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Reduce the effects of exhaust emissions

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Reduce the effects of exhaust emissions: You may think that if you’re operating petrol-powered equipment, particularly in poorly ventilated spaces, that exposure to harmful hydrocarbons is largely unavoidable.

Benzene is just one of the many hydrocarbons found in conventional pump fuel and exhaust emissions, often considered the substance most dangerous to human health. However, there is an alternative in the form of Aspen Alkylate petrol – switching to which can reduce benzene emissions by up to 108 times!

Reduce the effects of exhaust emissions

Reduce the effects of exhaust emissions

The Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations 2002 (COSHH) regulations advise against benzene exposure completely, but where this cannot be reasonably achieved, there are steps that can be taken to adequately control exposure as far as is reasonably practicable – and certainly below the workplace exposure limit (WEL) assigned for benzene of part per million (ppm) of air averaged over an 8-hour period. One way of doing this could be switching from traditional pump fuel to Aspen.

An Alkylate petrol, Aspen is made using only the cleanest Alkylate components that occur when oil is refined. This process involves combining excess gases from the distillation of crude oil and from the cracking plant, resulting in a liquid alkylate. Once some additional components are mixed in, the result is a finished fuel which is significantly purer than traditional petrol, with content of harmful aromatic hydrocarbons such as benzene and polyaromatics (PAH) close to zero.

Being virtually free from benzene, as well as sulphur and many other harmful substances, using Aspen Alkylate petrol improves the health and performance of your equipment, the working conditions for the operator and significantly reduces the harmful impact your machinery makes on the environment. Aspen is also ethanol-free, which improves reliability, maintains engine performance and preserves the life of component parts which can be susceptible to failure when running on conventional pump fuel, especially if it has been left for any extended period of time in storage.

Aspen is available in a range of unit sizes (5L, 25L, 60L and 200L) and in both pre-mixed 2-stroke and 4-stroke varieties.

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A glimpse into the future

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A glimpse into the future: PSD Groundscare, the UK distributor for AS Motor, is delighted to offer a glimpse of several innovative, new machines from the AS Motor range including an exciting range of eco-friendly battery mowers, being introduced during 2022.

AS Motor have built an unrivalled reputation and core competence in the market of long grass and steep slopes mowing since it was founded back in 1959. The last 60 years has seen continued development in technological advancements and these new machines are no exception.

A glimpse into the future

A glimpse into the future

AS Motor announce the introduction of 2 new product lines – the AS 1000 Ovis Remote Controlled tracked flail mower and a new range of Battery electric mowers capable for cutting long grass without compromising on performance. (For further details on the new machines please see the attached).

PSD Groundscare is the exclusive UK distributor of niche specialist landscaping equipment, with an extensive range of products from market-leading names and innovative European manufacturers AS Motor, Eliet, Koppl & TS Industrie.  The business has a strong commitment to being an eco-friendly organisation and has a commitment to improve its green credentials even further. The electrification of the AS machines is in perfect keeping with this philosophy.

The Colne -based organisation already boasts an impressive record for environmental awareness and over the past year has undertaken several new measures including investing in renewable energy, reducing energy consumption and CO2 emissions and helping improve air quality locally.

PSD Managing Director Chris Gibson said:

“We’re extremely excited by the introduction of the new AS 1000 Ovis RC as it emphasizes our commitment to remain at the forefront of safely cutting grass and brush on the steepest of Slopes. The machine will be showcased at Saltex 2021 and available for sale during 2022”.

“The expansion of the range of battery powered equipment with extended run times will provide our customers and dealers with high performance professional low noise machines that produce zero emissions and lower hand arm vibration. Meaning they’re a win-win for customers, operators and the environment that we can’t wait to get demonstrating to our customers”.

FOR FURTHER DETAILED PRODUCT INFORMATION PLEASE SEE ATTACHED PRESS RELEASES. FOR MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT SCOTT GRIEVE AT PSD GROUNDSCARE

Tel: 01282 856813 Email: scott@psdgroundscare.com

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New fleet gives The Blackwood a boost

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New fleet gives The Blackwood a boost: A switch in management policies at one of Northern Ireland’s leading golf clubs has resulted in a major £160,000 investment in new John Deere course maintenance equipment.

The Blackwood Golf Centre is situated in the heart of the Clandeboye Estate’s beautiful parklands, just at the top of the Ards Peninsula in County Down. Extending to 240ha, the club runs two 18-hole courses including the par 54 Temple and the par 71 championship Hamilton, plus a 26-bay floodlit driving range, putting green and short game area.

New fleet gives The Blackwood a boost

New fleet gives The Blackwood a boost

Historically the club has predominantly used John Deere machines, but some of the fleet had been faithful workhorses for the past 18 years and so were becoming quite aged. Last August the club underwent some fundamental changes, which included enlisting the help of independent golf management consultant Paul Gray, who has taken on the contract to manage the club.

One of Paul’s first changes was to upgrade the John Deere equipment fleet, directly liaising with course manager Jonny Eager and Ricky Neill, sales manager at the local John Deere turf dealer Johnston Gilpin & Co Ltd.

With the help of a five-year John Deere Financial package, the club bought a John Deere 8900A PrecisionCut fairway mower, 2500E hybrid electric greens triplex mower, 2653B PrecisionCut tees & surrounds triplex mower and two TH 6×4 Gator utility vehicles. Also included in the purchase were a Trimax Snake articulating rotary mower and a Buffalo debris blower.

Course manager Jonny Eager is very pleased with the new fleet and says the machines have boosted production and efficiency. “We have been using John Deere machines at The Blackwood since 2003 and have always found them very reliable and easy to use.

“With this new deal we replaced two of our older Gators with the TH 6x4s, while the rest of the machines are additions to the fleet, which now consists of 12 John Deere machines in total. They do a great job and the backup we receive from the dealer is first class. All round we think they represent longevity and good value for money.”

Blackwood Golf Centre consultant manager Paul Gray adds: “Machinery replacement in the past had been fairly neglected here, so one of the first changes I made was to embark on a new replacement programme, starting with this financed machinery purchase deal.

“Since changing to the new machines this season, members have been full of praise for how the courses look and play. Given the really difficult spring we had in terms of weather, the members have really complimented the staff for the excellent conditions the courses are in.”

“Part of the deal included full training for The Blackwood’s own mechanic, who came up to the dealership and spent some time with one of our technicians to learn how all the machines are assembled, used and operated,” explains Ricky Neill.

“We are very keen for the greenkeeping team to carry out all their own regular servicing and maintenance, with support from our expert technicians should they require it. Our dealership at Lisburn has had a good relationship over the years with The Blackwood Golf Centre, and we are here to assist them with any future machinery requirements as the club develops.”

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SpeedwayTotal the one for Weedfree

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SpeedwayTotal the one for Weedfree: Richard Stow, Managing Director of Weedfree, has revealed why the market-leading company has relied on the spray adjuvant Speedway Total for so long.

“We have been using Speedway Total to enhance the uptake and activity of our total herbicide applications for many years and we are very happy with it,” said Richard. “It always gets us good results and we wouldn’t dream of not using it.”

SpeedwayTotal the one for Weedfree

SpeedwayTotal the one for Weedfree

Weedfree has been a market leader for railway, industrial and amenity weed control for over 50 years, providing weed control and vegetation clearance services to the rail industry, local authorities, industry, utilities and power generators.

“You name it – we spray it,” said Richard, and indeed they do. The company employs up to 150 members of staff during its busiest periods with operatives spraying everything from footpaths to rail tracks and everything in between.

It is for this reason that the company needs to have confidence in a product and that is where Speedway Total comes in. However, Richard admits that this was not always the case.

“We didn’t always use Speedway,” he said. “Initially we used a competitor product, but we had lots of problems with it. The chemistry, the active ingredients – it was causing problems with our operators, who were complaining about irritation on their skin and around their eyes. We also found that, in accordance with the label, we were putting a lot of product in the tank.

“It was at this point that we discussed the issue with Ed Carter (Sales & Development Manager for ICL), and he suggested using Speedway Total. We tried it, we liked it and we have stuck with it ever since. It was less product going in the tank, there was not any reduction in efficacy, and it was very cost effective.”

ICL’s Speedway Total is a spray adjuvant that contains a blend of surfactants and spreaders. It is designed to enhance the effect of glyphosate and other total and/ or non-selective herbicide treatments. Speedway Total assists herbicide penetration into the leaf cuticle by dissolving the waxy leaf coating.

The surfactants and spreaders also aid the treatment spreading properties, reduce the risk of wash-off and increase the herbicidal uptake. It can be used speed up the response from total herbicide treatments and also enhance the uptake and control for difficult to control weeds such as rhododendron, bracken, Japanese knotweed, brush wood weeds, nettles and docks, sow thistles and others.

With more and more local authorities re-examining their use of glyphosate herbicides Richard claims that the reduced volume needed with Speedway Total was a huge selling point.

“To be honest, I was dubious to start with because it less than half the amount of volume we were using with the previous product. I was thinking – how could this possibly work! But it does work – incredibly well.

“There is a real appetite to reduce the amount of herbicide that is applied, and with Speedway Total we can reduce it down to about three and a half litres per hectare which is quite a significant reduction. We still get the results that keeps both the local authorities and us happy.

“When we tender, we find that Speedway Total may well give us the competitive edge over someone who might use a different product at a higher rate. We can certainly demonstrate that over the course of a three-year contract we can significantly reduce glyphosate while still eliminating problematic weeds.

“Ultimately, I would say that Speedway Total has helped us to be more efficient and I would highly recommend the product.”

Please contact ICL on +44 1473 237100 or visit www.icl-sf.co.uk or www.icl-sf.ie if you are in Ireland.

For more news and insightful views, you can follow ICL on Twitter @ICL_Turf

For the latest industry news visit turfmatters.co.uk/news

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Rise of the SuperBents

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Rise of the SuperBents: Germinal’s Paul Moreton explains that the latest generation of creeping bentgrasses are ideal for British greens thanks to their natural disease tolerance and ability to thrive in a range of climatic conditions.

The popularity of modern creeping bentgrasses – or ‘SuperBents’ as they are commonly referred to – is the result of an intensive breeding programme which led to the development of 007 DSB (named after the year it was released, 2007, not the fictional British Secret Service agent).

Rise of the SuperBents

Rise of the SuperBents

Bred using genetics from 24 parent plants collected from old putting greens located in cooler, northern locations in the US, 007 DSB is the cultivar of choice on a number of courses which have hosted major golf tournaments in climates where winter temperatures average well below 0oC.

007 DSB has proven to be the perfect fit in these cool conditions, not only thanks to its fineness of leaf, fast rolling speed, enhanced disease resistance and low input requirements, but also because of its significantly shorter growing-in period which enables greenkeepers to quickly and easily produce a tournament-ready putting surface.

In contrast to previous creeping bents which were developed primarily to withstand close mowing, the new generation of SuperBents has been bred to be tolerant of lower inputs of N and water: the ability of varieties such as 007 DSB and more recently Tour Pro (GDE) to thrive without excessive inputs makes them ideally suited for use on UK courses where their vigorous lateral growth and persistence to very close mowing enables greenkeepers to utilise them on greens to outcompete Poa annua without the need to drastically change any cultural practices.

In the last few years, numerous UK clubs have successfully over-seeded their greens with 007 DSB and in doing so have created more aesthetically pleasing greens which, crucially, are naturally more resistant to both Anthracnose and Microdochium patch: an ever-increasingly important factor given the loss of curative fungicides such as Iprodione.

For these clubs, regular ‘preventative overseeding’ using a SuperBent has enabled them to introduce young, healthy and vibrant new growth into the sward and to boost the natural ability of their greens to resist disease in a cost-effective and sustainable way.

At Germinal, we saw the potential of these leading cultivars from a very early stage and have been leading the push to use SuperBents in the UK. At first the market for creeping bents remained relatively subdued due to a natural tendency for greenkeepers to be wary of making any significant changes and because older varieties were input-hungry and couldn’t perform to the level attained by the new generation.

Despite this initial market hesitancy, we stood by our decision to bring the likes of 007 DSB and TourPro (GDE) to the UK based on the knowledge that, put simply, they both possess traits which can help greenkeepers to manage their greens more efficiently and effectively.

The dated stigmas and false clichés about creeping bentgrasses being difficult and expensive to manage are no longer representative of the new generation. Similarly, the misconception that greens maintenance regimes will need to a total re-vamp to accommodate SuperBents is simply untrue.

In fact, a recent survey has shown that many users have reduced their nitrogen input since switching to SuperBents, with no requirement for any additional dethatching or greens grooming required to maintain the SuperBent sward.

The positive feedback from these clubs will hopefully give other course managers in the UK the confidence to introduce a creeping bent cultivar to their over-seeding regime, and thereby enable them to embrace the natural disease resistance of this new generation of cultivars.