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Fairways GM brings Jacobsen GP400 to Pitlochry GC

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Fairways GM brings Jacobsen GP400 to Pitlochry GC: A busy course manager to two golf courses in the central Highlands has raised over £9,000 in his spare time for Scotland’s Charity Air Ambulance Service.

Almost a year ago, a helicopter rescued Stuart Griffiths after an on-course accident left him trapped for nearly two hours under a machine. Emergency surgery and thirteen nights in hospital followed, with Stuart happily making a full recovery and back to work in October.

Fairways GM brings Jacobsen GP400 to Pitlochry GC

Fairways GM brings Jacobsen GP400 to Pitlochry GC

Stuart’s day job is split across two glorious Perthshire courses, eight miles apart. Pitlochry GC has 18 dramatic and scenic holes plus a tricky six-hole Pitch & Putt course while near neighbour, Blair Atholl GC has nine holes, also with stunning backdrops of the Cairngorms’ National Park.  Both courses are owned by Pitlochry contractors, RW Bell Electrical, which in the last five years has successfully harnessed positive community momentum and a resurgence of visitors from near and far, to win some prestigious tourism accolades.

“I joined Blair Atholl in 2010 as head greenkeeper. In 2015, when Stephen Carruthers, owner of Pitlochry, decided to merge the two, he asked me to manage them together, which frankly, took a lot of heat off me, as I was caring for a nine-hole course with a large expenditure,” explained Stuart.

“So, I became course manager of both; the first couple of seasons took a little bit of sorting, in respect of taking staff and machinery between two places, but soon we were in a better routine than before. We are very lucky.  Blair Atholl had a decent set of machinery prior to Pitlochry taking over, so actually, there is very little machinery swapping, only say, when we are spraying or top dressing.

“Staff wise, we work it out, essentially, everyone’s at both. We’re a team of five – full timers Billy Hoggins, Douglas Black, Sean Menzies, and Rob Coughlan, plus our long standing volunteer mechanic, and cutter of rough, Frank Brennan. Traditionally, there’s a big weekly Wednesday competition for visitors at Pitlochry, so on Wednesdays after set up, we all come to Blair Atholl.

To boost their fleet, in April, Stuart purchased a Jacobsen GP400 ride on greens mower, exclusively for Pitlochry’s greens. Mike Lindsay, Area Sales Manager, from local dealer, Fairways GM at Kinross, was on hand to provide sales support and demonstration know how.

“It’s May, there’s snow on the hills and we’ve been out cutting with it twice,” laughed Stuart. “That sorts of says it all for the season so far, but we’re extremely positive and excited for warmer temperatures. Feedback from the team on the GP400 is very good. The overall cutting experience is great. Technology-wise, it is a big step up from what we’ve had; it’s got great design, is precise and clean and we’ll be able to cut the greens so much quicker.”

Fairways GM’s, Mike Lindsay, said: “It’s such an all-rounder when you’re against time and got greens to prepare. The swing-out centre cutting unit allows easy access for changing height of cut and routine inspection.  For access, there’s a neat step behind the front wheel and for visibility, the angle of the curved steering arm gives the best view of the right-hand cutting unit. Also a steering arm clamp, lets your arm take up a really comfy position.  It’s a machine that makes life easier.”

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Otterbine restores fountain to former glory

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Otterbine restores fountain to former glory: After the installation of a new Otterbine, the fountain at the centre of Newquay’s Boating Lake has been restored to its former glory, providing a stunning centrepiece for the whole community to enjoy.

Having served the lake for over a decade, the previous Otterbine Giant Fountain was sent by Newquay Council to Pump Supplies, a leading supplier of electric submersible pumps in the UK, for servicing and repairs.

Otterbine restores fountain to former glory

Otterbine restores fountain to former glory

Steve Impett from Pump Supplies explains: “The previous Otterbine Giant Fountain had been in use for such a long time, and had suffered some damage from vandalism, that while we could have made repairs it was more economical to replace the fountain with a new model, particularly due to the loyalty programme available with Otterbine.”

Showcasing Otterbine’s appreciation for both new and loyal customers, when replacing an existing Otterbine system that’s at least five years old, or replacing other manufacturer equipment with an Otterbine, customers can claim a discount of up to 10 percent of the original purchase price. Combined with Otterbine’s comprehensive four-year warranty for Giant Fountains, the decision to replace like-for-like with Otterbine was easily justified to Newquay Council.

“The whole process with Otterbine and its distributor Reesink Turfcare has been great,” says Steve. “We don’t usually supply or repair  fountains at Pump Supplies but in essence it’s still a submersible pump and we wanted to help the customer in whatever way we could. Otterbine and Reesink were very helpful and knowledgeable so really aided us with that, and we had no problems throughout the process, even with the fact that the fountain had to come from the states in the middle of a lockdown, it still made it across the pond with no issues!

“The new fountain has now been safely installed,” continues Steve. “We’ve placed lights inside rather than outside to help protect them from vandals and now the lake has a great fountain centrepiece during the day and a beautiful light show after dark. Another massive bonus is the fountain keeps the water in the lake clean, clear and healthy too.

“It’s been great working with Otterbine and Reesink, and I would hope to see this develop into more of a relationship in the future,” says Steve. “It’s brilliant to have another offering for our customers that we can confidently recommend.”

To find out more about the Otterbine range of aerators and fountains, contact Reesink on 01480 226800, email info@reesinkturfcare.co.uk or visit reesinkturfcare.co.uk

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Colour Boost brings conservation closer to home

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Colour Boost brings conservation closer to home: Providing a new home, rest and rehabilitation for rescued animals from across the globe, the Wildheart Animal Sanctuary (formally the Isle of Wight Zoo) have, for the last twelve months, been working on a project to support species much closer to home.

With flower mixtures and support from DLF Seeds, the work at the sanctuary and at local schools has been hailed a great success – with Chief Operating Officer Lawrence Bates noting both the improvements in bio-diversity and awareness of the issues affecting our native habitats.

Colour Boost brings conservation closer to home

Colour Boost brings conservation closer to home

Lawrence began planning the habitat creation with the help of DLF’s Paul Hadley in a previous role a few years ago and saw the opportunity to resurrect it upon joining the Wildheart Animal Sanctuary in July 2019. “It can be difficult for people to understand how important our behaviour and efforts are for supporting our own native species that are under threat, when a lot of the media focus is on animals on the other side of the globe. Our vision with this project is to look at spaces closer to home, increase the bio-diversity to provide habitats, shelter and food for invertebrates which, in turn, helps animals further up the food chain.”

“Paul visited the island and advised on the most suitable species for our new flower meadow on site, but also what would work for projects at some local schools, which weren’t going to be maintained by experts!” Selected were Colour Boost 1, a mixture containing quick-to-establish, high impact annuals and Colour Boost 6, comprising of over 40 different species and subspecies, the appearance of which is constantly changing throughout the growing season.

Four flower meadows were sown at the schools on the island prior to the lockdown in March 2020, with the Sanctuary’s own meadow then planted in June 2020. “The result from these two Colour Boost mixtures was phenomenal! Not only did the students benefit from the educational programme around wildflowers and conservation, but it completely transformed previously neglected areas of the school sites, and our own site, with hardy blooms that created a dazzling, long-lasting display of colour.”

“We received so many lovely comments from Head Teachers with numerous other schools now wanting to get involved. We’re also talking to local churches and a number of businesses through the Green Impact Group about new sponsored plots of land.” Lawrence concludes, “The programme is growing fast and the impact this will have on the wildlife is exponential! Without DLF and their ongoing support, the project wouldn’t have got off the ground.”

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Velvit to sponsor Exeter Chiefs

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Velvit to sponsor Exeter Chiefs: South West premium turf care specialists, Velvit, have entered into a sponsorship deal with Premiership Rugby Club the Exeter Chiefs.

Velvit, who are based in South Somerset, have been supplying fertiliser to the Exeter Chiefs through local distributer Tim Wakeham of Wakeham Groundcare for seven years, watching the club go from success to success in that time.

Velvit to sponsor Exeter Chiefs

Velvit to sponsor Exeter Chiefs

James Whittick, Sales & Marketing Director at Velvit explained “We have been supplying Exeter Chiefs for a number of years and have been following their impressive trajectory in that time. We are aware that the live sports industry has been widely affected by the COVID restrictions, and in light of the Chiefs being a local club who have done so much for the region we were proud to be in a position to be able to offer sponsorship for the upcoming season.”

Through the sponsorship deal, Velvit are sponsoring up-and-coming player Alfie Petch who has already had an impressive run of appearances with the England age-graded teams. A Cornish boy by birth, Alfie signed a three-year contract with the Chiefs at the start of the 2018/2019 season and made his debut in November of that year.

Max Sandford who leads the grounds team at Sandy Park said “The overall partnership is vital to ensuring we keep the playing surfaces in the best possible condition and we would like to thank Greenbest for their support they have shown over the last few years!”

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BIGGA & Syngenta to host major industry event

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BIGGA & Syngenta to host major industry event: This summer will see the return of BIGGA’s popular Continue to Learn Extra webinar series and kicking off the programme of learning is a talk with industry expert Glenn Kirby about the high levels of leatherjackets and chafer grubs that have caused tremendous damage to many courses during the early part of 2021.

A recent social media survey by BIGGA Partner Syngenta found that during 2020 just 1% of UK golf courses reported no damage due to these insects. Hidden below the surface of the nation’s golf courses, leatherjackets are threatening the enjoyment and economic viability of the sport. Of the 400 course managers who responded to the survey, almost all reported that their course was negatively impacted by an infestation of the larvae of craneflies – also known as leatherjackets – and chafer grubs.

BIGGA & Syngenta to host major industry event

BIGGA & Syngenta to host major industry event

On 13 May BIGGA will be hosting an important industry event, when Syngenta Technical Manager Glenn Kirby will explain the reasons behind the damage and why it is important for the golfing industry to unite to support golf club teams during this distressing time.

Extensive damage to sports turf is caused by the larvae feeding on the turfgrass, while predators can also cause significant and widespread damage as they hunt for these larvae. The impact on a golf course can be serious, with increased costs as greenkeeping teams battle against the damage and the potential for large losses in revenue as golfers choose to play at courses that have been unaffected by the pests. However, unaffected courses are increasingly in the minority.

Alongside the webinar, BIGGA and Syngenta will be distributing a white paper to the golf industry that will provide an in-depth study of the situation including its causes, impact and potential solutions and will also be encouraging golf’s leading bodies to share this information to a wide audience.

This Continue to Learn Extra webinar is free to attend for anyone involved in golf club our course management. You can register for this vital industry event online now on the BIGGA website.

Syngenta’s Glenn Kirby said: “My goal when I started investigating the problem of leatherjackets was to get all golf courses to zero damage, as that’s what is being expected of course managers. But it has become increasingly clear to me that we are going to have to adjust our expectations. We all want perfect surfaces year-round, but without additional tools in our armoury I suspect that may not be a realistic goal.”

The ‘Managing the Leatherjacket Challenge’ webinar kicks off a summer of online learning for BIGGA members, with other webinars being hosted from May until September 2021. Taking a leading role will be management expert Tyler Bloom, while other topics for discussion will include golf course ecology, Women and Girls’ Golf Week and representatives of the European Institute for Golf Course Architects discussing ways of making golf courses more appealing to a wider audience. Head to the BIGGA website for more information.

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