It is with great sadness that we report the recent death of Jean King, founding director and co-owner of Ecosolve Ltd.

She passed away peacefully in Ashford Hospital, Kent, after a short illness.

Sports Turf contractor, Ecosolve, was set up in 1997 with Jean as Company Secretary, her husband, Roger, as Chairman and their son, Bretton, as Managing Director.

Throughout her long life, Jean, who was born in Scotland and studied at the Universities of Birmingham and Grenoble, France, gained solid experience in a variety of international businesses. An accomplished linguist, she was to be found in the early days of Ecosolve, running a stand with Roger at the French greenkeepers' exhibition in Dijon, marketing the services of a strange new aerator which improved the drainage of fine turf by drilling out closely-spaced holes and back-filling them with soil amendment. Regular appearances at Saltex and BTME followed and the Drill n Fill Aerator is now a household name in the golf business.

As the company grew and diversified into other types of sports turf management, Jean was involved in many aspects of its development and looked after the company accounts until just a few months ago.

She will be greatly missed.