What can one say?! It has been a weekend of sublime sporting achievements.

It started with England reaching the semi-finals of the Euros with an emphatic win over the Ukraine, wining four nil in Rome. Gareth Southgate’s men will now take on Denmark at Wembley on Wednesday with a crowd of 60,000 hoping to cheer them on to further success.

We then saw, the British Lions win their first tour match beating the Sigma Lions 56 / 14, with Welsh winger Josh Adams scoring four tries.

Then to top it all, we saw a new, up and coming British star emerge at her very first Wimbledon Tournament. 18-year-old Emma Raducanu has stunned everybody with her mature performance to beat three very good opponents to reach the fourth round of the Championships. 

In all of these achievements, we must not forget the dedication and skills of the turf professionals who are maintaining these stadia environments during these long tournaments. Every day the playing surfaces are maintained to the highest degree, to ensure they provide a safe, consistent and well-presented surface to play on. 

It will no doubt be a stressful three weeks for these guys who are on call 24/7 during the events and who need to adapt and work with pressures, including changing weather fronts that confront them during the course of the tournament.

The weather forecast for this week does not look too good, with a lot of rain showers forecast for the next ten days. This will certainly test their resolve during the completion of these two major tournaments on home soil.

Parks update

On the parks front, Green Flag judging is still in progress with over 2000 parks being judged this year. To help celebrate the 25th anniversary of the Green Flag Awards, Green Flag has announced that they are sponsoring the Landscape Institute's Awards 2021. Specifically the 'Landscape and Parks Management' award category. The Landscape Institute Awards are all about celebrating people, place and nature, and the myriad ways that landscape projects can connect them.  

I believe the transformative power of landscape is never more important than in times of crisis. Building on the success of the 2020 Landscape Institute Awards, the 2021 awards intend to do more than ever before to celebrate the exceptional contribution of landscape designers, managers, planners, researchers and more across the world.  

While still on the subject of parks  The Keep Britain Tidy Love Parks campaign will run from the 23rd July until the 1st August 2021. 

Love Parks Week’ aims to encourage everyone, young and old, to get out and enjoy their favourite park. Spending time in a park is a great way to embrace nature and improve mental well-being - plus by encouraging the public to use and celebrating their local park, hopefully it will go some way towards protecting them for the future. 

It is at this time of the year in July that our parks usually look at their best, with fine displays of formal bedding schemes, wildflower areas and flowering shrubs and trees. 

Upcoming shows

We are now less than three weeks away from BIGGA’s Festival Of Turf show. The two-day event is scheduled to take place in the predominantly outdoor setting of the Warwickshire Event Centre on 21 & 22 July.

There will be two full exhibition days with BIGGA promising a wide range of trade stalls and opportunities to meet with vendors, alongside what they describe as “ . .a couple of entertaining twists that bring to life the ‘festival’ element of the event”.

And then the following week (27-29 July) you will have the opportunity to attend The Sports & Grounds Expo (SAGE) outdoor show at the Three Counties Showground Malvern.

I will be interested to discover how they both fair in terms of attendance. July is usually a busy time for groundstaff, dealers and manufacturers, plus it is also the time of year for annual holidays. 

The organisers of the Landscape exhibition have announced their show will move to the Birmingham NEC for the first time on 3-4 November, taking place alongside SALTEX.

In a statement Landscape said they are "proud to be co-locating with SALTEX" - providing visitors with the chance to go to two shows in one visit.

Organisers said, "Landscape is thrilled to bring this year’s show to the NEC for the first time. The move to a larger venue in Birmingham gives the ability to grow and create a bigger show. This exciting new chapter for Landscape has put the health and best interests of both exhibitors and visitors front and centre with many still uneasy about venturing into London."

Jeremy Storey-Walker, event director, added “We continue to be overwhelmed with support and are delighted to provide the opportunity for the industry to reunite."

Kubota (UK) Ltd has announced that its machinery dealer JE Rees & Sons is to add their ground care equipment range to its existing Kubota tractor business, with immediate effect.

L-R: Dylan, Mansel and Marc Rees 

The Carmarthenshire-based dealer now receives an extended product portfolio that includes a full range of compact tractors, plus commercial and domestic ride-on mowers to sit alongside its existing tractor and RTV business. 

The move will facilitate the family-run business to expand into new markets from its two depots - one at Velindre, west Wales, and the other depot in Llandovery, mid-Wales.

“We’re extremely pleased to be able to support JE Rees & Sons with the opportunity for further growth in these important sectors,” explains Tim Yates, agricultural and ground care sales manager, Kubota (UK). “This expansion will help Kubota to further strengthen its position in these key markets with the ability to provide sales, service and aftercare support across the amenity sector, schools and holiday park operators.”

JE Rees & Sons has been established for over 50 years, and is run by brothers Marc, Dylan, Geraint and Mansel. Having been a Kubota tractor dealer for over four years, JE Rees believe the introduction of an expanded machinery range will enable them to better meet the needs of its customers,

“It’s an exciting opportunity for us and our customers,” says dealer principal Marc Rees. “There are some fantastic machines in Kubota’s range, that will also appeal to a whole new customer base in addition to many existing customers.”

Nick Harris has been appointed the managing director of synthetic sports surface company, Replay Maintenance.

In the nine years since he joined the East Midlands based firm, he has played a key role the company’s growth and development. It expanded the range of services its team provides, and following the addition of key personnel to its senior leadership team and the acquisition of a software partner, has developed a technologically-advanced facility and asset management platform, Passport 365.

Group CEO, Garry Martin, says Nick’s customer-focussed approach has been instrumental to the company’s recent success. “Replay is a service company and Nick is absolutely committed to the needs of our customers. That has never been more important than it is right now, with sport and recreation at all levels in our communities in high demand following the winter lockdown. Nick and his dedicated staff are working tirelessly, in collaboration with other sports industry stakeholders, to help clubs, local authorities and educational establishments bounce back. They can rely on us to keep facilities safe, professionally maintained, and ready for play.”

The company is also looking to build on its success, with recruitment underway for new skilled operatives and an investment of more than £250,000 in new machinery and equipment this year. 

“It’s a demanding time to be taking the lead,” Nick acknowledges. “We have a huge role to play in helping people resume the sports and activities they’ve missed and in getting the nation active again. To ensure we meet the challenges ahead, we’re growing and developing our staff, fleet and range of services, and driving efficiencies through the creation of regional depots and the use of the Passport 365 software.

“We’re an ambitious team, and I’m excited about our future plans."

One of Ireland’s top golf resorts has taken delivery of two new John Deere 9009A TerrainCut rotary rough mowers.

The K Club resort superintendent Gerry Byrne (left) with his deputy Jamie Robson

The famous K Club 5-star golfing resort in Kildare, just half an hour’s drive from Dublin, hosted the Ryder Cup in 2006 as well as the Irish Open in 2016 and 13 European Opens.

When the need arose for new rough mowers at the resort, thorough research was carried out by the greens staff to investigate what each brand had to offer. In the end the John Deere models came out on top, and two 9009A mowers were ordered from local golf & turf dealer Dublin Grass Machinery.

Gerry Byrne has been resort superintendent at The K Club for the past 24 years and is pleased with the machines’ performance. “We recently bought the two new John Deere rotary mowers as we wanted to improve the overall presentation of the rough areas on both the Palmer North and Palmer South courses,” he says. “We carried out extensive research into all the main brands and decided that the 9009A suited our needs best of all.

“I have used John Deere mowers in the past but not that recently, just the company’s tractors. It’s been good to reconnect with Dublin Grass Machinery, as I have known Stan Mitchell and the dealership team since I was a trainee many years ago.

“We have operated other makes of rough mower here, and they carried out a good job of overall course maintenance. However, we felt the more versatile John Deere 9009A mowers would give us a better quality of cut.” he adds.

Most of the servicing and maintenance of the machinery at The K Club is carried out by the resort’s staff mechanic. A good parts and backup service from Dublin Grass Machinery was another influential factor in the purchasing decision for Gerry Byrne and the greenkeeping team.

“Our mechanic Pat Freany has been with us for over 25 years,” he says. “Pat carries out all the servicing and repairs and has a very good working relationship with the dealership. The quick turnaround on parts delivery and service kits is a unique selling point for John Deere, which Pat really appreciates.”

As for future investments in new machinery at The K Club, Gerry Byrne is confident that John Deere will feature again. “The K Club has significant investment plans for the whole estate, and John Deere mowing equipment will certainly be part of our continuing strategy to enhance the overall presentation standards for our members and guests.”

Nottingham & District Gun Club has turned its attention to robotic mowing, with the help of local dealer B&B Tractors, with Husqvarna Automower now maintaining the club’s grounds. 

Carl Smith, owner of Nottingham & District Gun Club

Directing their attention to automated mowing in 2019, the Club chose Automower 550 to maintain four of its shooting layouts, covering up to an acre of land. With a restricted amount of time to mow, fears of theft, and the limitations of shared equipment, the Club turned to B&B Tractorsto help assist with their challenges. 

Carl Smith, owner at Nottingham & District Gun Club, said, “For many years we’ve worked with the team at B&B Tractors as their service has always been fantastic. When we discussed the idea of turning to robotic mowing, it quickly became evident that it would be the smart thing to do, and Husqvarna Automower stood out as the obvious choice. 

“The Club has always had the challenge of maintaining the grounds when clients are there, which means limited hours in which to do so. Time is the most precious thing that the ground staff has, but with limited hours to work in, it’s never something we’ve had surplus of. 

“Trying to keep the layout tidy has always been a challenge we’ve faced, with dandelions and daisies becoming a particular issue in the past. As quick as we’d be at removing them, the quicker they’d be at growing."

.

Carl continued, “Shortly after our Automower was installed, it wasn’t long until we were seeing the fruits of its labour. Being able to mow day or night, in rain or shine, our layouts looked better than ever. The dandelions and daisies were also no longer an issue."

One of the biggest issues the Gun Club faced was the breakage of garden machinery while being swapped between the grounds team, and the threat of theft while being stored overnight. Carl explained, “Storing expensive equipment has always been a worry in case of break-in’s, and when tools are being swapped between many different team members, breakages are inevitable, and so it became a conscious decision to stop buying expensive equipment. 

“Using lower-quality equipment was okay in the short-term, but eventually we decided it was time to invest in Automower, thanks to its abilities to avoid these issues.

“I have to admit, I was initially sceptical whether the Automower would be able to deliver all that it promised, but it has certainly proved its worth."

Carl says in the future they hope to expand their robotic fleet.

STIHL has launched the new HLA 135, the most robust and powerful cordless long-reach hedge trimmer in its offering, ideal for commercial applications and trimming and pruning back large hedgerows, especially in noise sensitive environments. 

Weighing just 5.6kg (without battery), the STIHL HLA 135 is 249cm in length and features 600mm double-sided, double-edged universal blades that can cut through 16-18mm branches. The cutter bar can be rotated through 145º via the lightweight magnesium gearbox to enable over-head, side and ground-level cutting. 

A new, more comfortable control handle boasts three-speed pre-selection levels through an LED display, enabling operators to alter their working speed to the necessary conditions, whilst optimising battery-working time. Maximum stroke rate is an impressive 4000rpm, perfect for leaving a smooth finish on conifers.

Other features include a soft loop handle and grip shaft, RTS harness eyelet and mesh air filter. When used in conjunction with STIHL’s AP 200 battery system, the HLA 135 has a run time of up to 64 minutes. 

For more information on the STIHL HLA 135 and its extensive range of cordless long-reach hedge trimmers, please visit www.stihl.co.uk. 

DUE RECOGNITION

THE SHOW MUST GO ON

SIZZLING SUMMER ON ITS WAY

MAKING PARKS SAFE

INVESTNG IN FACILITIES

LOW PAY CRISIS

SPORT IN CRISIS

DRYING OUT . .

RETURNING TO FULL SPEED

ROBOTS ON THE RISE

A GAME CHANGER FOR PARKS

WORKING PRACTICES CHANGED?

OPENING UP

ROADMAP TO NORMALITY

SPRING IS IN THE AIR

BEAST FROM THE EAST RETURNS

PLAYING OUR PART

WISHES GRANTED?

TIME TO REFLECT

SELLING OUR SECTOR

SPRING WITHIN OUR SIGHTS

LOOKING AHEAD INTO 2021

A FLOOD OF WATERLOGGING ADVICE

View all of 2020's blogs here

View all of 2019's blogs here

View all of 2018's blogs here

WORKING ON A TIGHT BUDGET
Nenagh Golf Club

ON A MISSION
Wrekin Golf Club aiming to enrich wildlife and fauna

WILD AND WONDERFUL
Design By Nature

LEARNING HOW TO SURVIVE
Abbey Par 3

TACKLING OBESITY
Vital that schools can provide sport

A LIFETIME OF LEARNING
Vital for turf professionals

CELEBRATING 125 YEARS
Tullamore Golf Club

UNIVERSITY CHALLENGES
At Trinity College Dublin

BLENDING THE OLD WITH THE NEW
Bray Golf Club

A WELL POLISHED COURSE!
Ierne Social And Sports Club

IDENTIFYING THE TRUE VALUES
Of grounds maintenance

THE INDUSTRY WILL CHANGE & ADAPT
But it will survive

WIRRAL GOLF COURSES SAVED
Renewed hope and optimism for the future

GREEN SPACE CONTRIBUTION TO WELLBEING IS UNDERVALUED
Parks invisible on national agenda

A SHINING LIGHT IN IRELAND'S SUNNY SOUTHEAST
Wexford Golf Club

GREEN SPACES DO NOT LOOK AFTER THEMSELVES!
Keith Kent says we must invest in people

WE SHOULD TELL THE WORLD ABOUT THE UK INDUSTRY
Right time for all sides to come together

SOIL LIFE IS PRECIOUS
Good-quality soil can help save the planet

MORE THAN JUST CUTTING GRASS
Encouraging the next generation

A BUZZ FROM DOING THE JOB
Wide experience of the turf grass industry

PAYING THEIR WAY
Low wages is the bane of the industry

AMENITY MANAGEMENT IMPACTS US ALL
Professor John Moverley

CARING FOR PARKS OF ALL TYPES
Mary Worrall

TOP FIVE FRUSTRATIONS FOR CRICKET GROUNDSMEN
What causes you the most frustration in your role?

PROFESSIONALS AT THE CUTTING EDGE
Vic Demain and Phil Sharples

BOWLS CLUBS IN PERIL
A sad decline

A VERY SPECIAL INDUSTRY
Loz looks back

SNEAK PEAK AT A ROBOTIC "GAME CHANGER"
Commercial model capable of covering 50,000 m2 teased

HALESOWEN PICK A BIG ROBOT UP FRONT
Invest in mowers

COMPRESSED AERATION
The new way

PARKS MATTER MORE THAN EVER
Recent sector developments

ON TEST
STIHL blowers

THREE CORE VALUES TO SHAPE OUR INDUSTRY
Real concerns for the future

ENGLAND'S GREEN SPACE GAP
A split along racial lines

ON TEST
EGO STX3800 strimmer with RTX2300 Rotocut head

A SECTOR FACING IMPORTANT TIMES
Review of the National Action Plan

PARKS MATTER
The role of public parks in the recovery: a discussion paper

A UNIQUE SPORTING VENUE
Wormsley private estate

A BTME OUTDOORS?
A good bet for the industry

PARKS NEED APPROPRIATE POLITICAL REPRESENTATION
Q&A with Philippa Reece, Parks and Foreshore Manager at Adur and Worthing Council

CRICKET LOAM
What does it mean?

A HERCULEAN EFFORT TO GET PARKS BACK TO NORMAL
Q&A with Chris Worman, Rugby Borough Council’s parks and ground manager

ON TEST
STIHL battery products

TURFGRASS STRESS MANAGEMENT
Reactive Oxygen Species (ROS) and antioxidants during biotic and abiotic stress in turfgrass plants

AUTUMN DISEASE MANAGEMENT
The coming months are going to prove very difficult

THE ABUSE OF PARKS . .
Is the abuse of society

WHY PARKS MATTER?
A statement from the Parks Management Forum to the Prime Minister

THE 21st CENTURY PARKS MANAGER
Innovative, creative and entrepreneurial

EAT, SLEEP, CUT, REPEAT!
Cricket under covid

TIME FOR A SINGLE SHOW?
Debate brought back into focus

A CHALLENGING TWO MONTHS
Running golf design projects from home

PRESSURE SITUATION
Cementing the reputation

A CLUB TO BE PROUD OF
10 years at the helm of Olton GC

GAME CHANGERS IN TURFCARE
The day the Lord's outfield reconstruction proved its worth

THE ESSENCE OF ESSENTIAL
Finding a sensible way forward on defining "essential maintenance"

THAT WAS THE YEAR THAT WAS
2001

HOW TO LOOK AFTER A GOLF COURSE WITH NO GOLFERS
Fundamental to the survival of almost all courses, if not of the game itself

RAIN STOPPED PLAY WOULD BE WELCOME
. . along with ‘lunch is being taken early’

PHYSICAL CONTROL OF TURFGRASS PESTS
An urgent problem

A DIVERSE & ENTERTAINING WEEK
Successful BTME 2020

INTEGRATED PEST CONTROL
Opportunity to embrace new methods

ENVILLE ON THE UP
Major investments taking place

GREEN FLAG AWARDS 2019
A great success

U.S PROFESSIONAL EQUIPMENT SHOW EXCELS
Buoyant GIE+EXPO

LEGACY OF THE SOLHEIM CUP
At Gleneagles

A DAY OUT WITH THE LADIES
Behind the scenes at the Solheim Cup

COVENTRY UNIVERSITY'S EDIBLE GARDEN SUCCESS
2006 - present

HAIL THE GRASS MASTERS!
Boorish media comments about pitch quality are wide of the mark

CONTRACTOR SEES MULTI-DISCIPLINE SUCCESS
360 Ground Care serving professional facilities

BUSY TIMES
Judging the Green Flag Awards

TAKING AN INTEGRATED APPROACH
What does it all mean in managing turf surfaces?

UNDER PRESSURE
Dry weather conditions continue to keep turf managers focused on moisture management

EDDIE SEAWARD
Death of Wimbledon’s influential grounds manager

MAJOR NEW IRRIGATION PROJECT
At Top 100 classic Berkhamsted Golf Club

NEW HORIZONS FOR THE HATTERS
Investment paying off at Kenilworth Road

ELIZABETHAN RESTORATION
At Castle Bromwich Hall Gardens

WHAT IS BIOPHILIA?
The vital impact of parks and green spaces on health and well-being

WORM CONTROL
Without carbendazim

THE TRUE COST OF PETROL
Battery-powered outdoor power tools are now turning the heads of professionals

SANDS OF TIME
Sand-based pitches are now the norm in professional sports

WHY DO WE DO THE RIGHT THING?
We must maintain industry standards

CHASING GRASS PERFECTION?
11 things you need to know . . .

MAINTAINING STANDARDS
Q&A with BASIS ceo, Stephen Jacobs

STRI RESEARCH DAY 2018
Hosted at research trial grounds in Bingley

THE MECHANIC
Leicester City FC invest in new role

LORD'S 'GRASS-GUVNOR' TO RETIRE
Mick Hunt bows out after 49 years

HOLLOW CORING & DEEP SCARIFICATION
Is it really necessary?

Dungarvan Golf Club is situated in one of the most picturesque areas in Ireland’s south east. It is located just outside the town of Dungarvan, County Waterford and is adjacent to Dungarvan Bay, the Waterford Greenway and set against the backdrop of the Comeragh mountains.

History

The club was founded in 1924 at a place called Cunnigar. Cunnigar is a 3km long sand spit known as the Conniger Peninsula. However, the club only resided there for 5 years. Coastal erosion and Cunnigar inaccessibility led the club to seek an alternative venue. This was a pity as it would have made for an ideal location for a golf links but there was never enough land on the peninsula for this to happen. The club moved to two other locations before settling, in 1993, to its present location at Knocknagranagh. The success of Dungarvan Golf Club and the growing population in Dungarvan town led to calls from the members to expand to eighteen holes. When the various options regarding expansion and ‘moving house’ were considered during the late 1980s the club decided to purchase some farm land nearer to the town and develop today’s challenging course.

The clubhouse at Dungarvan as you would see it coming down the 18th fairway with the Comeragh mountains in the background

In the early years Dungarvan Golf Club was a nine hole facility but the move to Knocknagranagh allowed the opportunity of the club to become a top quality eighteen hole championship course. The course was designed by local man, the late Maurice Fives. Ironically, the place it moved from in 1993 is now the location of it’s friendly rival club The Gold Coast Golf Club.

The greenkeeping staff

The course manager at Dungarvan is Anthony Morrissey. I met with Anthony, along with the chairman of the course committee, John Moloney. They both brought me around the course on a lovely June morning. However, the pressure was on as Anthony was preparing the course for the Captains prize, which was taking place on the upcoming weekend. Despite this I was generously given time to be brought around to see the course. “If you had come when the tide was full you would have been able to take nicer photographs”, said John. As it happened, it didn’t matter what way the tide was, as Anthony and his staff had the course in great condition.

Anthony Morissey (left) with John Moloney, chairman of the course committee

John has a Degree in Agricultural Science from University College Dublin (UCD) but is now retired from Teagasc (the state agency that provides research, advisory and education in agriculture and horticulture, in Ireland). John has acquired a lot of knowledge and experience of the land during his career, particularly when it comes to drainage and soil physiology so he has a lot to give to the club.

Anthony Morrissey first worked at Dungarvan during the building of the 18 hole course in 1992. He left shortly afterwards but returned in 1994 and has been here ever since. In September 2008 he got the top job of Course Manager after succeeding Michael Mernin, who had retired. 2008 was a tough year to take over the reigns of maintaining the course, as it was then that the financial crash occurred. Ireland, in particular, was one of the countries that was hit the hardest as most of the economy revolved around the construction and property sector. As a result, club memberships in Irish golf clubs, including Dungarvan, dropped significantly. Dungarvan is now beginning to get its membership numbers back to what it was pre 2008. 

A view of the 11th hole

The course is situated on heavy soil. About 12 - 18 inches below the surface lies a 30 inch layer of heavy marl known as gley. This causes a lot of wet areas around the course as surface water is slow to soak away. To compound the problem there is also a high water table. To tackle this problem many drains have been installed. There are plans, this year, to carry out drainage work on the 4th, 7th and 9th holes. Only last October a 5ft piped drain was cut across the 15th and 14th fairways to divert the water coming up from the water table below. The drain outlet goes into the estuary, which is beside the 14th fairway. Having the estuary traversing some of the course is useful as it provides outlets for drains coming from the course. A Homburg drainjetter has been hired to clean out existing drains on the course. This machine will pump water into the drains at such a high force that any material blocking the drains will be flushed out. 

A line of conifers forms an unusual backdrop to the 8th green

During the last lockdown the course was closed for play from December 2020 to April 2021. During that time Anthony took advantage of the empty course by thinning out some of the trees that were planted when the course was built. He was also able to build some pathways for the course machinery and golf buggies. 

Course maintenance

The greens in Dungarvan are sand based, built on USGA specifications back in 1992. In 2008 there were five greenkeeping staff maintaining the course. This has since been reduced to three, with one seasonal worker taken on during the summer. Bernard Crotty is one member of staff who has worked with Anthoney for twenty years. He has gathered a lot of experience over those years and is a valuable asset to the team, as too is Daniel O’Keeffe, Anthony’s other full time staff member. Even though Daniel is younger, he worked in Cork Golf Club before joining the Dungarvan greenkeeping staff two years ago.

With only three full time staff, the pandemic lockdowns were challenging times for them. It is remarkable to think that these three men can maintain the 120 acre course to such a high standard. “It would be great to return to five full time greenkeepers again. Hopefully, some day this will happen”, said Anthony. To make up for the shortfall in staff, some volunteers come in for 3 – 4 hours each week, usually on a Wednesday morning, to help with course work such as raking and edging bunkers, hedge cutting, repairing divots and marking out of bound areas. Even some lady members help out by volunteering to maintain the flower beds around the clubhouse.

The greenkeeping staff from left: Bernard Crotty, Anthoney Morrissey, Daniel O’Keeffe. Missing from the photo is Nioclás O’Condúin

The greens are mown at 3mm in summer, increasing to 5mm in winter. Tees and aprons are cut at 12mm while the fairways are mown at 14mm. The club recently purchased a Jacobsen HR500 rough mower, replacing their trailing five-gang mower. This new mower gives a better quality of cut, especially in wet conditions. The average club member is in the high age profile so to make it easier for them to get around and speed up play the rough is kept reasonably short at 44mm (1¾ inches).

The beautiful 2nd hole

Anthony seldom uses granular fertilisers on the greens. It is mostly liquid feed that is given each month, usually 28:0:0 (N-Sure) with 3:7:18 and Primo Max added in the mix. These are replaced with Turfite during the winter months. Tee boxes are fed with 16:16:16 granular fertiliser throughout the year. The green surrounds are given an application of Multigreen 25:3:18 once a year.

A mature ash tree forms a canopy over the 13th tee with Dungarvan estuary and the old railway bridge, which now forms part of the Greenway cycle path in the background

The agronomist at Dungarvan is Conor Nolan from the STRI. Conor recommends a feeding and maintenance programme for the greens every season. The emphasis is on keeping the greens as healthy as possible, thus reducing the need to apply fungicides. Phosphites are applied to the greens to encourage a healthy sward. Being vigilant to disease infection is key and as soon as the early signs of infection are spotted, fungicides are given. Because of the amount of fungicides that have been removed from the market, there is less choice of products. However, from those that are available, Anthony chooses a systemic fungicide such as Instrata Elite, Medallion or Heritage. The greens are verti drained around 5 – 6 times each year.

One of the pathways installed during last winter

Sand topdressing is applied each week to the greens. The greens have not been hollow cored since 2017. Building up a high sand level has reduced the amount of thatch forming. Around 80 tons of sand per hectare is applied to the tees. Anthony would like to increase this to 120 tons. Wet areas on fairways are also given a sand topdressing.

Daniel O’Keeffe mows one of the tee boxes

There is a lot of wildlife around the course with mallard ducks being a common sight. If you are patient enough you may spot some buzzards, foxes, rabbits and even a mink.

Bernard Crotty on the turf iron as he rolls one of the greens

With the Comeragh Mountains at one end and Dungarvan Bay at the other, Dungarvan Golf Club certainly provides a beautiful location to play a round of golf. Add a well maintained course to this and you cannot but enjoy a great experience at Dungarvan, no matter what way the tide is.