“It’s time the world of bowls woke up to the true costs and the extremely good value a bowls club provides. Most of us spend more on haircuts than we do on bowls membership”
private flats, and was now in a position to consider their offer. If I had been asked a week earlier, I would have said no. After visiting the club and green, I
prepared a proposal. The Hatfield club showed a real commitment to improvement as they agreed a spend that included a new 24” Paladin TG, SISIS Mk5 Rotorake, SISIS True Level roller and a Scout sprayer. They already had a Groundsman 345MD, and guess what else they had? A greens iron. This was my first experience of this tool and, despite some horror stories I had heard, I find these tools great for the pace of the green, so long as you aerate to counteract the compaction effects - about two inches deep in my case. My first summer at Hatfield showed good improvement in pace and playability. Even the bar staff were
pleased, as they no longer had to put up with the moans and groans of members and visitors! Now they had visitors complimenting the club on the improvements.
I had managed to negotiate a small
reduction on the cost of ‘Drill n Fill’ by having the Hatfield green done at the same time as Welwyn. The Hatfield drainage has also improved, but has a long way to go. Worms are a nightmare! I found out, a couple of months ago, that in the sixties the site used to be a pond! Well, things can never stand still and, based on the success of the turf iron at Hatfield, I thought I would get one for the Welwyn green. At around £5,000 for a new one, there was no way I was going to justify this spend to a club that were already happy with their green. So, I sought a second hand one. I managed to
buy a three foot model from a golf course for £700 and donated it to the club.
Since then, I have persuaded the club to spend another £700 on a turf ventilator attachment so that, every time I iron the green, I am sorrel rolling at the same time. I’m a great believer in getting machines to do the work. Anyone who has pushed a sorrel roller over a bowling green does not want to do it regularly and, probably, never again! The easier a job is to do, the more likely it is going to be done. At this point in time, we are six months into production of a DVD entitled ‘A Year In The Life Of Our Green’. Now, we are not a film crew, just the club webmaster, Edward Webb, on camera and yours truly, ‘the grass cutter’ on editing, music and voice over. If
AFT Trenchers Ltd AFT45 For compact tractors from 20hp
With chain or slitting wheel, augers or conveyor to quickly install drainage systems, pipes or cables as and when needed.
Tel: +44 (0)1787 311811 Email:
info@trenchers.co.uk www.trenchers.co.uk 26
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