HRH The Duke of Kent is to visit the IOG SALTEX open space management show on Tuesday 8 September at Windsor Racecourse.
The Duke of Kent will be welcomed to the show by the Lord Lieutenant of Berkshire, The Hon Mrs Bayliss. He will tour the event, meeting exhibitors and visiting the Sports Turf Skills Village and the AEA Live Machinery Demo Area, then make a presentation to the Institute of Groundsmanship (IOG) to mark the Institute’s 75th anniversary.
Commenting on the exciting news, IOG Chief Executive Geoff Webb says: “We are honoured that the Duke – who is President of the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club – will be visiting IOG SALTEX as part of his very busy Royal diary, and we know that the companies, products and technologies on view will reflect the significance of this industry.”
The Duke’s visit will be the second such Royal acknowledgement of the IOG and its activities, after Prince Philip wrote to the Institute recognising its 60th anniversary and praising the role of grounds professionals and groundsmanship.
HRH The Duke of Kent undertakes many Royal engagements, both in support of The Queen and on behalf of the many organisations with which he is involved. One of the Duke’s major public roles for many years was Vice-Chairman of British Trade International (now know as UK Trade and Investment). The Duke was very actively involved in its work, promoting Britain and British companies by leading overseas trade missions and visiting companies large and small across the United Kingdom.
IOG SALTEX 2009 is being held on 8-10 September at Windsor Racecourse, Berks, and will embrace fine turf and sports surfaces, turf maintenance equipment, children’s outdoor play and safety surfacing, landscaping, contractors, commercial vehicles, outdoor leisure and facilities management, as well as software and security equipment. The show is attended by open space management professionals and contractors – from groundsmen and greenkeepers through to play officers, architects, designers and surveyors as well as local authority and outdoor leisure facility managers.
Organised by The Institute of Groundsmanship, the first IOG exhibition was staged in 1938, the forerunner to today’s IOG SALTEX Sports, Amenity & Landscape Trade Exhibition. Held annually at Windsor Racecourse, IOG SALTEX is the annual extravaganza for everyone who cares for and/or manages open spaces – including groundsmen, greenkeepers, contractors, local authority and leisure facility managers. The Institute of Groundsmanship (IOG) is the leading membership organisation representing grounds managers, groundsmen, grounds maintenance managers, greenkeepers and all others involved in the management of sports pitches, landscape and amenity facilities in the UK. As well as maintaining the IOG Performance Quality Standards and providing a consultancy service for sports grounds, lawn maintenance and amenity horticulture, the IOG’s extensive Training and Education programme includes cricket, football, tennis, horseracing, bowls, artificial surfaces, turf science and many other specialist subjects. For more information visit www.iog.org
<>
OFF TO A TEE AT IOG SALTEX
IOG SALTEX HAS THE ANSWERS TO MOLES, MAN-MANAGEMENT AND GOLF COURSE MAINTENANCE
by Michael Smith (Veshengro)
Les Shrubb is not the only greenkeeper who has nightmares about moles. But after visiting last year’s IOG SALTEX show, where he gained an all-important update on the safe handling and use of Talunex tablets, he now sleeps a lot easier!
“Moles – and rabbits – are a constant problem here, particularly during the winter months,” says the Sussex-based Head Greenkeeper of the privately-owned Wellshurst Golf & Country Club.
“But after visiting the Windsor show, the team can now control the pests in-house without the expense of specialist contractors. We have managed to reduce the mole population, for example, but it is an ongoing problem.
“I try to go IOG SALTEX at least every other year – last year we all went, and it was my greenkeepers’ first ever visit - because in addition to timely updates on things like pest control, it’s a great place to keep on top of developments across the industry. For example, I like to keep abreast of the latest machinery and its capabilities – though equipment funding is always a problem - and IOG SALTEX is the ideal venue for that.”
Having been involved in grass and sports surfaces since he left school, 48-year-old Les is responsible for the maintenance and management of a driving range, and various soft and hard landscaping in addition to the 18-hole course which, being built on Wealden clay and former farmland, creates its own problems in terms of drainage.
“In the early years – Les has been at the club since1992 – this was a major headache,” he says, “but we are on top of it now after lots of spiking and the installation of open ditches and paths, for instance. The course is a ‘grass factory’ and whenever we have a wet Spring, we have trouble getting the mowers out.”
With four greenkepeepers (reduced to two during the winter months), inter-personal/management skills is a key attribute complementing Les’ raft of training and education accreditations that include NVQ Level 3 supervisory and management, and a range of health and safety courses as well as IOG golf course and turf management training.
In addition to regular communication with his club members and committee concerning course maintenance routines, he also obviously handles any man-management issues with his team of greenkeepers.
“This is another very good reason for attending events like IOG SALTEX,” he says. “There’s so much advice on offer there concerning every aspect of the job that anyone involved in grounds care can’t fail to learn something on every visit.”
Obviously, many greenkeepers and groundmen and -women can but benefit from a visit to IOG SALTEX and to have a closer look at, say, mole control, for which golf course, park, and such does not suffer from moles, and heavily.
Rabbits are another such issue but the latter can, if necessary and feasible, dealt with by hunting, even with air guns, and netting, as they also can be a source on income being sold as meat.
Register NOW at www.iogsaltex.co.uk to receive your FREE entry badge and information about IOG SALTEX, or call the Ticket Hotline on 0845 272 8782 for FREE tickets, but hurry, the show is in less that 2 weeks.
IOG SALTEX 2009 is being held on 8-10 September at Windsor Racecourse, Berks, and will embrace fine turf and sports surfaces, turf maintenance equipment, children’s outdoor play and safety surfacing, landscaping, contractors, commercial vehicles, outdoor leisure and facilities management, as well as software and security equipment. The show is attended by open space management professionals and contractors – from groundsmen and greenkeepers through to play officers, architects, designers and surveyors as well as local authority and outdoor leisure facility managers.
Organized by The Institute of Groundsmanship, the first IOG exhibition was staged in 1938, the forerunner to today’s IOG SALTEX Sports, Amenity & Landscape Trade Exhibition. Held annually at Windsor Racecourse, IOG SALTEX is the annual extravaganza for everyone who cares for and/or manages open spaces – including groundsmen, greenkeepers, contractors, local authority and leisure facility managers. The Institute of Groundsmanship (IOG) is the leading membership organization representing grounds managers, groundsmen, grounds maintenance managers, greenkeepers and all others involved in the management of sports pitches, landscape and amenity facilities in the UK. As well as maintaining the IOG Performance Quality Standards and providing a consultancy service for sports grounds, lawn maintenance and amenity horticulture, the IOG’s extensive Training and Education programme includes cricket, football, tennis, horseracing, bowls, artificial surfaces, turf science and many other specialist subjects. For more information visit www.iog.org
© 2009
<>
by Michael Smith (Veshengro)
Les Shrubb is not the only greenkeeper who has nightmares about moles. But after visiting last year’s IOG SALTEX show, where he gained an all-important update on the safe handling and use of Talunex tablets, he now sleeps a lot easier!
“Moles – and rabbits – are a constant problem here, particularly during the winter months,” says the Sussex-based Head Greenkeeper of the privately-owned Wellshurst Golf & Country Club.
“But after visiting the Windsor show, the team can now control the pests in-house without the expense of specialist contractors. We have managed to reduce the mole population, for example, but it is an ongoing problem.
“I try to go IOG SALTEX at least every other year – last year we all went, and it was my greenkeepers’ first ever visit - because in addition to timely updates on things like pest control, it’s a great place to keep on top of developments across the industry. For example, I like to keep abreast of the latest machinery and its capabilities – though equipment funding is always a problem - and IOG SALTEX is the ideal venue for that.”
Having been involved in grass and sports surfaces since he left school, 48-year-old Les is responsible for the maintenance and management of a driving range, and various soft and hard landscaping in addition to the 18-hole course which, being built on Wealden clay and former farmland, creates its own problems in terms of drainage.
“In the early years – Les has been at the club since1992 – this was a major headache,” he says, “but we are on top of it now after lots of spiking and the installation of open ditches and paths, for instance. The course is a ‘grass factory’ and whenever we have a wet Spring, we have trouble getting the mowers out.”
With four greenkepeepers (reduced to two during the winter months), inter-personal/management skills is a key attribute complementing Les’ raft of training and education accreditations that include NVQ Level 3 supervisory and management, and a range of health and safety courses as well as IOG golf course and turf management training.
In addition to regular communication with his club members and committee concerning course maintenance routines, he also obviously handles any man-management issues with his team of greenkeepers.
“This is another very good reason for attending events like IOG SALTEX,” he says. “There’s so much advice on offer there concerning every aspect of the job that anyone involved in grounds care can’t fail to learn something on every visit.”
Obviously, many greenkeepers and groundmen and -women can but benefit from a visit to IOG SALTEX and to have a closer look at, say, mole control, for which golf course, park, and such does not suffer from moles, and heavily.
Rabbits are another such issue but the latter can, if necessary and feasible, dealt with by hunting, even with air guns, and netting, as they also can be a source on income being sold as meat.
Register NOW at www.iogsaltex.co.uk to receive your FREE entry badge and information about IOG SALTEX, or call the Ticket Hotline on 0845 272 8782 for FREE tickets, but hurry, the show is in less that 2 weeks.
IOG SALTEX 2009 is being held on 8-10 September at Windsor Racecourse, Berks, and will embrace fine turf and sports surfaces, turf maintenance equipment, children’s outdoor play and safety surfacing, landscaping, contractors, commercial vehicles, outdoor leisure and facilities management, as well as software and security equipment. The show is attended by open space management professionals and contractors – from groundsmen and greenkeepers through to play officers, architects, designers and surveyors as well as local authority and outdoor leisure facility managers.
Organized by The Institute of Groundsmanship, the first IOG exhibition was staged in 1938, the forerunner to today’s IOG SALTEX Sports, Amenity & Landscape Trade Exhibition. Held annually at Windsor Racecourse, IOG SALTEX is the annual extravaganza for everyone who cares for and/or manages open spaces – including groundsmen, greenkeepers, contractors, local authority and leisure facility managers. The Institute of Groundsmanship (IOG) is the leading membership organization representing grounds managers, groundsmen, grounds maintenance managers, greenkeepers and all others involved in the management of sports pitches, landscape and amenity facilities in the UK. As well as maintaining the IOG Performance Quality Standards and providing a consultancy service for sports grounds, lawn maintenance and amenity horticulture, the IOG’s extensive Training and Education programme includes cricket, football, tennis, horseracing, bowls, artificial surfaces, turf science and many other specialist subjects. For more information visit www.iog.org
© 2009
<>
Gardening Direct launch over 40 new varieties in their Autumn 2009 Collection
At a time when many plant suppliers are reducing their autumn ranges, Gardening Direct has launched an outstanding 2009 collection including many varieties that are new, rare or exclusive to the company.
Highlights from the extensive range of annuals on offer include the rare Pansy Padparadja (with its large orange petals), the scented, blue-shaded Pansy Moonlight Mix and the long-lasting, brightly coloured Pansy Sunburst, exclusive to Gardening Direct by mail order and breathtaking when mass-planted in borders. Another Pansy of note is Spring Dawn, a plant with delicate flowers in white, pale blue and soft pink that is new and exclusive to Gardening Direct.
Other annuals include a wide selection of new varieties of Viola with the rare and unusual Viola Fuji Dawn providing a mass of pink tinged foliage and dark purple flowers next spring, the unusual Viola Callisto Denim whose blue flowers changecolourover timeand Viola Valentino, a profusion of ‘hot’ red flowers standing high above dark foliage – the perfect compact variety for containers and small borders.
Notable other annuals comprise the exclusive Primrose Alaska Fire Glow Mix (deep red and bright yellow flowers), the new scented Wallflower Pastel Patchwork (different coloured flowers on the same stem!) and Polyanthus Prince Regent Mix (eye-catching blooms and beautifully shaped leaves).
The choice of Perennials is also very broad with new varieties such as Iberis Tahoe (pure white flowers and narrow, evergreen leaves) and Aubrietia Deep Purple Audelpur (low-growing purpleflowers in abundance) as well as the wonderfully-named Eryngium Planum Blue Hobbit with its conical blue flowers and dramatic spiky bracts or the sweet-smelling Lavender Ellagance Purple, the perfect variety for container, border or pathway.
Bulbs are not overlooked in the autumn collection with a wide range of varieties, mixes and collections, many of which are new for 2009. From the dramatic Oriental Lily Pastel Mix (large, pale blooms) to the heirloom variety Daffodil Double Campernelle (scented, double-petaled flowers) and from the rare Tulip Ice Cream (raspberry and white coned-shaped flowers) to the classic Hyacinth City of Haarlem (highly-scented primrose flowers), there is a selection here for every gardener, regardless of expertise or knowledge.
A selection of well-chosen accessories completes the Autumn Collection, including a handy Growhouse in different heights, the ingenious Easi Plant Hanging Baskets and a range of Gardening Direct branded, specialist Fertilisers.
Prices are highly competitive, with 120 plug plants costing from only £7.99. Full growing details are supplied to customers to ensure peak growth.
Gardening Direct is one of the UK’s leading mail order suppliers and on-line retailers of live plants and bulbs, with a comprehensive collection of plants to suit all gardens and conditions. They supply plug plants in three sizes: small (up to 2in/5cm), medium (up to 3in/7cm) and large (up to 4 in/10cm).
The company grows over 130 million plants per year in glasshouses at their two Jersey nurseries and, unlike most mail order plant suppliers, grows the majority of plants themselves from seed or cutting. This ensures that all the plants are of the highest quality. All the company’s plants, seeds, bulbs and accessories are covered by a 100% customer satisfaction guarantee. For more information see website at www.gardeningdirect.co.uk
<>
Easy-fill Safety Spout – Product Review
Review by Michael Smith (Veshengro)Easy-fill doesn't spill
The Easy-fill safety spout prevents dangerous and expensive spillages when pouring from a can into a tank, container or other receptacle as this spout automatically shuts off the flow when you reach the level you want.
Easy-fill doesn't spill
The liquid that you are putting is also filtered as you pour and the unique design ensures smooth surge-free flow.
Easy-fill safety spout can be used with:
- Petrol
- Diesel
- Water
- Screen wash
- Cleaning chemicals
- Turpentine
Easy-Fill was invented and developed by two brothers, Richard and Jim George. They own the company and the safety spout one of their patented inventions.
As brothers they have been inventing things since we were at school, primarily for use in industry and manufacturing.
The British tradition of innovative ideas, made famous by inventors like Trevor Bayliss and James Dyson, is a real inspiration to them.
Such inventors challenge conventional design and create products that are simple and effective and the safety spout is part of this tradition.
The Easy-fill safety spout is designed, manufactured and produced in Britain, and this makes it 100% British. Which makes a change from so many other products that, even if they may have been invented and designed in Britain are them made abroad, primarily China, for reasons of cost.
The Easy-fill safety spout can be ordered via the Easy-fill website using PayPal or bought from a number of different stockists nationwide.
The price on the website is GBP5.49 plus GBP1 for postage and packing making the costs GBP6.49 for UK. Interested customers from overseas please contact the company for shipping rates abroad.
I have been using previously the expensive fuel/oil combination cans with the spring-loaded cut-off spout the mechanism of which tends to break down after about a year or so and have now changed over to this spout and find it very good indeed and the spout even fits on fuel mixing bottles, by reversing the collar to the smaller thread.
It works equally well on lawnmowers as it does for strimmers and chainsaws, and other such power tools and can be very highly recommended for professional users in parks and grounds management and -maintenance, as well as for many other users and uses.
© 2009
<>
Parks provide the perfect summer holiday
by Michael Smith (Veshengro)
Tight budgets and the current economic climate might be causing families to holiday in the UK, or simply stay at home, but that doesn’t mean the summer holidays have to be dull and boring. This week families have the perfect opportunity to take part in free, fun and healthy events being held in celebration of “Love Parks Week” in parks across the country.
Parks and Open Spaces are the ideal place to visit whether you have children or not during your staycation, your holiday at home. In too many instances people just have not been making use of their local parks and too many have, for that very reason, fallen into disrepair.
The campaign takes place between Saturday 25 July and Sunday 2 August and is organized by parks charity “GreenSpace” to celebrate all that parks have to offer, with over 600 family-friendly events taking place in parks and green spaces.
From live music events and family fun days to art workshops and sports days, there will be plenty to keep the kids active and entertained!
Paul Bramhill, Chief Executive of GreenSpace, said: “Love Parks Week is a great opportunity to celebrate what parks and green space mean to communities. In the current financial climate parks are more important than ever – they are free to visit and provide opportunities to improve health, relax and unwind, enjoy nature, play and have fun.
“This year we want as many people as possible to show support for the campaign by attending an event and taking advantage of what these fantastic places have to offer.”
Parks and green spaces, as Paul Bramhill said, and as I have too, are more important than ever. They are free to visit and many provide great opportunities on a variety of levels.
Let me just ask a few things of you when you visit your parks and open and green spaces: Respect the bylaws, consider other visitors to the park, do not damage trees, plants or other wildlife and please take you rubbish home with you. Litter all around a park makes it unsightly.
Also, if you enjoy your local parks see whether there is a way for you to get involved in keeping them nice by, maybe, volunteering some of your time to look after them.
Over 600 events will be taking place across the UK, with an expected 400,000 people attending a Love Parks Week event.
“GreenSpace” is a registered charity which works to improve parks and green spaces by raising awareness, involving communities and creating skilled professionals. For more information please go to www.green-space.org.uk
For more information about specific events, organiser contact details can be found on the Love Parks Week What’s on guide at www.loveparksweek.org.uk.
© 2009
<>
Tight budgets and the current economic climate might be causing families to holiday in the UK, or simply stay at home, but that doesn’t mean the summer holidays have to be dull and boring. This week families have the perfect opportunity to take part in free, fun and healthy events being held in celebration of “Love Parks Week” in parks across the country.
Parks and Open Spaces are the ideal place to visit whether you have children or not during your staycation, your holiday at home. In too many instances people just have not been making use of their local parks and too many have, for that very reason, fallen into disrepair.
The campaign takes place between Saturday 25 July and Sunday 2 August and is organized by parks charity “GreenSpace” to celebrate all that parks have to offer, with over 600 family-friendly events taking place in parks and green spaces.
From live music events and family fun days to art workshops and sports days, there will be plenty to keep the kids active and entertained!
Paul Bramhill, Chief Executive of GreenSpace, said: “Love Parks Week is a great opportunity to celebrate what parks and green space mean to communities. In the current financial climate parks are more important than ever – they are free to visit and provide opportunities to improve health, relax and unwind, enjoy nature, play and have fun.
“This year we want as many people as possible to show support for the campaign by attending an event and taking advantage of what these fantastic places have to offer.”
Parks and green spaces, as Paul Bramhill said, and as I have too, are more important than ever. They are free to visit and many provide great opportunities on a variety of levels.
Let me just ask a few things of you when you visit your parks and open and green spaces: Respect the bylaws, consider other visitors to the park, do not damage trees, plants or other wildlife and please take you rubbish home with you. Litter all around a park makes it unsightly.
Also, if you enjoy your local parks see whether there is a way for you to get involved in keeping them nice by, maybe, volunteering some of your time to look after them.
Over 600 events will be taking place across the UK, with an expected 400,000 people attending a Love Parks Week event.
“GreenSpace” is a registered charity which works to improve parks and green spaces by raising awareness, involving communities and creating skilled professionals. For more information please go to www.green-space.org.uk
For more information about specific events, organiser contact details can be found on the Love Parks Week What’s on guide at www.loveparksweek.org.uk.
© 2009
<>
Mayor of London urges people to enjoy Love Parks Week
by Michael Smith (Veshengro)
This week Londoners are being urged to take advantage of the many free and family-friendly events taking place in parks and green spaces across the city as part of “Love Parks Week”.
Just in time for the summer holidays of the school children across the capital “Love Prks Week” has been launched and aims to encourage Londoners, and not just Londoners, for the events are not just concentrated in London, to make use of their local parks and open spaces.
Parks and Open Spaces are, in our current climate of economic uncertainty, more needed than ever in the last decades for recreation and staycation of people who cannot afford to take holidays elsewhere and also who, for reasons of the environmental footprint do not wish to do so.
There are over 100 events planned events in the capital, including the Waltham Forest Mela at Chestnut Fields, a community fair at Mile End Park and a teddy bear’s picnic at Hampstead Heath. Full event details can be found on the What’s on guide at www.loveparksweek.org.uk.
Boris Johnson, Mayor of London, said: “I am delighted to offer my support to “Love Parks Week” and urge Londoners to take advantage of these wonderful events.
“London is fortunate to be a very green city and we need to preserve and protect our parks.
That is why I am providing funding to revamp eleven much-loved green spaces across the capital and why it is so important that a fantastic new park in the east of the city will be created as part of the legacy of the 2012 Games.”
Paul Bramhill, Chief Executive of “GreenSpace”, said: “I am delighted that parks in London will be playing host to so many Love Parks Week events this year. The campaign is a great opportunity to celebrate what parks and green space mean to families and communities.
“This year we want as many people as possible to show support for the campaign by attending an event and taking advantage of what these fantastic places have to offer, so it’s encouraging to see that so much is planned in London during the week.”
The campaign takes place between Saturday 25 July and Sunday 2 August and is organized by parks charity “GreenSpace” to celebrate all that parks have to offer, with over 600 family-friendly events taking place in parks and green spaces across the country.
Over 600 events will be taking place across the UK, with an expected 400,000 people
attending a Love Parks Week event.
“GreenSpace” is a registered charity which works to improve parks and green spaces by raising awareness, involving communities and creating skilled professionals. For more information please go to www.green-space.org.uk
So, everyone, let's hear it for our parks and open spaces and go and use them. But, please use them responsibly and take your rubbish home with you.
© 2009
<>
This week Londoners are being urged to take advantage of the many free and family-friendly events taking place in parks and green spaces across the city as part of “Love Parks Week”.
Just in time for the summer holidays of the school children across the capital “Love Prks Week” has been launched and aims to encourage Londoners, and not just Londoners, for the events are not just concentrated in London, to make use of their local parks and open spaces.
Parks and Open Spaces are, in our current climate of economic uncertainty, more needed than ever in the last decades for recreation and staycation of people who cannot afford to take holidays elsewhere and also who, for reasons of the environmental footprint do not wish to do so.
There are over 100 events planned events in the capital, including the Waltham Forest Mela at Chestnut Fields, a community fair at Mile End Park and a teddy bear’s picnic at Hampstead Heath. Full event details can be found on the What’s on guide at www.loveparksweek.org.uk.
Boris Johnson, Mayor of London, said: “I am delighted to offer my support to “Love Parks Week” and urge Londoners to take advantage of these wonderful events.
“London is fortunate to be a very green city and we need to preserve and protect our parks.
That is why I am providing funding to revamp eleven much-loved green spaces across the capital and why it is so important that a fantastic new park in the east of the city will be created as part of the legacy of the 2012 Games.”
Paul Bramhill, Chief Executive of “GreenSpace”, said: “I am delighted that parks in London will be playing host to so many Love Parks Week events this year. The campaign is a great opportunity to celebrate what parks and green space mean to families and communities.
“This year we want as many people as possible to show support for the campaign by attending an event and taking advantage of what these fantastic places have to offer, so it’s encouraging to see that so much is planned in London during the week.”
The campaign takes place between Saturday 25 July and Sunday 2 August and is organized by parks charity “GreenSpace” to celebrate all that parks have to offer, with over 600 family-friendly events taking place in parks and green spaces across the country.
Over 600 events will be taking place across the UK, with an expected 400,000 people
attending a Love Parks Week event.
“GreenSpace” is a registered charity which works to improve parks and green spaces by raising awareness, involving communities and creating skilled professionals. For more information please go to www.green-space.org.uk
So, everyone, let's hear it for our parks and open spaces and go and use them. But, please use them responsibly and take your rubbish home with you.
© 2009
<>
Free fun events for families as Love Parks Week launches
by Michael Smith (Veshengro)
(Saturday 25 July) The summer holidays are here and more than ever, families are looking for cost-effective ways to entertain the whole family on a budget. And this even more this year than in previous years.
Staycations are on the books for a lot of people and parks are a great way to spend some time of your staycation, your vacation at home.
Love Parks Week, organised by parks charity GreenSpace, kicked off on Saturday, July 25, and offers the perfect way to beat the kids’ boredom on a budget, with hundreds of family-friendly events taking place in parks and green spaces across the country.
With over 600 events ranging from live music events and family fun days to art workshops and sports days, there will be plenty to keep the kids active and entertained!
The campaign runs between Saturday 25 July and Sunday 2 August 2009 and celebrates all that parks have to offer, while calling for continued investment and support for these valuable community assets.
To find Love Parks Week events happening in your area visit www.loveparksweek.org.uk.
Paul Bramhill, Chief Executive of GreenSpace, said: “Love Parks Week is a great opportunity to celebrate what parks and green space mean to communities. In the current financial climate parks are more important than ever – they are free to visit and provide opportunities to improve health, relax and unwind, enjoy nature, play and have fun.
“This year we want as many people as possible to show support for the campaign by attending an event and taking advantage of what these fantastic places have to offer.”
Love Parks Week is an annual campaign, organized by parks charity “GreenSpace”. The campaign was founded in 2006 and has grown steadily. It is now established as a major event that is celebrated in parks across the country.
Over 600 events will be taking place across the UK, with an expected 400,000 people
attending a Love Parks Week event.
“GreenSpace” is a registered charity which works to improve parks and green spaces by raising awareness, involving communities and creating skilled professionals. For more information please go to www.green-space.org.uk
For more information about specific events, organizer contact details can be found on the Love Parks Week What’s on guide at www.loveparksweek.org.uk.
© 2009
<>
(Saturday 25 July) The summer holidays are here and more than ever, families are looking for cost-effective ways to entertain the whole family on a budget. And this even more this year than in previous years.
Staycations are on the books for a lot of people and parks are a great way to spend some time of your staycation, your vacation at home.
Love Parks Week, organised by parks charity GreenSpace, kicked off on Saturday, July 25, and offers the perfect way to beat the kids’ boredom on a budget, with hundreds of family-friendly events taking place in parks and green spaces across the country.
With over 600 events ranging from live music events and family fun days to art workshops and sports days, there will be plenty to keep the kids active and entertained!
The campaign runs between Saturday 25 July and Sunday 2 August 2009 and celebrates all that parks have to offer, while calling for continued investment and support for these valuable community assets.
To find Love Parks Week events happening in your area visit www.loveparksweek.org.uk.
Paul Bramhill, Chief Executive of GreenSpace, said: “Love Parks Week is a great opportunity to celebrate what parks and green space mean to communities. In the current financial climate parks are more important than ever – they are free to visit and provide opportunities to improve health, relax and unwind, enjoy nature, play and have fun.
“This year we want as many people as possible to show support for the campaign by attending an event and taking advantage of what these fantastic places have to offer.”
Love Parks Week is an annual campaign, organized by parks charity “GreenSpace”. The campaign was founded in 2006 and has grown steadily. It is now established as a major event that is celebrated in parks across the country.
Over 600 events will be taking place across the UK, with an expected 400,000 people
attending a Love Parks Week event.
“GreenSpace” is a registered charity which works to improve parks and green spaces by raising awareness, involving communities and creating skilled professionals. For more information please go to www.green-space.org.uk
For more information about specific events, organizer contact details can be found on the Love Parks Week What’s on guide at www.loveparksweek.org.uk.
© 2009
<>
JOIN IOG SALTEX ON TWITTER
IOG SALTEX exhibitors and visitors can now make comments on the exhibition and follow show progress every day via the Twitter social networking short messaging service.
Please join our conversation by posting your own “tweets” and giving us your comments on any industry developments. We hope to meet you at our “tweet up” at IOG SALTEX, September 8 – 10 at Windsor Racecourse!
Simply go online at www.twitter.com/HelenBeckett to join the IOG SALTEX Twitter community.
IOG SALTEX 2009 will be held on 8-10 September at Windsor Racecourse, Berks, and will embrace fine turf and sports surfaces, turf maintenance equipment, children’s outdoor play and safety surfacing, landscaping, contractors, commercial vehicles, outdoor leisure and facilities management, as well as software and security equipment. The show is attended by open space management professionals and contractors – from groundsmen and greenkeepers through to play officers, architects, designers and surveyors as well as local authority and outdoor leisure facility managers.
Organised by The Institute of Groundsmanship, the first IOG exhibition was staged in 1938, the forerunner to today’s IOG SALTEX Sports, Amenity & Landscape Trade Exhibition. Held annually at Windsor Racecourse, IOG SALTEX is the annual extravaganza for everyone who cares for and/or manages open spaces – including groundsmen, greenkeepers, contractors, local authority and leisure facility managers. The Institute of Groundsmanship (IOG) is the leading membership organisation representing grounds managers, groundsmen, grounds maintenance managers, greenkeepers and all others involved in the management of sports pitches, landscape and amenity facilities in the UK. As well as maintaining the IOG Performance Quality Standards and providing a consultancy service for sports grounds, lawn maintenance and amenity horticulture, the IOG’s extensive Training and Education programme includes cricket, football, tennis, horseracing, bowls, artificial surfaces, turf science and many other specialist subjects. For more information visit www.iog.org
<>
Please join our conversation by posting your own “tweets” and giving us your comments on any industry developments. We hope to meet you at our “tweet up” at IOG SALTEX, September 8 – 10 at Windsor Racecourse!
Simply go online at www.twitter.com/HelenBeckett to join the IOG SALTEX Twitter community.
IOG SALTEX 2009 will be held on 8-10 September at Windsor Racecourse, Berks, and will embrace fine turf and sports surfaces, turf maintenance equipment, children’s outdoor play and safety surfacing, landscaping, contractors, commercial vehicles, outdoor leisure and facilities management, as well as software and security equipment. The show is attended by open space management professionals and contractors – from groundsmen and greenkeepers through to play officers, architects, designers and surveyors as well as local authority and outdoor leisure facility managers.
Organised by The Institute of Groundsmanship, the first IOG exhibition was staged in 1938, the forerunner to today’s IOG SALTEX Sports, Amenity & Landscape Trade Exhibition. Held annually at Windsor Racecourse, IOG SALTEX is the annual extravaganza for everyone who cares for and/or manages open spaces – including groundsmen, greenkeepers, contractors, local authority and leisure facility managers. The Institute of Groundsmanship (IOG) is the leading membership organisation representing grounds managers, groundsmen, grounds maintenance managers, greenkeepers and all others involved in the management of sports pitches, landscape and amenity facilities in the UK. As well as maintaining the IOG Performance Quality Standards and providing a consultancy service for sports grounds, lawn maintenance and amenity horticulture, the IOG’s extensive Training and Education programme includes cricket, football, tennis, horseracing, bowls, artificial surfaces, turf science and many other specialist subjects. For more information visit www.iog.org
<>
Whatever has happened to Parkforce?
by Michael Smith (Veshengro)
A couple of years ago amid great fanfare the Commission for Architecture and the Build Environment(CABE) launched Parkforce – a force for the good of the common, so to speak – to “improve the standing of parks and open spaces”. But what now? Where is Parkforce gone to?
While there are still publications, and very good ones at that, as regards to parks and open spaces, being put out by CABE no mention is made of Parkforce itself any longer, which was to have been a flagship thing.
Annual competitions were to be for “Park Keeper of the Year” ans such like but that only happened once and that appears to have been it.
The seminars that were being held appertaining to parks and open spaces were good and very informative but many of them also seem to have fallen by the wayside.
It is also a most unfortunate fact that is and when CABE has a booth at this or that event this never seems to be manned.
Once again, it would appear, a great opportunity to do something positive for and about Britain's parks and open spaces has been allowed to go to waste.
Most, if not indeed all, Quangos set up by the British government or those aided by it, are, so it would appear, all about gimmicks without substance and no more.
Many park staff who joined are proud to wear the Parkforce badge and to follow the pledge that they took but, alas, that what was supposed to stand behind and support it seems to have, sadly, gone.
If CABE has, more or less, given up on Parkforce maybe a relaunch is called for an d it should then be run by parks officers.
This suggestion is, at present, intended as some kind of food for thought but if Parkforce members are interested it might be good to take it further.
© 2009
<>
A couple of years ago amid great fanfare the Commission for Architecture and the Build Environment(CABE) launched Parkforce – a force for the good of the common, so to speak – to “improve the standing of parks and open spaces”. But what now? Where is Parkforce gone to?
While there are still publications, and very good ones at that, as regards to parks and open spaces, being put out by CABE no mention is made of Parkforce itself any longer, which was to have been a flagship thing.
Annual competitions were to be for “Park Keeper of the Year” ans such like but that only happened once and that appears to have been it.
The seminars that were being held appertaining to parks and open spaces were good and very informative but many of them also seem to have fallen by the wayside.
It is also a most unfortunate fact that is and when CABE has a booth at this or that event this never seems to be manned.
Once again, it would appear, a great opportunity to do something positive for and about Britain's parks and open spaces has been allowed to go to waste.
Most, if not indeed all, Quangos set up by the British government or those aided by it, are, so it would appear, all about gimmicks without substance and no more.
Many park staff who joined are proud to wear the Parkforce badge and to follow the pledge that they took but, alas, that what was supposed to stand behind and support it seems to have, sadly, gone.
If CABE has, more or less, given up on Parkforce maybe a relaunch is called for an d it should then be run by parks officers.
This suggestion is, at present, intended as some kind of food for thought but if Parkforce members are interested it might be good to take it further.
© 2009
<>
TREE SURGERY BEST PRACTICE COMES ALIVE AT IOG SALTEX’S ‘WORLD OF ARB’
The wide-ranging needs of arboriculturalists are being met at this year’s IOG SALTEX open space management show (Windsor, September 8-10) by a packed programme of ‘World of Arb’ live demonstrations and ‘meet the expert’ sessions, as well as dedicated seminar presentations and a showground packed with exhibitors displaying all the equipment needed for safe and effective tree surgery.
In addition to providing non-stop ‘meet the expert’ advice concerning, for example, climbing gear and procedures, arboricultural specialists the BTS Group, will also be staging a daily programme of exciting live demonstrations covering best-practice routines for:
Elsewhere in the show, arborists will also be able to view and discuss a wide range of appropriate equipment – from harnesses through to sky-high access platforms – while in The Grandstand, as part of the show’s free education programme, a trio of experts from the Arboricultural Association’s Education and Training Committee will be presenting focused sessions on:
Register NOW at www.iogsaltex.co.uk to receive your FREE entry badge and information about IOG SALTEX, or call the Ticket Hotline on 0845 272 8782 for FREE tickets.
IOG SALTEX 2009 will be held on 8-10 September at Windsor Racecourse, Berks, and will embrace fine turf and sports surfaces, turf maintenance equipment, children’s outdoor play and safety surfacing, landscaping, contractors, commercial vehicles, outdoor leisure and facilities management, as well as software and security equipment. The show is attended by open space management professionals and contractors – from groundsmen and greenkeepers through to play officers, architects, designers and surveyors as well as local authority and outdoor leisure facility managers.
Organised by The Institute of Groundsmanship, the first IOG exhibition was staged in 1938, the forerunner to today’s IOG SALTEX Sports, Amenity & Landscape Trade Exhibition. Held annually at Windsor Racecourse, IOG SALTEX is the annual extravaganza for everyone who cares for and/or manages open spaces – including groundsmen, greenkeepers, contractors, local authority and leisure facility managers. The Institute of Groundsmanship (IOG) is the leading membership organisation representing grounds managers, groundsmen, grounds maintenance managers, greenkeepers and all others involved in the management of sports pitches, landscape and amenity facilities in the UK. As well as maintaining the IOG Performance Quality Standards and providing a consultancy service for sports grounds, lawn maintenance and amenity horticulture, the IOG’s extensive Training and Education programme includes cricket, football, tennis, horseracing, bowls, artificial surfaces, turf science and many other specialist subjects. For more information visit www.iog.org
<>
In addition to providing non-stop ‘meet the expert’ advice concerning, for example, climbing gear and procedures, arboricultural specialists the BTS Group, will also be staging a daily programme of exciting live demonstrations covering best-practice routines for:
- Access - climbed versus platform – highlighting health and safety issues as well as the efficacy of the alternative routines;
- Aerial rescue techniques; and
- Chainsaw use and maintenance.
Elsewhere in the show, arborists will also be able to view and discuss a wide range of appropriate equipment – from harnesses through to sky-high access platforms – while in The Grandstand, as part of the show’s free education programme, a trio of experts from the Arboricultural Association’s Education and Training Committee will be presenting focused sessions on:
- Tree inspections and record keeping – by Rhoderic Taylor – on Tuesday September 8 at 10.45 hrs;
- Tree protection – by Julie Sadler – on Wednesday September 9 at 13.30 hrs; and
- Tree pruning – by Jack Kenyon – on Thursday September 10 at 14.15 hrs..
Register NOW at www.iogsaltex.co.uk to receive your FREE entry badge and information about IOG SALTEX, or call the Ticket Hotline on 0845 272 8782 for FREE tickets.
IOG SALTEX 2009 will be held on 8-10 September at Windsor Racecourse, Berks, and will embrace fine turf and sports surfaces, turf maintenance equipment, children’s outdoor play and safety surfacing, landscaping, contractors, commercial vehicles, outdoor leisure and facilities management, as well as software and security equipment. The show is attended by open space management professionals and contractors – from groundsmen and greenkeepers through to play officers, architects, designers and surveyors as well as local authority and outdoor leisure facility managers.
Organised by The Institute of Groundsmanship, the first IOG exhibition was staged in 1938, the forerunner to today’s IOG SALTEX Sports, Amenity & Landscape Trade Exhibition. Held annually at Windsor Racecourse, IOG SALTEX is the annual extravaganza for everyone who cares for and/or manages open spaces – including groundsmen, greenkeepers, contractors, local authority and leisure facility managers. The Institute of Groundsmanship (IOG) is the leading membership organisation representing grounds managers, groundsmen, grounds maintenance managers, greenkeepers and all others involved in the management of sports pitches, landscape and amenity facilities in the UK. As well as maintaining the IOG Performance Quality Standards and providing a consultancy service for sports grounds, lawn maintenance and amenity horticulture, the IOG’s extensive Training and Education programme includes cricket, football, tennis, horseracing, bowls, artificial surfaces, turf science and many other specialist subjects. For more information visit www.iog.org
<>
Using trees in public spaces
by Michael Smith (Veshengro)
The environmental, economic and social benefits of trees are well known, I should think, and have also been well enough documented in many places.
Trees have an immense role to play in the built environment and we have been neglecting this for too long. If we look at the towns that were created by the likes of Rowntree and Cadbury they incorporated a great deal of trees in their design, because it was obvious to them that trees benefit people. The same was done during the slum clearances of, say, Bermondsey under the involvement of Dr. Salter. Why we ever nigh on went away from it beats me, and I should assume many others who are passionate about trees, in the urban and other environments.
The location of trees and and the benefits they bring, can be secured for future generations by influencing the planning, design, construction and management of our urban infrastructure and spaces.
The role of the planner, architect and urban designer is crucial in allowing trees to remain an essential component of pubic life and the life of our towns and cities. The numbers of trees planted, including within new developments, is much less relevant and is much less of an issue than the quality and scale of the trees planted.
As far as cities are concerned it is the larger landscape species that confer the greatest benefit to a city. This especially in terms of attractiveness, stature, creating a sense of place and, crucially, for casting deep shade and cooling our buildings, public squares and meeting places in future.
Such trees must be, as indicated, of a good quality and of that kind that already has attained a certain height and strength. On cannot simply go and plant forest nursery stock of the kind that is used in woodland and forest planting and expect them to grown and do something.
Trees, as any forester knows, take a long time to grow to any stature that will give shade and also small trees may not survive the rigors of town and city, and this includes vandalism.
I am sure that most of us who have any dealing with this subject know far too well that as soon as you have planted some young trees somewhere, whether in a park or open space or by the side of the road, that this is like a red rag to a bull fort the young hooligans and they go an try to inflic as much damage as they possibly can.
Large stature trees are not as easily affected by such actions as are small saplings and hence the recommendation for larger landscaping species of trees, ideally tub grown.
The management of such trees, as well as the trees in parks and other public open spaces in towns and cities must be approached in a new way too. It should, in my opinion, in the same way as in other European Union countries, be done by city forestry departments and if and when trees have to be felled for whatever reason or when trees fall in parks they should be fed into the “food chain” so to speak. That is to say that they should be marketed for the good of the parks and open spaces, whether this be for firewood or for furniture lumber.
Residential areas should enjoy tree canopy cover of at least 25 per cent to alleviate the impacts of climate change, with 15 per cent canopy cover in mixed-use or commercial areas.
This should mean more planting of trees in parks, open spaces, car park areas, etc.; avenues of trees again in residential areas where, in the not so distant past they had been removed for reasons of overshadowing people's homes and gardens. And this is certainly not before time.
In this context it would be nice to also goo back to the avenues of fruit trees that used to line the roads all across the counties and which were in fact harvested for the common good. Our ancestors were not as stupid as many of the modern folks might like to think. While they may not have had the modern technology we have today they knew what Nature had to offer and how to make use of Her gifts. Time we had a little trip back to the future, so to speak, and took some leaves out of the old ones' books.
© 2009
<>
The environmental, economic and social benefits of trees are well known, I should think, and have also been well enough documented in many places.
Trees have an immense role to play in the built environment and we have been neglecting this for too long. If we look at the towns that were created by the likes of Rowntree and Cadbury they incorporated a great deal of trees in their design, because it was obvious to them that trees benefit people. The same was done during the slum clearances of, say, Bermondsey under the involvement of Dr. Salter. Why we ever nigh on went away from it beats me, and I should assume many others who are passionate about trees, in the urban and other environments.
The location of trees and and the benefits they bring, can be secured for future generations by influencing the planning, design, construction and management of our urban infrastructure and spaces.
The role of the planner, architect and urban designer is crucial in allowing trees to remain an essential component of pubic life and the life of our towns and cities. The numbers of trees planted, including within new developments, is much less relevant and is much less of an issue than the quality and scale of the trees planted.
As far as cities are concerned it is the larger landscape species that confer the greatest benefit to a city. This especially in terms of attractiveness, stature, creating a sense of place and, crucially, for casting deep shade and cooling our buildings, public squares and meeting places in future.
Such trees must be, as indicated, of a good quality and of that kind that already has attained a certain height and strength. On cannot simply go and plant forest nursery stock of the kind that is used in woodland and forest planting and expect them to grown and do something.
Trees, as any forester knows, take a long time to grow to any stature that will give shade and also small trees may not survive the rigors of town and city, and this includes vandalism.
I am sure that most of us who have any dealing with this subject know far too well that as soon as you have planted some young trees somewhere, whether in a park or open space or by the side of the road, that this is like a red rag to a bull fort the young hooligans and they go an try to inflic as much damage as they possibly can.
Large stature trees are not as easily affected by such actions as are small saplings and hence the recommendation for larger landscaping species of trees, ideally tub grown.
The management of such trees, as well as the trees in parks and other public open spaces in towns and cities must be approached in a new way too. It should, in my opinion, in the same way as in other European Union countries, be done by city forestry departments and if and when trees have to be felled for whatever reason or when trees fall in parks they should be fed into the “food chain” so to speak. That is to say that they should be marketed for the good of the parks and open spaces, whether this be for firewood or for furniture lumber.
Residential areas should enjoy tree canopy cover of at least 25 per cent to alleviate the impacts of climate change, with 15 per cent canopy cover in mixed-use or commercial areas.
This should mean more planting of trees in parks, open spaces, car park areas, etc.; avenues of trees again in residential areas where, in the not so distant past they had been removed for reasons of overshadowing people's homes and gardens. And this is certainly not before time.
In this context it would be nice to also goo back to the avenues of fruit trees that used to line the roads all across the counties and which were in fact harvested for the common good. Our ancestors were not as stupid as many of the modern folks might like to think. While they may not have had the modern technology we have today they knew what Nature had to offer and how to make use of Her gifts. Time we had a little trip back to the future, so to speak, and took some leaves out of the old ones' books.
© 2009
<>
Park plays high-pitch tone to discourage vandals
by Michael Smith (Veshengro)
A park in Tokyo, Japan, has started playing a high-pitched tone at night that only young people can hear to help drive away teenagers who keep vandalizing the toilets and other facilities.
"We were having trouble improving the situation and trying to decide what to do, when we found out about “The Mosquito” and decided to give it a try," said Haruyuki Masuda, an official in charge of parks in Tokyo's Adachi district.
"The Mosquito" is a device that emits a high-frequency tone that is unbearable to those who can hear it, Masuda said.
The local authorities decided to act after young people hanging out in the district's Kitashikahama Park inflicted damage amounting to around 700,000 yen ($7,400) there last year.
"We could not do anything about it from just patrolling," Masuda said.
People's ability to hear high frequencies falls as they age. The device produces a high-pitch tone of around 17 kilohertz, which teens can hear but older people cannot.
While such devices are used at some convenience stores in Japan also troubled by teens, Masuda said district officials were hesitant at first.
"We were a little worried about whether the local government should be using such a device to exclude certain people, even if these are young people that are causing problems," Masuda said.
"But we have been unable to resolve the issue and many people said we should try it," he said, adding that the device would be tested at the park from 11:00 p.m. to 4:00 a.m. each night until March 2010.
Seeing how Parks in Britain (and I should think elsewhere) are plagued by teenage and young adult vandals during the night (and not just at night) The Mosquito might also be something that should be considered in such places.
Too many local authorities, however, have the same thoughts as the Tokyo Park's Deparment had as first, as state by Mr. Masuda when he said that they were at first a little worried about using such a device to exclude certain people.
They seem to look over their shoulders all the time as to whether they might not infringe on the human rights of such hoodlums that are out to do but wanton destruction and spoil the enjoyment of parks and open spaces for others. Those that do that, in fact, infringe on the human rights of others and even under the European laws forfeit their human rights in this instance, so to speak.
The European Human Rights Act does have some get out clauses for law enforcement but it would appear that in Britain no one is willing to use those in fear of upsetting this or that do-gooder. It is time we considered the law-abiding people before the hoodlums, and that also applies to the judiciary.
© 2009
<>
A park in Tokyo, Japan, has started playing a high-pitched tone at night that only young people can hear to help drive away teenagers who keep vandalizing the toilets and other facilities.
"We were having trouble improving the situation and trying to decide what to do, when we found out about “The Mosquito” and decided to give it a try," said Haruyuki Masuda, an official in charge of parks in Tokyo's Adachi district.
"The Mosquito" is a device that emits a high-frequency tone that is unbearable to those who can hear it, Masuda said.
The local authorities decided to act after young people hanging out in the district's Kitashikahama Park inflicted damage amounting to around 700,000 yen ($7,400) there last year.
"We could not do anything about it from just patrolling," Masuda said.
People's ability to hear high frequencies falls as they age. The device produces a high-pitch tone of around 17 kilohertz, which teens can hear but older people cannot.
While such devices are used at some convenience stores in Japan also troubled by teens, Masuda said district officials were hesitant at first.
"We were a little worried about whether the local government should be using such a device to exclude certain people, even if these are young people that are causing problems," Masuda said.
"But we have been unable to resolve the issue and many people said we should try it," he said, adding that the device would be tested at the park from 11:00 p.m. to 4:00 a.m. each night until March 2010.
Seeing how Parks in Britain (and I should think elsewhere) are plagued by teenage and young adult vandals during the night (and not just at night) The Mosquito might also be something that should be considered in such places.
Too many local authorities, however, have the same thoughts as the Tokyo Park's Deparment had as first, as state by Mr. Masuda when he said that they were at first a little worried about using such a device to exclude certain people.
They seem to look over their shoulders all the time as to whether they might not infringe on the human rights of such hoodlums that are out to do but wanton destruction and spoil the enjoyment of parks and open spaces for others. Those that do that, in fact, infringe on the human rights of others and even under the European laws forfeit their human rights in this instance, so to speak.
The European Human Rights Act does have some get out clauses for law enforcement but it would appear that in Britain no one is willing to use those in fear of upsetting this or that do-gooder. It is time we considered the law-abiding people before the hoodlums, and that also applies to the judiciary.
© 2009
<>
IOG SALTEX BLOSSOMS WITH LAUNCH OF NURSERY STOCK AREA
In tune with meeting the needs of landscapers and open space professionals, a new Nursery Stock area at this year’s IOG SALTEX show (Windsor racecourse, September 8-10) will enable visitors to browse a vast selection of plants and trees.
Elveden Christmas Trees is just one of the exhibitors in the Nursery Stock area. The company specialises in supplying UKWAS-certified display spruce from 18 to 80 feet high. Able to distribute nationwide, Elveden also offers associated services such as installation, lighting, removal and recycling. Also, site-specific risk assessments are compiled prior to any installation.
Palmstead Nurseries will again be offering its fast off-the-peg plant service using its own transport fleet. It has over one million container capacity and over 200,000 field grown trees available.
Also showing is Gabellini, Rochfords - supplier of hardy nursery stock - Tendercare Nurseries and the Institute of Horticulture. In addition, Practicality Brown will also be on the showground.
Register NOW at www.iogsaltex.co.uk to receive your FREE entry badge and information about IOG SALTEX, or call the Ticket Hotline on 0845 272 8782 for FREE tickets.
IOG SALTEX 2009 will be held on 8-10 September at Windsor Racecourse, Berks, and will embrace fine turf and sports surfaces, turf maintenance equipment, children’s outdoor play and safety surfacing, landscaping, contractors, commercial vehicles, outdoor leisure and facilities management, as well as software and security equipment. The show is attended by open space management professionals and contractors – from groundsmen and greenkeepers through to play officers, architects, designers and surveyors as well as local authority and outdoor leisure facility managers.
Organised by The Institute of Groundsmanship, the first IOG exhibition was staged in 1938, the forerunner to today’s IOG SALTEX Sports, Amenity & Landscape Trade Exhibition. Held annually at Windsor Racecourse, IOG SALTEX is the annual extravaganza for everyone who cares for and/or manages open spaces – including groundsmen, greenkeepers, contractors, local authority and leisure facility managers. The Institute of Groundsmanship (IOG) is the leading membership organisation representing grounds managers, groundsmen, grounds maintenance managers, greenkeepers and all others involved in the management of sports pitches, landscape and amenity facilities in the UK. As well as maintaining the IOG Performance Quality Standards and providing a consultancy service for sports grounds, lawn maintenance and amenity horticulture, the IOG’s extensive Training and Education programme includes cricket, football, tennis, horseracing, bowls, artificial surfaces, turf science and many other specialist subjects. For more information visit www.iog.org
<>
Elveden Christmas Trees is just one of the exhibitors in the Nursery Stock area. The company specialises in supplying UKWAS-certified display spruce from 18 to 80 feet high. Able to distribute nationwide, Elveden also offers associated services such as installation, lighting, removal and recycling. Also, site-specific risk assessments are compiled prior to any installation.
Palmstead Nurseries will again be offering its fast off-the-peg plant service using its own transport fleet. It has over one million container capacity and over 200,000 field grown trees available.
Also showing is Gabellini, Rochfords - supplier of hardy nursery stock - Tendercare Nurseries and the Institute of Horticulture. In addition, Practicality Brown will also be on the showground.
Register NOW at www.iogsaltex.co.uk to receive your FREE entry badge and information about IOG SALTEX, or call the Ticket Hotline on 0845 272 8782 for FREE tickets.
IOG SALTEX 2009 will be held on 8-10 September at Windsor Racecourse, Berks, and will embrace fine turf and sports surfaces, turf maintenance equipment, children’s outdoor play and safety surfacing, landscaping, contractors, commercial vehicles, outdoor leisure and facilities management, as well as software and security equipment. The show is attended by open space management professionals and contractors – from groundsmen and greenkeepers through to play officers, architects, designers and surveyors as well as local authority and outdoor leisure facility managers.
Organised by The Institute of Groundsmanship, the first IOG exhibition was staged in 1938, the forerunner to today’s IOG SALTEX Sports, Amenity & Landscape Trade Exhibition. Held annually at Windsor Racecourse, IOG SALTEX is the annual extravaganza for everyone who cares for and/or manages open spaces – including groundsmen, greenkeepers, contractors, local authority and leisure facility managers. The Institute of Groundsmanship (IOG) is the leading membership organisation representing grounds managers, groundsmen, grounds maintenance managers, greenkeepers and all others involved in the management of sports pitches, landscape and amenity facilities in the UK. As well as maintaining the IOG Performance Quality Standards and providing a consultancy service for sports grounds, lawn maintenance and amenity horticulture, the IOG’s extensive Training and Education programme includes cricket, football, tennis, horseracing, bowls, artificial surfaces, turf science and many other specialist subjects. For more information visit www.iog.org
<>
OPEN SPACE exhibition experts work together to gain the EDGE for their visitors and exhibitors
by Michael Smith (Veshengro)
Four of Europe’s largest organizers of open space management exhibitions have joined together in a strategic partnership to share best practice and further improve the experiences of the 63,000 or so visitors and 1,000 exhibitors who attend their shows each year.
Expo Demo Green Europe (EDGE) has been jointly created by Fedagrim of Belgium, who are the organizers of Demo Groen/Demo Vert; the Institute of Groundsmanship of Great Britain (IOG), the organizers of IOG SALTEX; SALC of The Netherlands , the organizers of Demo-Dagen and Salonvert of France, who are the organizers of Salonvert to:
In addition, EDGE will also: establish a Best Innovation Award for products and equipment displayed across the four shows; encourage, co-ordinate and promote exhibitor presence at each event and consider the organization of a pan-European education event that will address issues common across the industry.
As Fedagrim’s Michel Christiaens began the inaugural two-year Presidency of EDGE – with Salonvert’s Frédéric Bondoux as vice president - he commented: “As exhibition organizers, the EDGE partners are constantly looking to add value to the time spent at our events by both visitors and exhibitors, and it is clear that everyone will benefit through such a collaboratory partnership where Europe’s leading open space exhibition organizers share their extensive knowledge bases, skill sets and vast expertise.”
He also added that while four partners have initially collaborated, EDGE is not necessarily an exclusive organization.
From this statement it should mean that others can join too in order to make it a bigger and better organization still.
Commenting on the development, Chief Executive of the Institute of Groundsmanship (IOG), Geoff Webb, said: “The IOG welcomes this new partnership and as well as being able to share on experiences and approaches, a more co-ordinated approach from the organizers of these events can only benefit exhibitors and visitors alike.
“We already have a delegation from France visiting this IOG SALTEX 2009, which will add value to this year’s show building on our international audience.”
All four shows feature a vast range of products and services – for example, from grounds care machinery, commercial vehicles, landscaping equipment and materials, trees, plants and turf through to safety surfaces, play equipment, stadium and sports ground equipment, as well as forestry and arboricultural, recycling and waste management.
© 2009
<>
Four of Europe’s largest organizers of open space management exhibitions have joined together in a strategic partnership to share best practice and further improve the experiences of the 63,000 or so visitors and 1,000 exhibitors who attend their shows each year.
Expo Demo Green Europe (EDGE) has been jointly created by Fedagrim of Belgium, who are the organizers of Demo Groen/Demo Vert; the Institute of Groundsmanship of Great Britain (IOG), the organizers of IOG SALTEX; SALC of The Netherlands , the organizers of Demo-Dagen and Salonvert of France, who are the organizers of Salonvert to:
- Maintain the high standards of these leading events;
- Establish a pan-European partnership that will develop an increased profile for exhibitors across all four shows; and
- Share best practice of event planning and management.
In addition, EDGE will also: establish a Best Innovation Award for products and equipment displayed across the four shows; encourage, co-ordinate and promote exhibitor presence at each event and consider the organization of a pan-European education event that will address issues common across the industry.
As Fedagrim’s Michel Christiaens began the inaugural two-year Presidency of EDGE – with Salonvert’s Frédéric Bondoux as vice president - he commented: “As exhibition organizers, the EDGE partners are constantly looking to add value to the time spent at our events by both visitors and exhibitors, and it is clear that everyone will benefit through such a collaboratory partnership where Europe’s leading open space exhibition organizers share their extensive knowledge bases, skill sets and vast expertise.”
He also added that while four partners have initially collaborated, EDGE is not necessarily an exclusive organization.
From this statement it should mean that others can join too in order to make it a bigger and better organization still.
Commenting on the development, Chief Executive of the Institute of Groundsmanship (IOG), Geoff Webb, said: “The IOG welcomes this new partnership and as well as being able to share on experiences and approaches, a more co-ordinated approach from the organizers of these events can only benefit exhibitors and visitors alike.
“We already have a delegation from France visiting this IOG SALTEX 2009, which will add value to this year’s show building on our international audience.”
All four shows feature a vast range of products and services – for example, from grounds care machinery, commercial vehicles, landscaping equipment and materials, trees, plants and turf through to safety surfaces, play equipment, stadium and sports ground equipment, as well as forestry and arboricultural, recycling and waste management.
© 2009
<>
Can garlic cure bleeding canker?
by Michael Smith (Veshengro)
English Heritage is testing a potential cure for ‘bleeding canker’, a fatal disease that strikes horse chestnut trees (Aesculus hippocastanum) and for which, so far, there is no known cure.
The treatment, which has already been tested in Holland, involves allicin, an extract of garlic that is know for its antibacterial properties. The chemical spreads throughout the tree, and gives off a strong garlic smell which has the added bonus of repelling the horse chestnut leaf-mining moth.
This could mean that, in using allicin, in other words garlic “acid”, two birds might be killed with one stone, so to speak.
A treatment is urgently needed; the Forestry Commission estimates that up to 3,000 horse chestnuts with bleeding canker have had to be felled for public safety reasons.
In pubic parks, many who have been known for their magnificent horse chestnuts, this is very much an issue and alone in one park known to me many of them have had to be felled in the last year simply for the reason that they were beginning to pose a hazard as to falling branches and such.
© 2009
<>
English Heritage is testing a potential cure for ‘bleeding canker’, a fatal disease that strikes horse chestnut trees (Aesculus hippocastanum) and for which, so far, there is no known cure.
The treatment, which has already been tested in Holland, involves allicin, an extract of garlic that is know for its antibacterial properties. The chemical spreads throughout the tree, and gives off a strong garlic smell which has the added bonus of repelling the horse chestnut leaf-mining moth.
This could mean that, in using allicin, in other words garlic “acid”, two birds might be killed with one stone, so to speak.
A treatment is urgently needed; the Forestry Commission estimates that up to 3,000 horse chestnuts with bleeding canker have had to be felled for public safety reasons.
In pubic parks, many who have been known for their magnificent horse chestnuts, this is very much an issue and alone in one park known to me many of them have had to be felled in the last year simply for the reason that they were beginning to pose a hazard as to falling branches and such.
© 2009
<>
Love Parks Week 2009
July 25 to August 2, 2009 is “Love Parks Week” in Britainby Michael Smith (Veshengro)
Love Parks Week is the perfect excuse to get outdoors and enjoy the summer. We're celebrating all that parks have to offer, so why not visit your local park during the campaign to show what it means to you?
Love Parks Week is an annual campaign, organized by parks charity GreenSpace.
Founded in 2006, the campaign has grown steadily and is now established as a major event that is celebrated in parks across the country. Each year hundreds of events take place, attracting extensive media coverage and enabling thousands of people to get out and enjoy their parks.
Love Parks Week 2009 will take place between Saturday 25 July and Sunday 2 August. This year we are asking as many people as possible to get into parks to join our campaign for continued investment and support for these valuable assets. By holding an event in a park, or even just attending one, you will be helping to send the message that parks are an essential part of every community.
GreenSpace is a registered charity working to improve parks and green spaces by raising awareness, involving communities and creating skilled professionals. To find out more visit www.green-space.org.uk
This is a serious campaign not just for the users of parks and open spaces; the providers of same need to get involved with activities too.
There are only a couple of weeks to go and it is time we got our act together and did something; those of us that do parks, I mean.
Parks and open spaces, open to the public, came about in Britain as a result of the Public Health Act in the middle of the nineteenth century and it's subsequent additions to the same.
This act made it a statutory obligation for local authorities to provide x-amount of green space per resident and many of the playing fields and such that have been sold off during the later twentieth century have, in fact, been sold off illegally.
Many public parks and open spaces today, despite the laws, are under threat and only be using them can we ensure that the municipalities think twice with regards to putting them to a different use. So, go and use your parks and not just at “Love Parks Week”.
© 2009
<>
Cleaning the blades of secateurs, pruning shear and loppers
All of those cutting tools get clogged up at the blades with tree sap, and some of it worse than others, during the working day.
Aside from the fact that this sap tends too stop the secateurs, for instance, from working properly and makes the blades stick, especially in the case of bypass secateurs, it also, if left on the blades, will cause the blades to corrode.
Many manufacturers recommend that you use their brand (or some other) sap removing agent which, obviously, is not a cheap option. Then again neither is having a pair of expensive secateurs die a death because of lack of care.
I have found that you do not need to buy expensive sap removers; baby wipes will do the job as effective as any sap remover and, as those contain lanolin, will also put a coat of that oil on to the blade. Nigh on two birds with the one proverbial stone.
Those wipes work wonders on the blades, so I have found, and if you buy the most basic ones of the wipes, such as Sainsbury's Basics version of them, they cost about a penny a wipe. Not something too worry about using, I am sure.
On the other hand you can get it cheaper still. A cloth impregnated with vinegar, whether brewed malt vinegar, wine vinegar or whichever other kind, is irrelevant. Again here you could buy the cheapest available, as I do as a disinfectant in the use of washing dishes, for instance. At 15p a bottle it is not a fortune either.
The only thing to remember is that if removing tree sap from secateurs and other cutting tool that you will have to put some oil or grease onto the blade afterwards. Ascetic acid will not be too kind to the steel if the blades are left uncoated. A little bit of Vaseline on the finger and rubbed over the b lade will do nicely as will a little chainsaw oil or such.
There you have it: no need for expensive sap remover and still clean secateurs that will go on and on.
P.S. This also works with knives, etc.
© M Smith (Veshengro), February 2009
<>
Aside from the fact that this sap tends too stop the secateurs, for instance, from working properly and makes the blades stick, especially in the case of bypass secateurs, it also, if left on the blades, will cause the blades to corrode.
Many manufacturers recommend that you use their brand (or some other) sap removing agent which, obviously, is not a cheap option. Then again neither is having a pair of expensive secateurs die a death because of lack of care.
I have found that you do not need to buy expensive sap removers; baby wipes will do the job as effective as any sap remover and, as those contain lanolin, will also put a coat of that oil on to the blade. Nigh on two birds with the one proverbial stone.
Those wipes work wonders on the blades, so I have found, and if you buy the most basic ones of the wipes, such as Sainsbury's Basics version of them, they cost about a penny a wipe. Not something too worry about using, I am sure.
On the other hand you can get it cheaper still. A cloth impregnated with vinegar, whether brewed malt vinegar, wine vinegar or whichever other kind, is irrelevant. Again here you could buy the cheapest available, as I do as a disinfectant in the use of washing dishes, for instance. At 15p a bottle it is not a fortune either.
The only thing to remember is that if removing tree sap from secateurs and other cutting tool that you will have to put some oil or grease onto the blade afterwards. Ascetic acid will not be too kind to the steel if the blades are left uncoated. A little bit of Vaseline on the finger and rubbed over the b lade will do nicely as will a little chainsaw oil or such.
There you have it: no need for expensive sap remover and still clean secateurs that will go on and on.
P.S. This also works with knives, etc.
© M Smith (Veshengro), February 2009
<>
IOG CHOOSES PERENNIAL AS ITS CHARITY OF THE YEAR
The Institute of Groundsmanship (IOG) has announced that its 2009 Charity of the Year is Perennial – the Gardeners’ Royal Benevolent Society.
This national charity for people of all ages who work or have worked in horticulture provides help, advice and support people from the grounds care industry, arborists and other horticultural trades, when they are experiencing need or difficulties.
The IOG support for Perennial will include fundraising at branch and regional level via meetings, as well as Perennial’s presence at events such as the IOG’s nationwide In Action programme and IOG SALTEX.
Commenting, Debbie Lyne, the charity’s Director of Marketing and Fundraising, says: “We’re delighted to have been chosen as the IOG Charity of the Year. With the IOG’s support at last year’s IOG SALTEX and IOG Scotsturf exhibitions, Perennial is becoming more known among grounds care professionals and we’re extremely grateful to the IOG for providing us with this opportunity to increase support and raise awareness of our work within the industry.”
Geoff Webb, IOG Chief Executive, adds: “While intent on increasing the number of young people entering grounds care, the IOG also recognises the profession’s ageing population and I’m sure there are many who could benefit greatly from Perennial’s work. So, the IOG’s support is wholly appropriate – especially in the current economic climate.”
Visit www.perennial.org.uk for more information on Perennial and its services.
Colin Hoskins, Wildish Communications Ltd
<>
This national charity for people of all ages who work or have worked in horticulture provides help, advice and support people from the grounds care industry, arborists and other horticultural trades, when they are experiencing need or difficulties.
The IOG support for Perennial will include fundraising at branch and regional level via meetings, as well as Perennial’s presence at events such as the IOG’s nationwide In Action programme and IOG SALTEX.
Commenting, Debbie Lyne, the charity’s Director of Marketing and Fundraising, says: “We’re delighted to have been chosen as the IOG Charity of the Year. With the IOG’s support at last year’s IOG SALTEX and IOG Scotsturf exhibitions, Perennial is becoming more known among grounds care professionals and we’re extremely grateful to the IOG for providing us with this opportunity to increase support and raise awareness of our work within the industry.”
Geoff Webb, IOG Chief Executive, adds: “While intent on increasing the number of young people entering grounds care, the IOG also recognises the profession’s ageing population and I’m sure there are many who could benefit greatly from Perennial’s work. So, the IOG’s support is wholly appropriate – especially in the current economic climate.”
Visit www.perennial.org.uk for more information on Perennial and its services.
Colin Hoskins, Wildish Communications Ltd
<>
IOG SALTEX VISITORS SPEND TO THE TUNE OF A CREDIT-CRUNCHING £1.2 BILLION!
Visitors to last year’s IOG SALTEX will collectively spend around £1.2 billion as a result of visiting the UK’s leading open space management exhibition.
Independent research at the three-day show revealed that:
The research also reveals that around a third of the audience were new visitors to the show, thus enabling exhibitors to meet thousands of ‘new faces’ every year.
Commenting, IOG SALTEX Sales Director Clare Johnson says: “The figures certainly reinforce that IOG SALTEX is the most important show for the whole of the open space industry – from fine turf and sports surfaces through turf maintenance equipment to outdoor play, for example – and the visitor feedback gives us every confidence that despite the credit crunch the spending trend will continue at this year’s show, which is already nearly 90 per cent sold out.”
IOG SALTEX 2009 will be held on 8-10 September at Windsor Racecourse, Berks, and will embrace fine turf and sports surfaces, turf maintenance equipment, children’s outdoor play and safety surfacing, landscaping, contractors, commercial vehicles, outdoor leisure and facilities management, as well as software and security equipment. The show is attended by open space management professionals and contractors – from groundsmen and greenkeepers through to play officers, architects, designers and surveyors as well as local authority and outdoor leisure facility managers.
Colin Hoskins, Wildish Communications Ltd
<>
Independent research at the three-day show revealed that:
- Almost 1,000 visitors were from organisations that spend over £1 million each year on open space management products and services
- 410 were from organisations that spend over £500,000
- Nearly 800 visitors spend up to £500,000 each year, and
- Over 1,000 spend up to £50,000.
- The survey also showed that spending power has increased (to an average of £183,000 for each visitor with spending power) compared with visitors to the 2007 show, and that:
- Nearly 70 per cent of visitors to the show had buying power
- 68 per cent of these said IOG SALTEX influenced their purchasing decisions, and 73 per cent considered IOG SALTEX as the most important event for their business, and
- 59 per cent of visitors DO NOT usually see any non-supplier sales representatives.
- 77 per cent of visitors went to the show to look for new ideas or products – and 84 per cent said it was important to see equipment working in an outdoor environment
- 60 per cent of visitors do not plan to visit any other UK exhibition – and over 95 per cent do not plan to visit any overseas exhibition, and
- 28 per cent were looking for new or alternative suppliers.
The research also reveals that around a third of the audience were new visitors to the show, thus enabling exhibitors to meet thousands of ‘new faces’ every year.
Commenting, IOG SALTEX Sales Director Clare Johnson says: “The figures certainly reinforce that IOG SALTEX is the most important show for the whole of the open space industry – from fine turf and sports surfaces through turf maintenance equipment to outdoor play, for example – and the visitor feedback gives us every confidence that despite the credit crunch the spending trend will continue at this year’s show, which is already nearly 90 per cent sold out.”
IOG SALTEX 2009 will be held on 8-10 September at Windsor Racecourse, Berks, and will embrace fine turf and sports surfaces, turf maintenance equipment, children’s outdoor play and safety surfacing, landscaping, contractors, commercial vehicles, outdoor leisure and facilities management, as well as software and security equipment. The show is attended by open space management professionals and contractors – from groundsmen and greenkeepers through to play officers, architects, designers and surveyors as well as local authority and outdoor leisure facility managers.
Colin Hoskins, Wildish Communications Ltd
<>
IOG EMBARKS ON SECOND-STAGE INDUSTRY-WIDE RESEARCH TO ADDRESS ‘GROUNDS FOR CONCERN’ OVER MANAGEMENT ATTITUDES
The Institute of Groundsmanship (IOG) has warned there is ‘skills time bomb’ facing the grounds profession after its industry-leading study revealed that the sector is largely staffed by 40- to 49-year-olds who are underpaid, under-trained and underrated.
Now, following the results of the IOG’s ‘Grounds management – a hidden profession’ research* that for the first time profiled the industry and the people within it – their entry, careers, salaries, job satisfaction levels and training – the IOG is embarking on a second-stage study designed to identify the relative standing of grounds staff within their organisations and the reasons for this perception.
Funded by the IOG 2012 Fund, the aims of the ‘Grounds for Concern’ study are to:
The study – which has received input from Lantra and will be carried out by the Sport Industry Research Centre at Sheffield Hallam University - will involve a large-scale online survey of organisations such as professional clubs, voluntary sector, schools, national governing bodies, local authorities and private contractors. This will be followed up with in-depth interviews with key personnel within these organisations.
A final report will be available by the end of March 2009, which will detail the findings and suggest future actions.
* Carried out in 2007/08, the IOG’s ‘Grounds management – a hidden profession’ survey valued the grounds management and maintenance sector in England at around £580 million and revealed that, for example:
Salaries are low compared to other industries;
Source: Wildish Communications Ltd
<>
Now, following the results of the IOG’s ‘Grounds management – a hidden profession’ research* that for the first time profiled the industry and the people within it – their entry, careers, salaries, job satisfaction levels and training – the IOG is embarking on a second-stage study designed to identify the relative standing of grounds staff within their organisations and the reasons for this perception.
Funded by the IOG 2012 Fund, the aims of the ‘Grounds for Concern’ study are to:
- Identify attitudes of senior management to grounds staff.
- Identify senior management perceptions of actual and potential skills shortages and skill gaps in groundsmanship.
- Understand the qualifications held by staff and their pay.
- Identify senior management strategies for the utilisation of grounds staff in the future.
The study – which has received input from Lantra and will be carried out by the Sport Industry Research Centre at Sheffield Hallam University - will involve a large-scale online survey of organisations such as professional clubs, voluntary sector, schools, national governing bodies, local authorities and private contractors. This will be followed up with in-depth interviews with key personnel within these organisations.
A final report will be available by the end of March 2009, which will detail the findings and suggest future actions.
* Carried out in 2007/08, the IOG’s ‘Grounds management – a hidden profession’ survey valued the grounds management and maintenance sector in England at around £580 million and revealed that, for example:
Salaries are low compared to other industries;
- Forty per cent of grounds professionals had not had any training during the past 12 months – and a similar number felt they would benefit from additional training;
- Less than half of respondents suggested their employers had a “very good” understanding of the skills required by their jobs;
- The industry has approximately 20,000 full-time employees plus over 20,000 volunteers; and
- That only 0.4 per cent of workers are women.
Source: Wildish Communications Ltd
<>
IOG SALTEX SALES SUCCESSES OUTSHINE RECESSIONARY DOOM AND GLOOM
Enthusiastic IOG SALTEX exhibitors have kicked off 2009 with reports of show sales successes that help brighten the current economic doom and gloom.
For example, according to Lynda Green, operations director at Terrain Aeration – which used the show as the launchpad for its new Remote Terralift machine alongside specialist Airforce Terralift equipment - the response by show visitors has already meant the new machine has been involved in the contracts won at IOG SALTEX for work at bowling greens, croquet lawns, football clubs and golf courses as well as local government.
In addition, she says, the company’s ‘show order book’ also included Airblaster work at private estates.
D J Turfcare also used the show to launch a series of new products, including the Turfcare - an American machine that de-thatches and overseeds (or fertilises) in one compact unit.
Ideal for contractors and groundsmen, the fact that Turfcare can be fitted with blades to verti-cut and covers a 22 inch wide swathe in a single pass certainly appealed to visitors to the Windsor showground – and none more so than the team from lawn care specialist, The Lawn Doctor.
“We are often called on to do some serious scarifying and overseeding,” says the company’s Gareth Case. “We had been looking for a machine that does both jobs – then we saw the Turfsaver.”
Since buying the machine, immediately after the show, the company has used it to scarify and overseed a cricket square, croquet lawns, a tennis court and a golf green – as well as domestic lawns.
Importantly, because this machine is capable of combining several tasks, it is the perfect example of how grounds care professionals can use IOG SALTEX to source equipment that is not only fit for purpose but also capable of generating added bottom line benefits.
Walkover Sprayers, a company that has been steadily rebuilding its UK customer base, says IOG SALTEX provided it with a number of opportunities from overseas visitors. Says director Paul Ace: “We have created new sales and distributor agreements in the USA, France, Belgium and Greece – and we are now in negotiations with interested parties from Italy, Germany, Bulgaria, Romania, Norway and Australia.”
IOG SALTEX organisers, the Institute of Groundsmanship, says plans are in place to make this year’s show (8-10 September at Windsor Racecourse, Berks) even bigger and better – with a number of special feature areas, including: The Intermediate Final of the World Skills UK Landscape Gardening Competition; AEA Live Machinery Demo Arena, Sports Turf Skills Village, Children's Play feature, The World of Arboriculture,
Sports Equipment Zone, plus Free seminar programmes.
IOG SALTEX 2009 will be held on 8-10 September at Windsor Racecourse, Berks, and will embrace fine turf and sports surfaces, turf maintenance equipment, children’s outdoor play and safety surfacing, landscaping, contractors, commercial vehicles, outdoor leisure and facilities management, as well as software and security equipment. The show is attended by open space management professionals and contractors – from groundsmen and greenkeepers through to play officers, architects, designers and surveyors as well as local authority and outdoor leisure facility managers.
Source: Wildish Communications Ltd
<>
For example, according to Lynda Green, operations director at Terrain Aeration – which used the show as the launchpad for its new Remote Terralift machine alongside specialist Airforce Terralift equipment - the response by show visitors has already meant the new machine has been involved in the contracts won at IOG SALTEX for work at bowling greens, croquet lawns, football clubs and golf courses as well as local government.
In addition, she says, the company’s ‘show order book’ also included Airblaster work at private estates.
D J Turfcare also used the show to launch a series of new products, including the Turfcare - an American machine that de-thatches and overseeds (or fertilises) in one compact unit.
Ideal for contractors and groundsmen, the fact that Turfcare can be fitted with blades to verti-cut and covers a 22 inch wide swathe in a single pass certainly appealed to visitors to the Windsor showground – and none more so than the team from lawn care specialist, The Lawn Doctor.
“We are often called on to do some serious scarifying and overseeding,” says the company’s Gareth Case. “We had been looking for a machine that does both jobs – then we saw the Turfsaver.”
Since buying the machine, immediately after the show, the company has used it to scarify and overseed a cricket square, croquet lawns, a tennis court and a golf green – as well as domestic lawns.
Importantly, because this machine is capable of combining several tasks, it is the perfect example of how grounds care professionals can use IOG SALTEX to source equipment that is not only fit for purpose but also capable of generating added bottom line benefits.
Walkover Sprayers, a company that has been steadily rebuilding its UK customer base, says IOG SALTEX provided it with a number of opportunities from overseas visitors. Says director Paul Ace: “We have created new sales and distributor agreements in the USA, France, Belgium and Greece – and we are now in negotiations with interested parties from Italy, Germany, Bulgaria, Romania, Norway and Australia.”
IOG SALTEX organisers, the Institute of Groundsmanship, says plans are in place to make this year’s show (8-10 September at Windsor Racecourse, Berks) even bigger and better – with a number of special feature areas, including: The Intermediate Final of the World Skills UK Landscape Gardening Competition; AEA Live Machinery Demo Arena, Sports Turf Skills Village, Children's Play feature, The World of Arboriculture,
Sports Equipment Zone, plus Free seminar programmes.
IOG SALTEX 2009 will be held on 8-10 September at Windsor Racecourse, Berks, and will embrace fine turf and sports surfaces, turf maintenance equipment, children’s outdoor play and safety surfacing, landscaping, contractors, commercial vehicles, outdoor leisure and facilities management, as well as software and security equipment. The show is attended by open space management professionals and contractors – from groundsmen and greenkeepers through to play officers, architects, designers and surveyors as well as local authority and outdoor leisure facility managers.
Source: Wildish Communications Ltd
<>
GLAMORGAN’S LEN SMITH JOINS IOG’S NETWORK OF REGIONAL ADVISERS
After 20 years at Glamorgan County Cricket Club, Len Smith has been appointed by the Institute of Groundsmanship (IOG) as Regional Advisor for Wales. He will be responsible for developing training, education and membership in the area as well as forging strong links with governing bodies, colleges and local authorities.
His appointment – which is jointly funded by the IOG and ECB and is designed to give ongoing support to IOG regional members – complements the existing IOG’s Regional Adviser network that embraces Ireland and the North of England.
“Training and education is the foundation of the IOG,” comments Len, “and there’s a big market for it in Wales. I’m very excited about getting on with the role and delivering results in the area.”
After starting out as a greenkeeper at Radyr Golf Club, Len has also been responsible for grounds at Pennylan bowling and lawn tennis club, the Polytechnic of Wales (now the University of Glamorgan), Cardiff Athletic Club, Cardiff City and most recently at Glamorgan CCC.
His vast experience as a groundsman is backed up by a host of training and qualifications including the coveted IOG NDT.
Ian Lacy, Head of Professional Services at the IOG, is delighted to welcome Len to the team: “It’s rare to come across someone of Len’s experience and qualities, so we are very pleased that we can now count him as a key player in our regional network of advisors.
Len takes up his role on 2 February 2009.
The Institute of Groundsmanship (IOG) is the leading membership organisation representing grounds managers, groundsmen, grounds maintenance managers, greenkeepers and all others involved in the management of sports pitches, landscape and amenity facilities in the UK. As well as maintaining the IOG Performance Quality Standards and providing a consultancy service for sports grounds, lawn maintenance and amenity horticulture, the IOG’s extensive Training and Education programme includes cricket, football, tennis, horseracing, bowls, artificial surfaces, turf science and many other specialist subjects. It also stages the annual IOG SCOTSTURF and IOG SALTEX exhibition, Europe’s leading show for the open space profession. For more information visit www.iog.org
Source: Wildish Communications Ltd
<>
His appointment – which is jointly funded by the IOG and ECB and is designed to give ongoing support to IOG regional members – complements the existing IOG’s Regional Adviser network that embraces Ireland and the North of England.
“Training and education is the foundation of the IOG,” comments Len, “and there’s a big market for it in Wales. I’m very excited about getting on with the role and delivering results in the area.”
After starting out as a greenkeeper at Radyr Golf Club, Len has also been responsible for grounds at Pennylan bowling and lawn tennis club, the Polytechnic of Wales (now the University of Glamorgan), Cardiff Athletic Club, Cardiff City and most recently at Glamorgan CCC.
His vast experience as a groundsman is backed up by a host of training and qualifications including the coveted IOG NDT.
Ian Lacy, Head of Professional Services at the IOG, is delighted to welcome Len to the team: “It’s rare to come across someone of Len’s experience and qualities, so we are very pleased that we can now count him as a key player in our regional network of advisors.
Len takes up his role on 2 February 2009.
The Institute of Groundsmanship (IOG) is the leading membership organisation representing grounds managers, groundsmen, grounds maintenance managers, greenkeepers and all others involved in the management of sports pitches, landscape and amenity facilities in the UK. As well as maintaining the IOG Performance Quality Standards and providing a consultancy service for sports grounds, lawn maintenance and amenity horticulture, the IOG’s extensive Training and Education programme includes cricket, football, tennis, horseracing, bowls, artificial surfaces, turf science and many other specialist subjects. It also stages the annual IOG SCOTSTURF and IOG SALTEX exhibition, Europe’s leading show for the open space profession. For more information visit www.iog.org
Source: Wildish Communications Ltd
<>
IOG PROMOTES 3.5 PER CENT SALARY INCREASE IN 2009 FOR GROUNDS PROFESSIONALS
The Institute of Groundsmanship (IOG) is recommending a 3.5 per cent increase in grounds staff’s national minimum salary bands for 2009, following annual industry-wide research carried out independently by PBi Consulting.
Commenting on the findings – which reveal that senior grounds management roles are beginning to be competitively rewarded in line with respective market rates – IOG Chief Executive Geoff Webb says:
“It is a major concern, however, that the average salary of entry- and mid-level jobs remains to be either below or at the lower end of the IOG’s recommended minimum. This highlights the need to continue to improve industry understanding and reward for these roles.”
He continues: “As confirmed by IOG research, we are facing a very real skills gap in the near future and continuing to pay below the recommended rates will only exacerbate this. The IOG will continue to work with employers, Government and sector skills councils to raise the profile and standing of the profession.
“The IOG is now embarking on a second-stage study designed to identify the relative standing of grounds staff within their organisations and the reasons for this perception. The ‘Grounds for Concern’ study will set out to, for example, understand the qualifications held by staff and their pay. We anticipate the results in the Spring.”
Explaining the methodology of the latest research, Steve Pheasant, PBi Consulting Director says: “Incomes Data Services analysis and other remuneration consultant reports have been utilised to confirm pay market trends in both the public and private sector. IDS records pay settlements across the UK economy covering approximately nine million employees in total. The divergence in pay settlement levels between the two sectors, first noticed in 2007, will continue in 2009.
“The IOG salary bands continue to primarily cross reference with the public sector National Joint Council Local Government pay shadow grades reviewed annually in April and the outcome of the internal salary survey by the Local Government Analysis and Research (LGAR), which this year for the first time gave us access to 4,311 records of local government grounds staff in the UK and Wales.
“Comparison with BIGGA salary scales – which for 2009 are announced at 3.7 per cent based on the Average Earnings Index at June 2008 - continue as a good comparator of salaries in the private sector.”
The IOG recommended 2009 national basic salary bands are:
To accompany its recommendations, the IOG publishes generic Position Descriptions to reflect typical job responsibilities and experience required for each level of position, against which employers can evaluate varying responsibilities and circumstances.
The Institute of Groundsmanship (IOG) is the leading membership organisation representing grounds managers, groundsmen, grounds maintenance managers, greenkeepers and all others involved in the management of sports pitches, landscape and amenity facilities in the UK. As well as maintaining the IOG Performance Quality Standards and providing a consultancy service for sports grounds, lawn maintenance and amenity horticulture, the IOG’s extensive Training and Education programme includes cricket, football, tennis, horseracing, bowls, artificial surfaces, turf science and many other specialist subjects. It also stages the annual IOG SCOTSTURF and IOG SALTEX exhibition, Europe’s leading show for the open space profession. For more information visit www.iog.org
<>
Commenting on the findings – which reveal that senior grounds management roles are beginning to be competitively rewarded in line with respective market rates – IOG Chief Executive Geoff Webb says:
“It is a major concern, however, that the average salary of entry- and mid-level jobs remains to be either below or at the lower end of the IOG’s recommended minimum. This highlights the need to continue to improve industry understanding and reward for these roles.”
He continues: “As confirmed by IOG research, we are facing a very real skills gap in the near future and continuing to pay below the recommended rates will only exacerbate this. The IOG will continue to work with employers, Government and sector skills councils to raise the profile and standing of the profession.
“The IOG is now embarking on a second-stage study designed to identify the relative standing of grounds staff within their organisations and the reasons for this perception. The ‘Grounds for Concern’ study will set out to, for example, understand the qualifications held by staff and their pay. We anticipate the results in the Spring.”
Explaining the methodology of the latest research, Steve Pheasant, PBi Consulting Director says: “Incomes Data Services analysis and other remuneration consultant reports have been utilised to confirm pay market trends in both the public and private sector. IDS records pay settlements across the UK economy covering approximately nine million employees in total. The divergence in pay settlement levels between the two sectors, first noticed in 2007, will continue in 2009.
“The IOG salary bands continue to primarily cross reference with the public sector National Joint Council Local Government pay shadow grades reviewed annually in April and the outcome of the internal salary survey by the Local Government Analysis and Research (LGAR), which this year for the first time gave us access to 4,311 records of local government grounds staff in the UK and Wales.
“Comparison with BIGGA salary scales – which for 2009 are announced at 3.7 per cent based on the Average Earnings Index at June 2008 - continue as a good comparator of salaries in the private sector.”
The IOG recommended 2009 national basic salary bands are:
- Grounds manager £28,100- £40,400
- Heads Groundsman £23,965-£31,170
- Deputy Head Groundsman/Lead Professional £19,610-£23,955
- Groundsman (Skilled) £18,335-£22,400
- Groundsman £14,690-£17,950
- Junior Groundsman (Age 17) £12,450
- Junior Groundsman (Age 16) £10,370
To accompany its recommendations, the IOG publishes generic Position Descriptions to reflect typical job responsibilities and experience required for each level of position, against which employers can evaluate varying responsibilities and circumstances.
The Institute of Groundsmanship (IOG) is the leading membership organisation representing grounds managers, groundsmen, grounds maintenance managers, greenkeepers and all others involved in the management of sports pitches, landscape and amenity facilities in the UK. As well as maintaining the IOG Performance Quality Standards and providing a consultancy service for sports grounds, lawn maintenance and amenity horticulture, the IOG’s extensive Training and Education programme includes cricket, football, tennis, horseracing, bowls, artificial surfaces, turf science and many other specialist subjects. It also stages the annual IOG SCOTSTURF and IOG SALTEX exhibition, Europe’s leading show for the open space profession. For more information visit www.iog.org
<>
Bahco Bypass Loppers PG-20-E - Product Review
I must admit that I have had this pair of loppers in question for review now for the best part of a year but it does take a while, I believe, with tools to test them properly. That I have now done.
Bypass loppers of compact design to prune in difficult-to-reach places, available in two sizes. Oval steel tube handles with comfortable plastic grip and shock absorbing plastic buffers for added comfort in use. The smaller cutting head is ideal for pruning ornamental shrubs and rose bushes. Unlike for the professional range of loppers there are no spare parts available for this one.
The PG-20-E bypass loppers which I have had for review is the smaller of the two sizes and has a cutting capacity of a maximum of 30mm. This is, in my view, all academic though and depends on the hardness of the wood. I would not like to try it or any for that matter on dead prunus branches of that diameter, for instance. I have done dead branches of up to about 20mm with those loppers and I found it hard going. Not that the loppers would have broken, maybe. I just found it physically hard and would, in such cases, rather resort to a saw.
Those bypass loppers could be, and I do that at times, for they are very light and handy to carry, referred to as “secateurs on steroids”.
The specifications, so to speak are for the PG-20-E that of a cutting diameter 30 max, with a length of 440mm and a weight 665 grams. As I have said, they are very light.
Now if someone could design a carrying holster for it, of some sort, this would be an ideal too for any Countryside Ranger and such like to take out on a patrol, especially a foot patrol, in order to remove branches and such that may encroach on a footpath, a bridleway, or such.
This is, as all of Bahco's tools, a professional tool at a reasonable price and anyone in their right mind, especially a professional, I should think, would rather invest in quality tools than to buy cheap and find them broken in a few hours or days of use.
© M Smith (Veshengro), January 2009
<>
INSTITUTE OF GROUNDSMANSHIP CELEBRATES 75TH ANNIVERSARY IN 2009
The Institute of Groundsmanship (IOG) will celebrate its 75th anniversary in 2009 as the world’s largest membership organisation for grounds professionals with nearly 10,000 full and e-members.
A number of events will take place through the year including the first all-encompassing industry awards ceremony for grounds staff taking place at the Emirates Stadium on 15 October. This will be preceded by the IOG’s one-day Sports Turf Conference during the day.
Over the last two years the institute has transformed itself with the establishment of the IOG Academy – an apprenticeship through to retirement training programme to enable grounds staff to gain the professional qualifications they need throughout their career.
“Having doubled the membership over the last two years we will continue to follow the institute’s original mission to improve the status of groundsmen and the standard of groundsmanship,” says Geoff Webb, IOG Chief Executive.
“To this end we have been working with the national governing bodies of sport such as The Football Association on a soon-to-be-launched training initiative for grassroots grounds professionals, and the England and Wales Cricket Board on fine turf issues,” he added.
There is still much to do. Grounds staff are still not paid well and work in difficult conditions. The IOG therefore needs to evolve to meet the demands faced by its members in this ever-changing industry.
The IOG has been highlighting its concerns with a number of key politicians and stakeholders, pointing to the vital contribution that grounds staff make to British sport. This has led to Minister for Sport Gerry Sutcliffe MP saying:
“Ensuring the long term maintenance of facilities is vital to the sustainability of sports provision. Grounds maintenance is a key element of this. I welcome initiatives by the IOG to raise skill levels in this area and the grounds maintenance profession as a whole.”
The IOG was founded by W H Bowles BEM, head groundsman of Eton College, and ten other founder members in 1934 at a pub by Cannon Street Station in London. Each of the founders put in £1 to set up the organisation.
Some of the IOG’s highlights include:
“It is clear that health and the uptake of sporting activities is a major item on the Government agenda, as is the legacy that the Olympics (and other major sporting events including the Commonwealth Games in 2014) will create. As such, our activity within the political arena is focused here, to highlight the issues we face as an industry.
“This is one of a number of steps that the IOG is taking to voice concern and request action on matters that we as an industry are facing – for example, the encouragement of more young people into the sector, and to raise the pay and status of ground professionals.
“We will continue to lobby, with our partners who face similar issues, to address and raise the profile of these important issues with Government, those involved in sports governance and others in a position of influence.”
The Institute of Groundsmanship (IOG) is the leading membership organisation representing grounds managers, groundsmen, grounds maintenance managers, greenkeepers and all others involved in the management of sports pitches, landscape and amenity facilities in the UK. As well as maintaining the IOG Performance Quality Standards and providing a consultancy service for sports grounds, lawn maintenance and amenity horticulture, the IOG’s extensive Training and Education programme includes cricket, football, tennis, horseracing, bowls, artificial surfaces, turf science and many other specialist subjects. It also stages the annual IOG SCOTSTURF and IOG SALTEX exhibition, Europe’s leading show for the open space profession. For more information visit www.iog.org
Source: Wildish Communications Ltd
<>
A number of events will take place through the year including the first all-encompassing industry awards ceremony for grounds staff taking place at the Emirates Stadium on 15 October. This will be preceded by the IOG’s one-day Sports Turf Conference during the day.
Over the last two years the institute has transformed itself with the establishment of the IOG Academy – an apprenticeship through to retirement training programme to enable grounds staff to gain the professional qualifications they need throughout their career.
“Having doubled the membership over the last two years we will continue to follow the institute’s original mission to improve the status of groundsmen and the standard of groundsmanship,” says Geoff Webb, IOG Chief Executive.
“To this end we have been working with the national governing bodies of sport such as The Football Association on a soon-to-be-launched training initiative for grassroots grounds professionals, and the England and Wales Cricket Board on fine turf issues,” he added.
There is still much to do. Grounds staff are still not paid well and work in difficult conditions. The IOG therefore needs to evolve to meet the demands faced by its members in this ever-changing industry.
The IOG has been highlighting its concerns with a number of key politicians and stakeholders, pointing to the vital contribution that grounds staff make to British sport. This has led to Minister for Sport Gerry Sutcliffe MP saying:
“Ensuring the long term maintenance of facilities is vital to the sustainability of sports provision. Grounds maintenance is a key element of this. I welcome initiatives by the IOG to raise skill levels in this area and the grounds maintenance profession as a whole.”
The IOG was founded by W H Bowles BEM, head groundsman of Eton College, and ten other founder members in 1934 at a pub by Cannon Street Station in London. Each of the founders put in £1 to set up the organisation.
Some of the IOG’s highlights include:
- The introduction in 1953 of the IOG examination system, the forerunner to today’s renowned training and education services;
- In 1990, the launch of the IOG Consultancy Service, which advises organisations worldwide on the development and management of sports and amenity facilities;
- The launch in 1938 of the IOG exhibition – now known as IOG SALTEX; and
- The launch of the 2012 Fund in 2007, which provides funding and bursaries to support industry development.
“It is clear that health and the uptake of sporting activities is a major item on the Government agenda, as is the legacy that the Olympics (and other major sporting events including the Commonwealth Games in 2014) will create. As such, our activity within the political arena is focused here, to highlight the issues we face as an industry.
“This is one of a number of steps that the IOG is taking to voice concern and request action on matters that we as an industry are facing – for example, the encouragement of more young people into the sector, and to raise the pay and status of ground professionals.
“We will continue to lobby, with our partners who face similar issues, to address and raise the profile of these important issues with Government, those involved in sports governance and others in a position of influence.”
The Institute of Groundsmanship (IOG) is the leading membership organisation representing grounds managers, groundsmen, grounds maintenance managers, greenkeepers and all others involved in the management of sports pitches, landscape and amenity facilities in the UK. As well as maintaining the IOG Performance Quality Standards and providing a consultancy service for sports grounds, lawn maintenance and amenity horticulture, the IOG’s extensive Training and Education programme includes cricket, football, tennis, horseracing, bowls, artificial surfaces, turf science and many other specialist subjects. It also stages the annual IOG SCOTSTURF and IOG SALTEX exhibition, Europe’s leading show for the open space profession. For more information visit www.iog.org
Source: Wildish Communications Ltd
<>
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
