EDUCATIONAL ESTABLISHMENTS Getting Personal
Stuart Gower - he would like to own a gym, but spiders aren’t welcome
Who are you? Stuart Gower, Grounds Manager at Crosfields School.
Family status. With partner Sam, two daughters; Francesca (14) and Angelina (11) and mad dog Barney.
Who’s your hero and why? My mum and dad. They both worked all the hours they could running a pub. I lost my mum suddenly in late 2017.
What’s been the highlight of your grounds career so far? Being a grounds manager.
If your younger self saw you now, what would he think? I dread to think.
Which famous people wind you up? Politicians.
What job would you love, other than your own? To own a hard-core gym or mum and dad’s old pub.
What was the most embarrassing moment in your life? There’s quite a few (I stopped drinking years ago).
What is your favourite film? All the Star Wars films and Jaws.
What scares you? Spiders.
What is your favourite sport? Football; I’m an avid Chelsea and Crystal Palace supporter. I also love weight training, carp fishing and playing darts.
Which historical time and place would you most like to visit? I’m fascinated by World War II and old war movies.
Do you have a lifetime ambition? Just to keep going on doing my best although, I would move to Cornwall if I won the lottery!
Which three people, living or dead, would you invite to a dinner party? My mum and my nans, plus regulars from their pub; there was never a dull moment.
What’s the best advice you have ever been given? A groundsperson’s job never finishes.
What’s your favourite smell? Fresh coffee, bacon, fresh cut grass and seaweed.
Which three albums would you take to a desert island? The legend Bob Marley, old 80s Brit jazz funk, chill out albums ... too many to mention.
What’s the daftest work- related question you have ever been asked? Can I cut in the frost or, someone trying to mark out in snow!!!!!
What’s your favourite piece of kit? Air2G2.
What three words would you use to describe yourself? Honest, trustworthy, good sense of humour and hard working ... oh wait that’s four things.
What is the single most useful thing you could tell a 16-year-old groundsperson/ greenkeeper? Listen to your peers, gain as much knowledge as you can, use common sense and don’t be afraid to ask questions.
What talent would you like to have? The ability to lose weight and shape up.
What law/legislation would you like to see introduced? I could get into trouble on this one, so I’ll refrain!
on there, but still, we do have to manually mark for external uses, like netball and cricket, using a spray marker and specially formulated marking paint. Then, it is just a matter of keeping our eye on the weeds and moss.”
“In summer, we will cut the pitches with the Trimax Snake between 25mm and 28mm, depending which sport is being played. Subject to the weather and the school’s busy sports schedule, I like to cut at least two to three times a week. The schedule can sometimes be a nightmare, but we try and get around this by having staggered start times. The Amazone Groundkeeper is used once a week to clean up the surface, removing any clippings and debris left behind. With the various amount of sports we have to cater for, we continually have to mark out throughout the season; we tend to overmark every week,
using strings and a spray marker.”
Stuart took advantage of the Easter break to carry out some mid-season renovation work on the pitches. “We hollow-cored the three main pitches, with ¾ inch tines, using our Wiedenmann Terra Spike XP8. We then recycled the cores using a drag mat, to break them up and re- incorporate them back into the surface before picking up the debris left behind with the Amazone Groundkeeper. Following this, we topdressed with twenty tonnes of sand per pitch, using our own topdresser and then overseeded with a ryegrass seed mix. Finally, we applied a pre-seed fertiliser.” Stuart likes to adopt a more granular-based fertiliser programme throughout the season due to time constraints and the lack of water available in the summer. “We will use a
Implementing a regular aeration
programme of slitting every other week and terra spiking at least once a month, at a depth of twelve inches, helps to keep the pitches playable in the wet spells
76 PC April/May 2020
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