The Lansdowne course at Blairgowrie Golf Club in Perthshire, Scotland has seen huge benefits since using a range of ICL’s H2Pro moisture management products – according to Course Manager Craig Stewart.
Craig Stewart is the man responsible for maintaining the magnificent championship course and has six full-time staff with two seasonal workers alongside him. As a long-term user of ICL products, Craig first started applying the H2Pro range of products five years ago after a successful trial.
“Essentially, our aim was to keep the surface and the profile dry on the greens and approaches throughout winter. We tried a few products and then Jamie Lees (ICL Technical Area Sales Manager, Scotland) suggested trialling H2Pro TriSmart. We trialled it for two months in the middle of that summer, saw great results and we just carried on from there. I like the fact that you can go from TriSmart to FlowSmart carrying on the moisture management programme all through the year.”
Craig first applies H2ProTriSmart in April at a rate of 10L/ha. He continues with monthly applications before switching to H2Pro FlowSmart in September or October depending on the weather conditions.
“As soon as the weather begins to change and it turns a bit cooler then we know that it is time to switch to FlowSmart. We then use that for as long as it’s needed just to pull the moisture through the surface and the profile to dry the greens out.
“It is such a flexible programme and you can tailor it to your everyday conditions rather than having a fixed plan. If we get a wet spring or summer then we use FlowSmart until it starts to dry up a bit and then we switch back over to TriSmart, but it can work both ways.
“We’ve also noticed a big reduction in irrigation and hand watering. Since using H2Pro TriSmart we very seldom use another wetting agent because quite simply we have no need. It is labour saving because we no longer have guys out with hoses looking for dry patches on the greens and of course we are saving money on water usage too.”
The H2Pro range of products are not the only ICL products that Craig uses and he gave his reasons as to why the company plays such big role in his maintenance procedures.
“The majority of the products we use at Lansdowne are from ICL. Jamie helps me put a programme together every year and if we ever have any problems then he is always around for support. From a technical point of view, I just cannot fault the advice I get.
“We know the amount of money and research that goes into their products and I think that gives you confidence. Every product is consistently good. For example, when we get a bag of fertilizer from ICL we know exactly what we are getting – it is always consistent.”
Please contact ICL on +44 (0)1473 237100 or visit www.icl-sf.co.uk or www.icl-sf.ie