Garesfield Golf Club have used Indigrow products for several years and have stepped up their usage and variety of products every year. Since the beginning of the season, they have used a range of granular fertilisers, wetting agents and OneShot products on their greens and tees to maintain an excellent standard for their members.

The programme was started in early March with an application Impact Organic 14-2-8 Fine at 35 g/m². The sole granular application was used to kick start the growing period after a winter of very unfavourable conditions, which included serval weeks of snow cover.

One temperatures rose, an initial wetting agent application of Magnum 357 Calibre was applied, in a tank mix with three OneShot products; Solar Pro-Active OneShot, Compass Bio-Active OneShot and Magnum Forty-Four OneShot. All of the OneShot products were applied at the recommended rate of 4 sachets/ha.

The tank mix applications were applied monthly during the growing season.

Head Greenkeeper, Chris Wood, told us: “During the current period of sustained dry weather, it’s clear to see that the water holding technologies of Magnum 357 Calibre have maintained the correct moisture levels in the greens as these have kept their colour and playability.

Budgetary restraints and a lack of irrigation system have prevented Chris (Head Greenkeeper) from being able to keep colour on the surrounds and fairways during this sustained dry period, however, as soon as rain falls, it’s expected that the turf will make a full and swift recovery.

Chris also reported this year that the combination of products used has led to significantly less demand for fungicide and has vastly reduced his applications of iron due to the increased disease resistance from the mix of products applied.

Compass seaweed products from Indigrow

Indigrow have worked to develop a range of seaweed products – to help evaluate their performance, they enlisted the help of Levity Crop Science.

Independent Lab Trials

Levity have a specialist team of scientists that have the know-how to test crop nutrition, biostimulants and stress tolerance products. They run experiments on nutrient and biostimulants week in week out, and have developed world class experimental techniques unique to Levity.

The Aim

To analyse the effects of the growth enhancer ‘Compass Bio-Active OneShot’ on the turf grass Lolium, at a range of application rates above and below the recommended rate of 4 sachets per hectare (0.8kg/Ha w/v in 300L water). The major focus of this work is on the early growth and morphology of roots.

Analytical Methods

Root growth bioassay uses controlled conditions combined with high definition image analysis and sophisticated analytical software, to evaluate how exposure to products aff­ects root growth and architecture. They used at least five replicates per treatment to guarantee whether diff­erences seen are statistically significant or not.

Results

Compass Bio-Active OneShot significantly increases root length, total network length and perimeter within the first two weeks of growth. It also significantly increases the growth of tillers at the recommended application rate. The conclusions drawn by Levity Crop Science indicated that, when applied at the recommended application rate, Compass Bio-Active OneShot will increase the ability of turf grass roots to scavenge deeper soil for water and nutrients from an early stage in their growth development.

Benefits of Compass Seaweed Products

Compass seaweed products utilise the latest cold cell burst technology and are available in granular, liquid or soluble formulations. As shown in the trials undertaken, they also help to stimulate root growth and are manufactured from a renewable and sustainable source.

Magnum 357 Calibre is a new technology advanced water management tool. Combining three different surfactant technologies it provides even spreading over turf surface, efficient water penetration and water holding capacity through the use of reverse block co-polymers to help cure hydrophobic soils.

Research & Development

Research has been a major factor in the improvement and increased use of wetting agents. Indigrow has been at the forefront of this research, leading to high quality products which utilise the latest triple – surfactant technologies and market leading highly concentrated penetrants.

What is Water Repellency?

As soils dry out, hydrophobic compounds polymerize and water repellency increases.  Once a critically low moisture content is reached, soils shift from wettable to non-wettable, impacting infiltration and unsaturated flow in affected soils.

Water Repellency Testing

Using the ‘Molar Ethanol Droplet (MED) Test’ developed by King, 1981, we tested the water repellency of the soil. We compared a control soil with that of Magnum 357 Calibre and a market leading competitor’s product. A soil was chosen from a golf course known to have severe problems with hydrophobic soils and water penetration.

Using a dropping pipette, a number of drops of the lowest concentration (0.1 M) water/ethanol mix was placed on the surface and the time taken for these to penetrate noted. The strength of the solution was increased in steps of 0.1 M until the droplet passed into the soil in less than 5 seconds.

Assessments

When using the MED test the scale used ranges from 0 M > 4 M, with 0 M indicating highest permeability and 4 M highest hydrophobicity. The control soil scored 3.5 M confirming that it was highly hydrophobic. Individual trays of the soil were then treated with the two wetting agents at recommended rates of application and the MED test repeated after 24 hours.

Results

24 hours after treatment, the test was repeated and the soils which had received Magnum 357 Calibre and the market leader were able to be penetrated with pure water without the addition of ethanol in under 5 seconds and hence scored zero on the scale. The treated soils were left for 7 days and the test repeated. Again, both wetting agents scored zero. Magnum 357 Calibre is therefore as effective as the market leader in curing soil hydrophobicity and allowing water penetration, even on root zone types which are known to be very resistant to water movement.

Trials

The photos below show our real world trials using Magnum 357 Calibre and Magnum Forty Four. The left hand image shows the green before treatment, and the right hand image shows the greens after receiving a targeted wetting agent programme comprising of Magnum 357 Calibre and Magnum Forty Four, along with Indigrow Solar foliar feeds over a 6 month period.

Further trials are currently underway in Australia, comparing plots treated with Magnum 357 Calibre, the market leading product (Product R) and an untreated control area.

On the 1^st March 2018 Indigrow Ltd celebrated it’s 25-year anniversary in the sports turf industry. Indigrow commenced business in Reading, Berkshire (UK) in the Spring of 1993 and during the last 25 years has grown into a worldwide organisation. It services now include the sports turf industry and a range of agricultural industry sectors, now operating in over 40 countries throughout the Far East, Middle East and Europe. The current head office location is Brimpton, Berkshire (UK), with a further three regional offices within its area of trade and a total of over 40 personnel across the globe.

To celebrate our 25th Anniversary, we organised a charity evening in aid of the NSPCC, raising over £620.00 in the process. Every member of our European team managed to make the event, despite the heavy snowfall, and the evening was a great success.

In the last 25 years, Indigrow has developed a reputation for innovative and pioneering technologies in the world of sports turf and agriculture, all stemming from the slogan “growth through innovation”. It is this thought process that drives the business forward. The product development cycle hasn’t shown any signs of slowing and new products and technologies are being launched all the time to cover the climates in which our customers now operate. These varied climates have led to the development of products specifically to suit cold, wet winters and hot dry summers throughout the world.

One of our latest innovation involves our range of super concentrated OneShot products. From penetrant wetting agents, through pH adjusters to seaweeds and amino acids, the OneShot range was developed with the environment in mind. Minimal packaging waste, reduced transport costs and improved water conservation were at the forefront of the development plan.

For more information on our products, please contact your local sales representative, call the head office on +44 (0) 1189 710 995 or email us on growth@indigrow.com

If you’re interested in the fantastic work of the NSPCC, you can find out more on their website here: nspcc.org.uk

Whilst at BTME 2018, we were approached by Turf Matters with a view to helping explain to people the relative merits of some of our unique products. Our Technical Director, Geoff Lloyd, took time out to speak to them:

More information about our OneShot range can be found here: OneShot Concentrated Sachets

Impact granular fertilisers are a mainstay of our nutrition programme at Tyrifjord Golf Klubb. We have used Impact fertilisers for many years, on our greens, tees and fairways.

For the last couple of years, we have started the season with Impact Accelerate 14-0-12. Coming out of the cold and snow-covered winters in Norway, it is important for us to give the turf a fighting chance at the beginning of the growing season. By using Impact Accelerate at 20g/m² on the greens at the start of the season, we’re able to get some early season growth along with a fantastic rich green colour despite the still relatively low temperatures.

On our fairways, we have used Impact CGF 26-5-8 for over 7 years. It’s the 1^st product to be added to our fertiliser order every season. The Impact CGF 26-5-8 is applied at 30g/m² the start of June to all of our fairways and we then don’t need to apply anything else until the following season. The best thing about this product is the longevity of the controlled release nitrogen. We have never seen any scorching or flushes of growth and it continues to feed the plant for more than the 12 weeks it states on the bag. The turf still holds its colour even into next spring.

The subject of phosphite has become a hot topic in the world of greenkeeping of late. As more scientific studies are carried out on the effect using phosphite, rather than phosphate, can have on turf grass, the more interest is generated.

Normally, P is supplied to the plant as Phosphate (PO₄) as it is manufactured from Phosphoric Acid. By contrast Phosphite (PO₃) is made from Phosphorous acid. During the manufacturing process the acid is often neutralise by a base (normally Potassium Hydroxide).

It is now widely known that phosphite has a positive effect of root growth and development, and this effect is enhanced when foliar applications are used.

Based on this demand, we developed Solar Pro-Active OneShot. This foliar biostimulant, which is high in phosphite, significantly aids early root growth and establishment, at the same time promoting the plants natural resistance to disease. It is rapidly absorbed by the leaf and translocated to all parts of the plant, stimulating natural plant auxin production. It increases plants natural defence mechanism towards some pathogens.

At Indigrow, we commissioned our own study, based on our unique sachet formulation (Solar Pro-Active OneShot) with the team at Levity Crop Science.

Tests were carried out using turf grass species Lolium perenne L. Bocelli germinated in an inert medium. The germinated seeds are supplied with Solar Pro-Active OneShot at the recommended application rate, and transferred to an incubator, where they were allowed to grow for 14 days, 14 hours a day at 20 degrees.

In comparison with the control seeds, the germinated seeds supplied with Solar Pro-Active OneShot were thicker, more than double the thickness of the control roots. Levity Crop Science confirmed that applications of Solar Pro-Active OneShot increased the capacity of the plant to scavenge the soil surface for water, oxygen and nutrients, leading to the significantly increased root volume, when using the recommended application rate.

The main conclusions from the work conducted at Levity Crop Science were that Solar Pro-Active OneShot increases root volume within the first two weeks after germination, and that it increases the growth of tillers when used at the recommended application rate of 2-4 sachets/ha in 300-600 lt water.

This high concentration and the relively low appliction rates recommended  when used as a biostimulant means that it is ideal candidate for inclusion into the One Shot range. This unique packaging system has many benefits to the end user particularly savings in transport, packaging materials and disposal of emply containers.

Solar Pro-Active OneShot is a truly foliar feed, high in phosphite, designed to help dramatically reduce plant stress during the summer months. Solar Pro-Active OneShot is fully systemic, and is available in a fast acting, stable tank mixable formulation which can be used in a tank mix with all of the other OneShot products for maximum efficiency.

Spring/summer applications boost plant growth, particularly in low temperatures whilst late summer and autumn applications promote turf hardness, boosts plant health and improves disease resistance.

For further information on the research carried out, please contact growth@indigrow.com

Lansdown Golf Club, near Bath, selected Indigrow as one of their chosen suppliers for the 2017 season. Head Greenkeeper, Paul Garland, chose Indigrow based on their innovative products, along with the advice provided by his area representative, Neil Baker.

The first change made was to utilise Impact Humik N 25-0-0 on the tees and aprons. This product, packed with humic acid, helped to ensure a consistent green colour throughout the playing season. Paul told us that “just half a bag per tee provided instant colour and has given us great long-term results”.

As well as improving turf health with Impact Humik N 25-0-0, Paul also chose to upgrade his wetting agent programme, but switching to Magnum Granular and Magnum Blaster Pellets. He told us that “the combination of using Magnum Blaster Pellets in the irrigation tank, and Magnum Granular on the bunker banks and driest greens, really helped to relieve the effect of dry spot during the warm summer months”.

Whenever spraying, Optik Blue Spray Dye and Optik Anti-Foam were both used to reduce foaming in the spray tank during mixing and to improve accuracy whilst spraying. Paul noted that “Indigrow’s Optik products worked effectively when added to the spray tank, improving my use of Indigrow’s range of products, as well as that of some of my other suppliers”.

Winter can be a stressful time for greenkeepers and groundsmen – some simple steps outlined below can help to keep your playing surface in top condition.

October

Remember as the daylight reduces be vigilant in your inspection for fungal disease. You can now use fungicides which stay in the leaf because of reduced mowing.

Remove the dew each morning and raise the height of cut to 5-6mm.

This is the time of year when leaves fall from the trees onto the golf course. It is essential that these leaves are removed on a daily basis to prevent leaves smothering the turf and harming the surface in the long run.

Shut down the irrigation system and ensure it is ready for winter and not left open to damage.

Fairway spiking may be carried out in October as the ground is perfect for this, being not too wet or not too dry. Continue to aerate the greens as well.

Applications of potassium (Solar K) and iron (Fusion Liquid Fe/Solar Fe) can be helpful to harden the turf against disease.

November / December

Very low daylight so disease pressure is at its highest. There are several fungicides which can be used, specifically developed for the colder conditions. Ask your Indigrow representative for advice in your region.

Remove the dew each morning and aerate with slitting or round solid tines. To help with stress caused by low daylight, apply amino acid liquid (Turbine Reaction OneShot) and iron (Fusion Liquid Fe) mixed with small amount of penetrant wetter (Magnum Forty-Four OneShot)

Continue to aerate the greens by slit tining and take tees out of action for winter if needs be.

Late in 2014 we were contacted by the Nanjing office of the Chinese British Business Council who were following up an enquiry from a Chinese company looking to import specialist fertilisers and who had seen our website. Over a period of several months an outline commercial contract was negotiated with CBBC acting as an intermediary. In the summer of 2015 the agreement was signed in Beijing. Then the process of registering Indigrow as an approved supplier and the registering the products themselves started. During that time, Indigrow personnel visited China on a number of occasions which culminated in our first order being shipped in March 2016.

“Since then, we have made a shipment every 8 week or so” said Geoff Lloyd, Indigrow’ s Technical Director. “And we have more already scheduled for the next coming few months in advance of the 2018 spring season in China”

Geoff Lloyd with our Chinese partners visiting the London office of the Chinese British Business Council in June 2017.