petrol powered has also resulted in a reduction in our fuel spend, giving us chipping power that I’d say is on par with a larger 6” machine in a unit that’s close to half the size.”

“I was also impressed with the fast delivery, we waited only a few weeks before Powercut installed the machine with us in early October.” Since its delivery, the ECO 135TT has proven a versatile addition to the team. “It’s been out every week, and has tackled everything we’ve put through it – including hedge brash which the GreenMech seems to mulch through no problem. Overall, I couldn’t be happier.”

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Johnsons J Tee proves the solution to shade issues at

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Johnsons J Tee proves the solution to shade issues at: A trial of J Tee from the Johnsons Sports Seed range has now been rolled out course-wide at Knutsford Golf Club in Cheshire, after solving a number of issues on their heavily shaded tees.

The combination of high footfall and a lack of sunlight caused by trees have previously posed a number of problems when it comes to the maintenance of the small tees, which Course Manager David Jones now claims to be a thing of the past thanks to the ‘second to none’ results from the J Tee mix.

Johnsons J Tee proves the solution to shade issues at

Johnsons J Tee proves the solution to shade issues at

Knutsford Golf Club, once part of National Trust site Tatton Park, is somewhat unique with a 10-green layout. While this enables golfers to play a different 9 and 18th hole, for David and his team of four, this means double the traffic on the tees which he admits used to let the overall course condition down. “We knew that removing trees to allow for better light and airflow was not going to be an option accepted by the members so we had to find another way” he explains. “I put an SOS call out to Stuart Yarwood, our Regional DLF Technical Manager, to see what we could do and the support and advice we’ve had has been brilliant.”

Stuart recommended Johnsons J Tee – combining 4Turf® tetraploid ryegrass along with traditional ryegrass and strong creeping red fescue. The additional inclusion of 5% Sabrena rough stalked meadow grass makes J Tee truly unique, creating a mixture that delivers exceptional disease resistance, rapid establishment and a hard-wearing sward even under heavy shade, making it ideal for golf tees and pathways. The fineness of leaf and shoot density of Sabrena is comparable to a high-quality bent cultivar, while its speed of establishment is akin to that of perennial ryegrass – enhanced further by DLF’s Growmax seed coating which enhances overseeding results in difficult conditions. In shade trials, Sabena is amongst the hardest wearing varieties on the market.

“We began a programme with J Tee in the spring, which has really come to fruition over the summer. The biggest difference has been the wear tolerance, the team and I have seen a noticeable improvement in sward density which is withstanding and the wear and tear.” David continues, “The 4th tee is the most shaded and even here, we’ve achieved outstanding coverage.”

The successes of J Tee come alongside three years of fantastic results with Johnsons J All Bent on the greens. “Our greens are over 100 years old and where other varieties have struggled with the drainage and poor soil profile, the strike we had from the J All Bent made this a no-brainer to continue.” He adds, “We’ve also noticed that we require less water and chemical inputs to maintain the greens, even in the difficult weather conditions we’ve all had these last couple of years, while still retaining good plant health and little to no disease.”

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