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Image Rob Boyce Head Greenkeeper at The Links Newmarket
Aitkens Award Surf To Turf Triple 30 Seaweed has been pivotal in helping to maintain the expected high standard at The Links Golf Club, Newmarket, one of Cambridgeshire’s most renowned golf courses.
The course, which is situated opposite the famous Newmarket Race course, plays host to many regional and county events, and it is the job of head greenkeeper, Rob Boyce, to continually produce an excellent course.
Rob, a 20-year servant at The Links, has been using seaweed products for some time, but only recently started using Aitkens Award Surf To Turf Triple 30 Seaweed, and is delighted with the effects it’s had on his greens.
“I’ve been using seaweed as a product for the last eight to ten years, but I only started using the Aitkens Award Surf to Turf Triple 30 Seaweed last year,” he said.
“I’ve known Colin Rushbrook at Aitkens for 20-years, so he talked me through the product and suggested trying the one they offered, and its been superb since the first use, it’s the best ever response I’ve had from a seaweed product after a first application.
“It has very good longevity, I get around six weeks out of it and it’s been my main source of nutrient input to the greens this season. My finer grasses thrive on it and the overall density has improved a lot, because the seaweed encourages lateral tillering.
“I really like that it retains a tight sward and keeps a healthy root system. Also, we don’t get any flush when we use it; the golfers can come out and play on the course after we’ve done the work and the greens are still an acceptable speed.
“With traditional fertilisers you can start to lose the speed by the time it gets to the afternoon, so we didn’t want any weak top growth and using the seaweed prevents that.”
As stated, Rob used the seaweed as his main form of nutrients for the greens last year, and he was able to do this because of where Aitkens source the seaweed and the way it is harvested.
One of the most important factors to be aware of when choosing seaweed is how much natural Oligosaccharides (short chain sugars) and micro nutrients were retained in its production.
The range of five Surf To Turf liquids are extracts from the seaweed species Ascophyllum nodosum, environmentally harvested from the Atlantic Ocean off south west Ireland. This area is renowned for its pristine waters, so the seaweed is rich in natural organic compounds, which help turf plants in a number of ways.
These include stimulate rooting and compact top growth, thickening and strengthening cell membranes and increasing wear and drought resistance.
Aitkens www.aitkens.co.uk
The Links Golf Club, Newmarket www.linksgolfclub.co.uk