L Wrekin Golf Club have recorded extraordinary
GREENSKEEPING
Verti-Quake and Verti-Drain combo help Wrekin GC weather the challenge of increased rainfall
ike many , the team at
L Wrekin Golf Club have recorded extraordinary
levels of rainfall over the winter of 2023 / 24 . And yet , Course Manager Gary Turner explains that they ’ ve emerged with free-draining fairways , which he attributes to a single pass with their Redexim Verti-Quake . The timely purchase in the autumn has now been followed up by the delivery of a Redexim Verti-Drain 1517 to further improve aeration results and enhance drainage in other areas of the course .
Nestled at the base of the Wrekin and surrounded by both natural woodland and picturesque views , Gary is now into his 20th year at the Telford club . A lack of available resources has meant that no aeration has been conducted on the fairways for the last three or four years , which is why the delivery of the Verti-Quake 2516 by Charlies Ag & Turf in September 2023 , has been hailed a ‘ godsend !’
“ They had begun to lay wet so we knew it would take something robust to break through those years of compaction . The budget we had at the time allowed us to purchase the 2516 , which went out on the fairways almost as soon as it came through the gates and the results were astounding ! We created channels at depths of 4 ” and transformed the fairways into the driest part of the course with just one pass .”
“ The plan will be to utilise this during renovation weeks in March and September and complement the linear aeration with monthly passes of our new Verti-Drain 1517 on the fairways , as well as the greens and tees .”
The 1517 from the award-winning Redexim range offers a lightweight aeration solution with a 1.7m working width and 6 ” working depth – a combination that makes it a popular choice for sensitive turf areas . It ’ s larger size and faster operating speed compared to Gary ’ s previous aerator presents more effective results , in less time .
“ Matt Lewis from Charlie ’ s delivered the Verti-Drain at the start of March and , as soon as it was dry enough , we passed over all 18 greens with 12mm solid tines , in three and a half hours less than the task previously took . A few weeks on and we can still see the holes .” Gary adds , “ We plan to follow the monthly verti-draining with applications of dressing , which will bring multiple benefits to the profile and help us manage the challenges posed by mother nature !”
He concludes , “ The service we ’ ve had from Matt and the Charlie ’ s team has been excellent at every stage and the machines have already proven to be the best , and most timely , purchases we ’ ve ever made .”
www . redexim . com
42 GroundskeepingJournal . co . uk | May / June 2024