IN ACTION
The team from Peter O’Brien & Sons Landscaping is enjoying using its new range of Pellenc equipment
GOING GREEN Peter O’Brien & Sons has turned to Pellenc for planet-friendly kit Peter O’Brien & Sons Landscaping, one of Ireland’s leading landscape and sports ground companies, has invested in a large fleet of Pellenc battery-powered equipment. Peter O’Brien is a family-run business, with over 100 members of staff. Andy Jones, maintenance supervisor, believes the company has a responsibility to manage its impact on the environment. “We are always conscious of looking at our carbon footprint,” he says. The company embarked on an extensive search to identify a new fleet of battery-powered equipment, as Andy explains: “We carefully read product specifications, spoke to end users and attended SALTEX in order to
pinpoint the leading manufacturers.” Local dealer Leinster Turf Equipment visited a company site in Dublin to give a demonstration and Peter O’Brien invested in a fleet of Pellenc equipment including Rasion Basic pushmowers, Excelion 2000 brushcutters, Helion 2 Compact hedge trimmers, Helion Telescopic hedge trimmers, Airion 2 hand blowers and Selion polesaws. “The feedback from everyone is that we should have done this sooner,” says Andy. “From the weight of the product, the finish of the product, the lack of noise pollution and the most important thing, the battery times. We can easily get a full day’s work out
of these products and we don’t have to worry about the hassle of charging them while on a job. “The Pellenc products have also increased productivity – particularly in the city centre and the residential areas. Before we had these products, it used to be a case of the staff members sitting in the yard until 8am before they could get into these highly populated areas. However, now we can get to the sites at 7am and we are not waking people up or disturbing anyone. This has been a huge benefit.”
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For more information visit www.pellencuk.com
FIRM FAVOURITE MM60 has been used at Cheltenham Racecourse for over 25 years Ben Hastie, head groundsman at Cheltenham Racecourse, has reported great results after embarking on a long-term strategy of scarifying and overseeding with Limagrain UK’s MM60 grass seed. MM60 has been relied on at Cheltenham for over 25 years and Ben recalls a rigorous seed trial early in his tenure when MM60 proved exactly why it has been the number one choice for so long. “The climate at Cheltenham can be a little bit different to everywhere else – the highest point of the track gets very windy and it can get incredibly cold. We trialled eight to 10 different mixtures and we did tests in numerous conditions. We found that MM60 was by far the best for what we needed, and we haven’t looked back since.” 28 THE GROUNDSMAN March 2020
Limagrain’s leading MM60 winter sport mixture is a 100% ryegrass formula which is perfect in Ben’s quest to achieve consistency throughout the whole course. A strict regime of scarifying and overseeding during renovations has been key, according to Ben. “Doing this consistently over the years has resulted in the ryegrass holding up more than it ever has. It is helping with disease, helping to keep moisture in where it is needed, helping the recovery rate and providing a better coverage which makes the course look so much better. “You know with MM60 that you are going to get great growth and the colour is brilliant. Because we are predominantly a winter sport, we need germination at low
Ben Hastie, head groundsman at Cheltenham Racecourse, says MM60 grass seed is a key ingredient in keeping the course healthy
temperatures and I know that the MM60 will still be growing even if soil temperatures are 5 or 6 degrees when we are racing in December or January.”
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For more information visit www.lgseeds.co.uk/mm
