IN ACTION
The right mix
groundsman Ed Mowe, the question was Using the right combination of Headland how to maximise the efficacy products, at the right time, has paid of a fungicide dividends for Leicester Tigers Rugby Club application given the approaching conditions. The answer was a tank mix of Dedicate and Tangent SDR from Headland Amenity – applied in a window of just 60 minutes with impressive results. Assisting Ed with the maintenance at the Welford Road Stadium and Oval Park training ground is a team of two grounds staff and an apprentice; with Headland’s sports turf specialist Alex Hawkes on hand to provide The pitch at Leicester Tigers Rugby advice on all things nutritional. Club is now looking fantastic “While we wouldn’t ordinarily gamble on spraying in a weather A weather forecast of significant window as tight as one hour, we rainfall combined with warm, trusted Alex’s recommendation and humid temperatures means only it was a decision that paid off,” one thing for grounds managers says Ed. “We sprayed the Dedicate – high disease pressure. For and Tangent SDR mix, it ‘stuck’ to Leicester Tigers Rugby Club head
First class facilities Limagrain seeds help Oxford University’s sports sites stay in prime condition Oxford University has a long history of sporting success as well as academic achievements. The man tasked with maintaining the university’s sports facilities is Jon Buddington, who has been grounds manager there for two years. As a frequent user of Limagrain seed throughout his 30-year career, Jon was not surprised to see Limagrain’s MM50 seed performing well on a newly constructed cricket square upon the start of his tenure at the university. “The new cricket square was
overseeded with MM50 and because of the great results we continued to use it,” he said. “Now we overseed with MM50 at the end of the cricket season and put a bit on pre-season just before we start rolling. It has very good wear tolerance and we hardly ever get any debris.” MM50, a blend of fine-leaved ryegrasses, is ideal for cricket squares and outfields. This hard-wearing mix has rapid germination, very fine leaved appearance, high shoot density and is tolerant to very close mowing, along with high disease resistance. These attributes produce a fantastic sward that has great colour all year round. It is also widely praised for its rapid recovery. In the early stages of his role, Jon’s attentions turned towards the winter pitches. His supplier, MW Turfcare, advised trying Limagrain’s MM60 seed on the rugby and football pitches. This 100% ryegrass formula is perfect for renovation and divot repair, has a high disease resistance, strong aesthetic
24 GROUNDS MANAGEMENT | DECEMBER 2020
the plant and we emerged from the extremely high-pressure period with a stadium pitch clear of disease.” Applied in June, Tangent SDR is a natural spray additive that utilises the sticking effect of Terpineol to enhance spray retention on the grass and improve uptake of the spray. “It has fantastic low dilution rates making it a cost-effective way of making applications rainfast to maximise results,” says Ed. “On this occasion, it was tank-mixed with Dedicate turf fungicide as a protectant against Fusarium Patch and Leaf Spot. We have also been using Tangent SDR with a plant growth regulator at our training ground which is frequently subject to strong winds. The ‘sticking’ effect has undoubtedly helped us to save on chemical, and therefore money, there as well.” Find out more at www.headlandamenity.com
MM seed is first-class at Oxford University
qualities and offers fast germination – which is boosted by the inclusion of Headstart Gold. “We renovate and overseed with MM60 at the end of the rugby and football seasons. Generally, we tend to apply MM60 to these pitches at the end of May and we get very good germination. We have a strong colour all year round.” For more information visit www.lgseeds.co.uk/mm
