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Makita: powering the Eden Project

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Makita: powering the Eden Project: Makita UK has been appointed as the dedicated outdoor equipment supplier to the Eden Project.

The leading power tool manufacturer has been awarded the prestigious contract to exclusively supply its cordless garden machinery and power tools to assist with maintenance and redevelopment work at the home of the famous Biomes near St Austell in Cornwall.

Makita: powering the Eden Project

Makita: powering the Eden Project

With its wide range of cordless machinery offering a reliable and powerful alternative to petrol powered equipment and a one battery fits all solution for cordless construction and grounds maintenance tools, Makita was the ideal choice to help Eden meet its sustainable vision and ecological ethos. The partnership will see the Eden Project team replace its existing petrol and corded machines with Makita’s battery-powered products.

Si Bellamy, Interim Chief Operating Officer at the Eden Project, said: “Eden is dedicated to using sustainable methods and we wanted to update our grounds equipment with more environmentally friendly kit without compromising on power or performance.

“With Makita’s extensive range of cordless power tools and garden machinery, we can make the transition over to cordless incredibly easily. Makita’s cordless range will enable us to complete day-to-day maintenance tasks and larger projects in a safer, quieter, more efficient way.

“The use of battery power as fuel completely eliminates the need for our team to transport and handle petrol and as no fumes are omitted during operation there are zero gas emissions – which is fantastic for reducing our carbon footprint further. What’s more, there is no need to consider the safe placement of cables as with corded machines. As a result, we will be able to safely carry out work when visitors are on site.”

Makita’s innovative cordless technology also means that the machines work for long periods of time without needing to be charged. As a result, Eden team can work on large areas and tasks without needing to stop to replace or recharge the batteries, improving productivity further.

Mark Earles, Business Development Manager for garden machinery at Makita said: “The Eden Project is an educational charity and visitor attraction focused on showcasing the power of nature and inspiring visitors to think more sustainably. We are thrilled to be working with the team, as part of its efforts to improve environmental efficiency, by delivering cordless solutions to help the team work more efficiently on site.

“With over 270 cordless products in our LXT portfolio, we can ensure that the Eden Project have access to the machines they need, no matter the task. Our battery platforms also mean that the team can switch between tools and tasks effortlessly, reducing downtime and improving productivity.”

Makita’s product range is designed to work in tough outdoor environments, making the partnership an ideal backdrop for the Eden Project team to put the kit through its paces in unique settings, such as the heat of the Eden Project’s Rainforest Biome. Makita will be using this as a long-term opportunity to gain user feedback on the performance of the machines, to assist with research and development into new models and tool technologies.

Si Bellamy added: “We are really excited to kick off our partnership with Makita and see what we can achieve together over the next five years and beyond. It is really important for us to develop a strong partnership with Makita and work collaboratively with them to further our capabilities here at the Eden Project.”

To find out more about Makita and its range of cordless machines visit: www.makitauk.com

For more information about the Eden Project visit: www.edenproject.com

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Setting the Standard

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Setting the Standard: Amenity management is the description encompassing all aspects of the management of public and sports spaces, keeping them safe, healthy and fit for purpose.

It includes parks, green spaces, transport networks, domestic lawns, and golf and sports surfaces. Those employing organisations for amenity management and those using and enjoying such spaces quite rightly look for assurance that those undertaking the operations are at a UK recognised professional level just as if they were employing an electrical or similar trade contractor. In terms of weed, pest and disease management, the Amenity Standard provides that assurance. It indicates that the organisation responsible for that work is a member of an approved assurance scheme ensuring operators are fully qualified, committed to best practice and updating and using authorised products and equipment.

The UK Amenity Standard was launched in January 2020 and has rapidly developed with many now insisting that the Standard is met to provide full assurance of professional standards. It is a UK Standard and is independently managed and overseen by the Amenity Forum. Given below are some comments from the sector about the Standard. If you require more information please go to the website www.theamenitystandard.co.uk or contact Kate at admin@amenityforum.net

Setting the Standard

Setting the Standard

Tom Arnold, Vice Chair of the UK Lawn Care Association (UKLCA) says ‘’ We became involved in the Amenity Standard as part of a programme of continuous professional development in the lawn care sector.  Our main use of plant protection products is in the area of selective weed control within lawns and this is a critical tool in improving people’s lawns that is impossible to achieve effectively by other methods. Our members are already qualified to apply products via the Government’s recognised qualifications and the Amenity Standard offers us a UK recognised way of  showing that our members engage with a recognised assurance scheme ( in our case Lawn Assured) that demonstrates their professionalism and that they are upholding the high standards we expect of them. The UKLCA is pleased and proud to promote the Amenity Standard.’’

Steve Hodgson, CEO of the Property Care Association says ‘’ The public is right to be cautious about the use of plant protection products and need assurance that they are being applied by trained, qualified and highly skilled individuals who will utilize them in a measured and targeted way. As a responsible Trade Association, we share this view.  The Amenity Standard empowers professionals and consumers to recognise and choose organisations that operate far beyond basic legal requirements. In so doing we make visible those who have demonstrated their operational track record and a willingness and to work safely, sustainably and responsibly. Property Care Association and its members have welcomed the creation of the sector wide Amenity Standard. Our members are proud to be amongst the first to adopt the Standard and display this independently assessed accreditation. We hope that it soon becomes the Standard that all those who control plants and pests in our open spaces will be forced have to measure up to’’

Duncan Jones, Director at Hortech says ‘’Hortech where the first company to gain the Amenity Standard and we are very proud of that. For me it is vitally important that Hortech can demonstrate to clients and the general public that we are working to the highest possible standards.  When it comes to undertaking vegetation management, whether by cultural means or using herbicides there is no room for error or complacency. The Amenity Standard ensures that we maintain those high standards year on year. It is my hope that all procurement teams across the UK set the Amenity Standard as a must have for tender pre-qualification’’    

Ian Graham, MD of Complete Weed Control says ‘’ Complete Weed Control for decades has aimed to deliver the highest of standards within our service provision, key in that endeavour is the support of the organisations that exist to improve the industry as a whole such as the Amenity Forum. The Amenity Standard is without question the single most important initiative. The Amenity weed control industry has never been under greater scrutiny than currently. Spraying operations that take place in public places are naturally and quite properly questioned. Being able to demonstrate that operators conform to a recognised and well-structured Standard is extremely important. The sooner that organisations are compelled to meet the Amenity Standard the better.

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Get the mow how

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Get the mow how: Honda knows gardens are as important to our homes as any room in the house, more so than ever before. In a single day, the lawn is a running track for the dog, a football pitch for the kids and a dinner spot for the family. To withstand all this, we need to look after our lawn and gardens, and to do so successfully, we need to understand the significant role the weather plays.

To investigate and explore this intrinsic relationship between weather and gardening, Honda has teamed up with TV’s Broadcast Meteorologist, Laura Tobin, for the season ahead. A self-confessed weather fanatic, Laura’s career in meteorology started at the Met Office, before she moved to the RAF to provide mission-critical, aeronautical meteorology reports and briefings to flight crews. Since then, Laura has become one of the nation’s top weather forecasters, appearing regularly one some of the most-viewed national programmes hosted by leading broadcasters.

Get the mow how

Get the mow how

Over the course of the gardening season, Laura will feature in five episodes in which she will visit and speak to lawn and garden experts to uncover hints, tips and guidance that you can apply in your own garden, taking into account the influential effects of weather and climate change.  Along the way, we will also be bringing you some handy information on how our range of Honda mowers can help you keep your lawn in optimum condition.

Our first video sees Laura visit Tamsin Westhorpe in the stunning, frost-kissed Stockton Bury Gardens, Herefordshire. The pair talk about what to expect from the weather in the first month of spring and what your care routine for the “backbone” of your garden, the lawn, should be, starting with the season’s first cut; looking at when, why and how to perform it.

We look at the constantly evolving climate patterns that have and are continuing to change mowing habits in your garden for good. This all means you may be mowing earlier in the season and for longer – demanding a durable, reliable and high quality lanwmower, such as the izy-ON HRG 466 XB, to live up to the task ahead.

In the video, Tamsin shares her experience of using the Izy and how she’s found Honda’s all-electric, Cordless mower to be a revelation thanks its clean and quiet operation as well as it’s user-centric features such as the Versamow Variable, single-speed propulsion and Universal Battery system.

Watch the video at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P2Ipp5kuA7U&t=1s

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Spring into the first cut with Countax

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Spring into the first cut with Countax: As soon as the ambient soil temperature rises in spring our British lawns put on a growth spurt and it is time for the first cut. Which could mean considering a new mower or, if you have a large grass area or even a paddock, a ride-on garden tractor.

Making the sizeable investment in one needs careful consideration. Will your choice of ride-on be used only for mowing? Or could it be an all-year-round workhorse, performing a wide variety of garden tasks from spring through to winter? To make the most of your investment it is worth looking at a Countax garden tractor to fit the bill in all respects.

Spring into the first cut with Countax

Spring into the first cut with Countax

Firstly, it is designed for the British garden and built in Britain for the vagaries of our weather. Secondly, it will make gardening life a whole lot easier. The first spring mow needs to be at a high height, gradually lowering the cutting deck as the season progresses. This is easily done with the Countax deck height setting ranging from 101mm/4” down to 12mm/1/2”. There is a choice of cut and collect, mulching using an optional mulching kit or a High Grass Mulching deck for rougher areas. For those of you who like a striped lawn, you cannot better the Countax Powered Grass Collector (PGC) and roller system, powered by the tractor’s Power Take-Off (PTO). Which brings us to the PGC+, the accessory that transforms a Countax C or B Series into that multi-use, year-round workhorse.

The PGC+ is a cassette system that allows you to quickly and easily switch accessories. It means you only need one machine to maintain the lawn, paddock, drive, path and other garden areas. The Grass Sweeper cassette comes as standard and clicks into place with brushes that rotate at over 1100rpm to sweep grass clippings, fallen leaves and other debris into the hopper, even when the grass is wet.

Spring is also a good time to scarify the lawn to rid it of winter accumulated moss and thatch and that is simply done by switching to the easy-to-insert Scarifier cassette. Which means you don’t need to spend money on a separate scarifier.

So, all-round a Countax will work for you through the seasons. Using the PTO you can also drive other accessories such as a powered broadcast spreader, which is ideal for spreading salt and grit on paths and drives to keep them ice-free. Choose a B Series Countax and you have the benefit of the unique 4TRAC four-wheel-drive system giving you a ‘go anywhere, mow anywhere’ garden tractor capable of tackling slopes, mud and rough ground. It also makes the perfect partner for a snowblade to clear your way in the depths of winter. Find out more by contacting Countax on 01844 278800 or visit www.countax.co.uk/find-a-dealer/ to find your local dealer.

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Praxys impresses at the Royal Birkdale

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Praxys impresses at the Royal Birkdale: Chris Whittle, Course Manager at the Royal Birkdale Golf Club in Southport, claims that Praxys, ICL’s high performance, highly concentrated systemic selective herbicide, plays an integral role in his weed control programme.

Royal Birkdale hardly needs any introduction – it is after all one of the finest courses in England and has held more Championship and International events since World War 2 than any other course in the world including Open Championships, Ryder Cups, Women’s British Opens, Senior Opens, Amateur Championships, Walker Cups and Curtis Cups.

Praxys impresses at the Royal Birkdale

Praxys impresses at the Royal Birkdale

Chris has overseen many of these prestigious events having been at the club for an impressive 26 years. He currently oversees a team of ten members of staff who all work hard to maintain this truly prestigious course.

When it comes to weed control, Chris has reported highly encouraging results from using ICL’s Praxys for the past five years, after it was initially recommended to him from ICL distributor Aitkens.

Praxys, renowned for killing the toughest of weeds, possesses a number of benefits. Featuring systemic uptake right down to the roots with no regrowth, this fast-acting weedkiller allows rapid entry and is rainfast within just one hour. It also has the lowest dosage rates and water volume of any selective herbicide available.

It combines the three most powerful active ingredients on the market, Florasulam, Fluroxypyr and Clopyralid, to wipe out weeds on golf courses, sports and amenity turf and lawns in one application.

Praxys was developed to target common weeds like daisy and dandelion and it completely kills more problematic ones such as Self-heal, Ribwort Plantain and Spear Thistle

The extremely low dose rate, from one litre per hectare, is flexible depending on the weed spectrum to be controlled. Low dose means less packaging and less waste and because only one application is required, it also makes Praxys one of the most cost-effective options available.

Chris usually applies Praxys in June each year and believes it is an essential product in his weed management programme.

“We predominately apply Praxys to our tees and fairways and it has been really impressive,” he said. “We’ll never totally eradicate difficult weeds, because new weeds keep coming through each year. However, Praxys works well in our integrated approach towards managing them and with its low water volume coupled with its low impact on the environment it makes for a great product for us to use”

“After applying Praxys, you can see initial dieback of the weeds within days and then you notice further results a couple of weeks later on the more troublesome ones such as greater plantains.”

Please contact ICL on 01473 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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