Tag Archive for: Turf

BOLSTER® your turf against stress with Suståne

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BOLSTER® your turf against stress with Suståne: After emerging from one of the wettest winters on record, many turf managers across the sporting spectrum are now catching-up with both the mechanical maintenance and nutritional needs of their playing surfaces.

To cope with this intensive intervention and/or periods of plant stress, Suståne’s BOLSTER® Liquid Biostimulant has proven to be one of the most effective growth supplements on the market – its balanced blend of ingredients minimising the impact of poor-quality soils, adverse temperatures, parasitic nematodes and drought.

BOLSTER® your turf against stress with Suståne

BOLSTER® your turf against stress with Suståne

Formulated with 5% Iron Chelate, 4% Humic Acid and 2% Seaweed Extract, BOLSTER® increases plant vigour in sub-optimal conditions by reducing the effect of stress factors. In extensive research and field trials conducted by the Virginia Polytechnic Institute, BOLSTER® was found to significantly increase root mass and depth, accelerate chlorophyll production, improve moisture retention and reduce wilting. In addition, it boosted the plants natural tolerance to certain diseases and plant parasitic nematodes such as Root Knot and Lance nematode infected turfgrass, through the trial period conducted in Virginia.

BOLSTER® is suitable for applications on the golf course, winter sports pitches and other intensively managed turf areas and can be an effective partner to overseeding operations, with significant improvements to seedling and turf establishment noted as a result. It also contributes to optimised growth in low light conditions.

One club to discover the benefits of BOLSTER® Liquid are Brighton and Hove Golf Club, who explain that the biostimulant has become a staple in their greenkeeping arsenal. “We’ve used Suståne’s BOLSTER® Liquid here for the last seven years” explains Course Manager Jason Sarna. “It’s a great product for seeing us through high pressure periods, protecting the plant from abiotic stress caused by cultural practices, heat and drought stress and through the winter months when daylight hours are reduced.”

“We use the BOLSTER® Liquid as part of our root drench application mixed with either wetting agent or aminos, for increased soil and plant health. Since implementing BOLSTER® as part of our nutritional programme, we have noticed a definite increase in plant health and rooting, and the colour response after application is a fantastic added bonus!”

BOLSTER® is best applied monthly at a rate of 9.46L per Ha in 300-800L water depending on the application target area. It can be applied flexibly as part of a foliar spray mixed with PGR, or in a root drench spray mixed with a chosen wetting agent.

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Rolawn partners with Wildflower Turf

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Rolawn partners with Wildflower Turf: Leading turf grower, Rolawn, is delighted to announce a new partnership with wildflower turf pioneers, Wildflower Turf Ltd.

For almost 50 years, Rolawn has been at the forefront of market trends and developments in the horticulture and construction sectors, recently introducing biodiversity supportive products under the BioScapes brand. Wildflower turf is a logical range extension as the business continues to help customers to comply with environmental legislative change.

Rolawn partners with Wildflower Turf

Rolawn partners with Wildflower Turf

Rolawn’s Sales and Marketing Director, Jonathan Hill, explains why Rolawn has partnered with Wildflower Turf, “The parities between our organisations made the decision to work together very straightforward. Our customer base has high expectations from suppliers, demanding responsibly manufactured products supported by first-rate service. Wildflower Turf’s depth of understanding of market demands and forces is clear to see and aligns with these needs.

“Having developed a transformative product, Wildflower Turf Ltd has led the market with a very similar approach to our own – prioritising technical excellence and best advice. We are excited to see how our collaboration will help the industry make a greater contribution to biodiversity net gain.”

The arrangement is a reciprocal one which will see Rolawn’s market-leading Medallion Turf available via the Wildflower Turf team.

James Hewetson-Brown, MD at Wildflower Turf Ltd, says, “We’re delighted to welcome Rolawn as an Authorised Reseller. Rolawn’s reputation for excellence and commitment to sustainable landscapes aligns perfectly with our own mission.

Meadows are vital for both the environment and pollinators. This partnership expands our customer reach, allowing us to create more biodiverse spaces and help restore nature’s balance.

Additionally, by selling Rolawn products that complement our wildflower offerings, we provide a more comprehensive solution for our customers.”

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Protect turf from the inside out

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Protect turf from the inside out: Greenkeepers across the UK are turning to strobilurin-based fungicide Insignia® to keep their turf protected this summer. With its key ingredients helping to prime the turf immune system, resist disease attacks, withstand heat and drought, and grow more efficiently, Insignia® works in a variety of ways to keep turf green, strong and healthy.

As a fungicide, Insignia® works by severely inhibiting the mitochondrial respiration inside the cells of pathogenic fungi, preventing the breakdown of carbon that is required for fungi to produce the energy they need to function. As well as stopping fungi, it also works by triggering a cascade of positive events which lead to plant health benefits. In a nutshell, it works both by stopping negative forces, and encouraging the good.

Protect turf from the inside out

Protect turf from the inside out

At this time of year, red thread is a particular threat that Insignia® helps to banish. The fungal infection causes slow growing grass and red to coral-pink strands – not ideal on prized pieces of turf! Insignia® controls diseases like this and dollar spot – which creates pale, blighted areas of turf – ensuring continued grass health throughout the summer.

While it’s suitable for application all year round, Insignia® must be applied in temperatures between 5-25°C for best results. Unlike other fungicides, it is ‘rain-fast’ after only one hour, meaning that greenkeepers can use the product without fear that it will immediately be rained off the plant.

An active ingredient within Insignia®, Pyraclastrobin, serves as a weather-resistant reservoir, meaning that the health-giving formula is released across the surface of the grass over several weeks. Not only that but translaminar movement through the leaf builds a concentration of the active substance on both sides of the leaf – meaning continued protection for the whole plant.

With unpredictable weather in the UK becoming the norm, it’s also vital to be able to rely on the weather-resistant properties of any products used. Insignia® helps turf withstand drought and heat, while also helping grass to regulate responses during stressful events. It’s no wonder that Insignia® is proving so popular with greenkeepers interested in keeping turf green and healthy this year!

To find out more about Insignia®, visit Insignia – BASF Pest Control Solutions UK or to explore BASF’s wider turf products, visit https://www.pestcontrol.basf.co.uk/en/Products/Product-innovation/Turf/

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Scots Turf Donation Will ‘Change Lives’

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Scots Turf Donation Will ‘Change Lives’: A donation of football equipment from Scots Turf may seem like a simple gesture, but Motherwell Football Club Chief Executive Dawn Middleton is certain it will change the lives of the local community.

In partnership with New World Sport, Scots Turf donated footballs, bibs, markers, coaches’ notebooks and more following a second successful Scots Turf show. It has always been the aim of organisers Richard Heywood and Alan Thomson to give back to sport-focused charities in Scotland, and the Motherwell FC Community Trust is the first.

Scots Turf Donation Will ‘Change Lives’

Scots Turf Donation Will ‘Change Lives’

As the official charity of Motherwell FC, the Trust leverages the club’s brand and the unifying power of football to drive positive change in the local community. In 2021, a UEFA Social Return and Investment report revealed that the charity’s initiatives resulted in £13.64 million worth of health benefits, saving the NHS money on cardiovascular disease, diabetes, osteoporosis, mental health and more.

With no core income, the charity relies on fundraising and donations to operate. While you might think money is what’s needed, Dawn explains that football equipment is much more important than that.

“Firstly, I’d like to express our gratitude for the donation, which really makes a difference and does change lives,” Dawn began. “Sometimes people will say, ‘Oh, it would be great if you got money,’ but it’s not about money. This donation was far more valuable to us than money.

“It’s absolutely fantastic for us because equipment is expensive, and you can never have enough. Andy, our Head of Community Football does an excellent job, and coaches always ask him to spend money on equipment. It was great for us to be able to go back and supply it.

“The Trust supports a diverse range of 29 community teams, spanning from children born in 2019 to walking footballers in their 80s, women’s recreational football, and disability football. Each of these groups requires their own footballs, bibs, and markers, which often get lost or damaged. The donation from Scots Turf has significantly reduced the financial , burden on the Trust, ensuring the affordability of participation for all.”

The Motherwell FC Community Trust operates in one of Scotland’s most deprived areas. Due to increasing mortgage rates, food prices, and fuel costs, the community team experiences a lot of in-work poverty. Through donations, however, they have been able to limit the rise in community team monthly subscription costs to just 5p over seven years, which is invaluable for those participating.

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Revolutionising turf protection with Maxtima®

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Revolutionising turf protection with Maxtima®: Global pioneers in the world of turf care research and development, BASF is the expert brand in product innovation and turf management solutions, and its latest fungicide is a must-have in all greenkeepers tool kit.

Following the anticipated launch at BTME 2024, BASF’s new cutting-edge demethylation inhibitor (DMI) fungicide, Maxtima® is already making its mark in the world of turf care. The innovative product is a cost-effective solution against the toughest of diseases such as dollar spot and microdochium that can be applied throughout the year for long-term protection. Here, we look at the regulations that contributed to its development, how the product was created, and, specifically, its active substance, Mefentrifluconazole.

Revolutionising turf protection with Maxtima®

Revolutionising turf protection with Maxtima®

Matthew Martin, Strategic Key Account Manager at BASF said: “The need for fast-acting and long-term turf disease management has been key in the development of Maxtima®, and the revolutionary DMI fungicide has delivered just that! Its efficacy on tough and recurring pathogens means that long-term protection and prevention is achievable for all green keepers. What’s more is Maxtima® boasts a low application rate, minimising chemical usage on greens, and saving turf professionals time, labour, and money.”

The unique active substance of Maxtima®, Mefentrifluconazole, is absorbed rapidly into the leaf, where it is protected from degradation from rain and UV. It then settles as a pool, which provides slow release of the active for long term protection – up to 28 days.  Unlike older DMIs in the market, Maxtima® fungicide is an isopropanol-azoles, a unique chemistry that ensures excellent binding capacity and adaptability through its molecule flexibility. This offers control even on plant pathogen strains that are insensitive to DMIs – something many other DMIs cannot offer or compete with.

They say necessity is the mother of innovation and you could argue it’s never been more necessary to bring new fungicide chemistry to growers. But perhaps the true innovation behind Mefentrifluconazole, the first new azole to reach the UK market for 15 years, has been the approach BASF has taken in the face of the tough EU regulatory regime.

On the development of, and need for, a unique DMI, Rob Gladwin, head of technical management for UK said: “The quest for new chemistry in turf disease control started many years ago. The efficacy of current chemistry was shifting and there was great uncertainty over its future with more stringent EU regulations being enforced. For azoles, like Mefentrifluconazole, there is the backdrop of concerns over endocrine disruption, as the target enzymes in fungal pathogens are closely related to those found in mammals. We addressed this head on. Our research teams looked not just to target enzymes in the fungal pathogens, but also specifically for chemistry that does not harm wildlife”.

The discovery came with the development by the biochemistry team of new enzyme assays.

“The assays test the efficacy with which the DMI chemistry, which includes azoles, inhibit the fungal target site, CYP51 –– blocking this enzyme prevents a fungal cell from producing ergosterol causing it to die.

“We also found that Mefentrifluconazole is flexible –– it not only fits perfectly into the CYP51 binding site, but it also has the flexibility to adapt if this site changes, unlike other azoles. We think that helps with the control of septoria isolates that have evolved mutations. DMIs have a mode of action which is inherently interesting. But the approach we took has taken our work in a new direction and has become the standard way we start the process of new active ingredient development.

“The team screened hundreds of compounds and received very quick feedback, not just on how effective they were, but also how safe. Together, the team discovered a unique property of an entirely new family of triazoles –– this molecule has a ‘hook’. It’s an isopropanol linker. This moiety is a small part of the larger molecule and it’s unique for a DMI. We synthesised it and noticed very strong fungicidal effects.

“We do everything we can to put forward the right molecules into our development pipeline, so we don’t have problems later, but we see so many that fail. It makes it even more rewarding when you find one that succeeds, like we have seen with the active in Maxtima®.

Maxtima® was launched in collaboration with Agrovista Amenity, the industry’s leading supplier of professional products and specialist advice. Turf professionals will be able to speak to their local Agrovista representative to order the product and for more detail on its usage and compatibility.

For more information, please visit https://www.agricentre.basf.co.uk/en/Products/Product-Search/Fungicides/Maxtima.html#section-details

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