With
an incredibly short renovation window to transform his Summer sports pitches
into Winter sports pitches, Andy Richards, Grounds Manager at Shrewsbury
School, can’t afford to take any risks with the products he uses.
It
is for this reason that he relies upon ICL products– all of which he says will
guarantee him the results expected at the prestigious school.
This
year marks eight successful years at Shrewsbury School for Andy Richards. His
groundsmanship journey all began at Birmingham City Council where he stayed for
seven years before moving to King Edwards Grammar School.
Three
years later Andy accepted the position of Head Groundsman at Birmingham City FC
but his passion for a multi-sports environment was always evident. Further
spells at British Airways Clubs and Christ College in Brecon reignited his
passion before being named as the Grounds Manager at Shrewsbury School.
Now
Andy finds himself at arguably one of the most used sports facilities in the
UK’s education system. If it was a challenge Andy was looking for, then it is
safe to say he has found one.
“I
don’t think I’m far off having the most amount of football, cricket and rugby
matches in the whole of the UK,” he says. “Last year we played host to just
over 1,900 winter sports games - which is a lot especially when you have to
cater for that amount in such a short renovation period.”
Last
year, Andy’s final cricket game was played on the 6th August, leaving him an
incredibly short window to prepare football pitches for the first game which
was played on the 7th September. After ‘Koro-ing off’ eight of the pitches Andy
had just 28 days to ensure the pitches were playable for the opening fixtures.
“Last
year was hard,” he says. “Fortunately, I have 100% confidence in the ICL
products I use and even though the weather went against us we still did it.”
After
“Koro-ing off” the pitches, Andy applies Qualibra wetting agent at 10 L/ha
(half rate) to aid the seeding process. He then top dresses before applying a
base feed of SierrablenPlus Renovator 20-20-8 at a rate of 35g/m² in which the
micro mini-granules ensure even distribution for young seedlings while its high
Phosphate levels encourage strong root growth.
Once
the seed has germinated and Andy reaches the second leaf stage, he applies
Primo Maxx II at 0.8 L/ha which he tank-mixes with humic and fulvic acids to
help with the uptake of iron and to avoid any yellowing of the leaf. Based on
his assessment of the plant Andy will, more often than not, go with another
granular feed in the form of Greenmaster Pro-Lite NK 12-0-12 at 35 g/m² which
gives the turf an added boost complimenting SierrablenPlus which is
consistently offering a controlled release of Nitrogen.
Seven
to ten days after the first application of Primo Maxx II, he reapplies it at a
slightly higher rate of 1 L/ha, before another application of Qualibra at 10
L/ha just to help hold water in the profile.
“These
particular products just seem to work for us,” he says. “Take Qualibra for
example, it gives us a huge advantage in the seeding process. If you happen to
have a hot spell, sometimes you only need as little as three hours of it being
too hot and then your seed dies but Qualibra gives you that protection because
it is extremely effective in holding moisture in the rootzone.
“The
products I use guarantee results at each stage of our renovation programme and
that makes this renovation window so much easier. I can’t risk anything not
working. I have a tried and tested method with these products now – I have done
it for the last five years and it works perfectly.
“I
trust in ICL and in my opinion the products just seem to be getting better and
better all of the time. They are creating new technologies which turf and
sports pitches need. There are no gimmicks – it is all fact and they have
trials and research to prove it.
“I
also receive great support from Emma Kilby (ICL Technical Area Sales Manager)
who helps me put together the programme. We speak a lot on the phone and
she is always there if I need her. It’s nice to be able to bounce ideas off one
another and we are always looking at any improvements we could make.”
