Weed Free - Contract Pesticide Application Services

Controlling Worm Casts

Help is now available to amateur lawn owners - you can now obtain a worm cast control product in liquid form that may be applied to the lawn to deter the worms from casting. Visit the CastClear Worm Deterrent web site for more information.

The worms do a splendid job in the soil just beneath the grass crown, but it is a pity that their casts pose such a problem for lawn owners. Worm casts on a lawn and any sports or amenity turf surface can cause severe problems for more than one reason.

England's training pitch in need of some TLC

Fifa have confirmed England will use Royal Bafokeng Sports Campus as their training base for the World Cup in South Africa this summer. Parts of the complex, in the north-west of the country near Rustenburg, are still under construction but England manager Fabio Capello and the Football Association have been assured the project will be delivered on time and the pitches will be up to standard.

Read more on The Daily Mail

Vitax launch 'Esteem' - Selective Weed Killer for Golf and Fine Turf

Vitax have announced the arrival of a new selective weed killer, suitable for golf greens and fine turf areas.

'Esteem' sets the standard in outstanding control of difficult weeds in managed amenity turf, whilst maintaining excellent safety to turf grass species. It contains a very powerful 3 - way mix of herbicides which controls a broad spectrum of weeds including Creeping Buttercup, Plantain, Daisy, Dandelion and White Clover.

STRI - Top Ten Technical Queries in 2008

The Sports Turf Research Institute based in Bingley, West Yorkshire, in their recent publication - Turfgrass Bulletin dated January 2009 have confirmed the top ten turf problems that their turf advisory service received calls on from Turf Managers seeking their input in the last 12 months.

The list makes interesting reading. Remember that we are talking professional to professional but a lot of Turf Managers rely heavily on the technical visits from their regional STRI Agronomist each year to review past maintenance practices and come up with a forward plan for the next year, dependant upon the demands of the playing surface and sport played on it/them.

Peter Todd of The London Golf Club elected new BIGGA Chairman

Organisers and exhibitors at the recent BIGGA Turf Management Exhibition in Harrogate held this past week are breathing a collective sigh of relief as Harrogate Week ends, with many saying that the event had well exceeded their expectations.

BIGGA chief executive John Pemberton said that, in advance, there had been ‘apprehension and concern’ about the impact that the present economic climate would have. In the end, the training and education programme had been better attended and more successful than ever while exhibition attendance figures, although down on last year, would still be around 6,000 for the week.

EU Pesticides a crucial loss for UK Turf Managers

The Plant Protection Products Regulations currently being discussed by The European Parliament's Committee on Environment, Public Health and Food Safety mean stricter controls on the use of pesticides within the United Kingdom and Europe as a whole.

This will have an impact on everyone who uses pesticide control products as part of their daily life. There has already been a close run battle on amendments to proposed pesticide legislation but all efforts are made ahead of the final vote. If the final vote goes against us, we will see an end to well over 80 active ingredients used in Agriculture, Horticulture and Amenity Horticulture.

Controlling Earthworm Casts with Garlic

Earthworms are great for turf, their casts are not. Controlling Worm Casts is paramount for a Turf Manager whether they are responsible for sports fields or lawns.

Now, a UK Company has developed a liquid ad granule formulation based on 99.9% garlic food grade concentrate that in independant trials showed promise in the eco friendly soluton to worm cast eradication. Phew!