Adam King,
Grounds Manager at Radley College in Abingdon, Oxfordshire has reported
excellent results from ICL’s ProTurf and Vitalnova Stressbuster - which he says
have helped him improve the health and presentation of the school's vast array
of sports pitches.
Adam has been at
Radley for 17 years, and is responsible for the maintenance of the huge 800
acre site which includes a tenanted farm and a 9-hole golf course as well as
the numerous natural and synthetic pitches.
Sports played at
the College include rugby in the Michaelmas Term, hockey, rowing and football
in the Lent Term and cricket, rowing, lawn tennis and athletics in the Summer
Term.
“We have 694
boys at Radley and sport is a major part of their life,” says Adam. “The campus
is incredibly busy and the pitches are in use all-year round. We host 26 rugby
teams, 16 football teams, 22 hockey teams and 24 cricket teams each year.”
Adam has a large
team to help him with the mammoth work required to keep the facilities to the
impeccable standards expected by Radley College. There is a total of 18 grounds
staff including Adam, which consists of eight groundsmen, two greenkeepers and seven
gardeners.
The team has
strict maintenance procedures in place and, according to Adam, ICL products
play an integral role.
“I have a long
history with ICL and I have always found the products to provide consistent
results.
“What I like
about ICL is that, as a company, they are always looking ahead, always
developing new products and adding to the stable of quality products. For what
we need to do and what we need to achieve at Radley, no matter what the time of
year – whether it is relieving turf stress or making grass grow, whatever you
need ICL has, and you know that the products perform as you would expect.”
Adam applies
ProTurf 15-5-15+2CaO+2MgO in readiness for a busy period of winter sports in
which the potassium element can help pre-condition the turf for intensive play
and the inevitable harsh weather.
“ProTurf is
applied in early August so the grass surfaces are actively growing for the
start of the season. The one thing we work on really hard here is recovery -
for as long as we can. As long as the soil temperatures are there and the
moisture levels are there, we want the grass to keep growing because we have 14
weeks of rugby followed by 12 weeks of football. We all know that by the time
we get to January or February the recovery rates are minimal so if we can keep
it growing up until Christmas then we will and this is where ProTurf really
helps.”
ProTurf contains
a combination of Poly-S controlled-release fertilizer technology, readily
available urea Nitrogen, and Polyhalite, a naturally occurring mineral sourced
from ICL's Cleveland Potash mine.
The Poly-S
technology gives consistent, regular growth over a 2-3 month period without
growth peaks while the uncoated Nitrogen portion provides an immediate turf
response, even in cooler conditions. Polyhalite contains four macro-nutrients -
Potassium, Magnesium, Calcium and Sulphur. Potassium is required for the
process of energy transfer, especially photosynthesis and the breakdown of
carbohydrates.
“We base feed
with ProTurf,” Adam continues, “and then top up with liquid irons and
Sportsmaster WSF SeaMax (a soluble seaweed concentrate) along with Vitalnova
Stressbuster – which is a product I would use absolutely everywhere if I
could.”
Vitalnova
Stressbuster is a unique liquid formulation which pre-conditions turf against
stress and helps generate a quick recovery. Featuring iron which provides an
instant colour, Stressbuster also contains a unique combination of macro and
micro nutrients, wetting agents, bio-stimulants and amino acids.
“Stressbuster is
a lovely cocktail of everything you require which gives you a superb result. It
contains iron, bio-stimulants, a little bit of sugar, some nitrogen – all of
which encourage recovery. Colour-wise I would say we get about 21 days out of
it and you get an instant colour-up overnight which is perfect when we apply
before a game. It can also be complimented with some Primo Maxx II growth
regulator.
“Ultimately
Stressbuster is helping us to produce a tightly knit sward that keeps its
colour and sends as many roots down as possible. That’s what it is all about in
winter sports - with rugby and football it is all about traction so it is
important that you have the right products in place.”
It’s not just
the products that Adam and his team get great results from: “Emma Kilby
(ICLTechnical Area Sales Manager), who I’ve known for many years, is an
invaluable person to talk to ensuring that we have the best possible
nutritional programme in place,” says Adam.
