Cambridge college gets new seed germination machine
By Alistair
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Andrew Myson – head gardener and facilities manager at Trinity Hall in Cambridge, is the proud new owner of the Dennis S500 Plus dual-purpose machine which features both interchangeable spiker and slotter reels.
Founded in 1350, Trinity Hall is the fifth oldest surviving college in the University of Cambridge and former students include the likes of Oscar-winning actress Rachel Weisz, former UN weapons inspector Hans Blix and theoretical physicist Stephen Hawking. The college has also seen 20 Olympians including 15 medal winners.
As you would expect, the college’s gardens and sports facilities must be of the highest quality to cater for such a high calibre of student. The college is also somewhat of landmark, as Andrew explains.
“The most important part of my job is that I maintain the gardens and sports grounds to the highest possible standards in order to produce pleasant surroundings for the students to live in and to play on.
“The college also sees many visitors on a daily basis – the general public have access to it and we also have lots of conferences, weddings and various other events. Therefore it is imperative to keep the sites excellently presented and that can, at times, put pressure on us.”
Andrew and his six other members of staff certainly have their work cut out in maintaining the college’s four sites, so it is essential that he works with the best possible equipment. It is for this reason that he chooses Dennis.
“We have purchased Dennis and SISIS equipment previously and even though that was a few years ago the machines are still going strong and have never encountered any problems at all. The aftersales service is second to none as well. Whenever we may need new parts we simply make a call and it’s dealt with very quickly – it’s all very swift and efficient.
“The Dennis and SISIS equipment has a great reputation and it is obvious that the machines are well made. I didn’t even have a demonstration of the S500 PLUS because I had previously seen a couple in action and heard lots of good things about it from others who have the machine.”
It’s easy to see why so many have given the S500 Plus rave reviews. Ideal for bowls, cricket, golf and other fine turf and ornamental lawn areas, this dual -purpose machine has a 510mm (20″) operating width complete with interchangeable spiker and slotter reels. The spiker reel punches through the ‘surface pan’ allowing air, water and fertiliser to penetrate the root zone, while the slotter reel creates ideal seed germination pockets thus reducing seed wastages. Using the optional seed box attachment will ensure grass seed is dropped onto the ground at the prescribed rate and brushed into the pockets.
“The main reason for purchasing the S500 PLUS was the ability to have a quick turnaround of the renovation of lawns. If we have a damaged area of lawn or an area that we need to thicken up, we can prepare it, slot it with the S500 PLUS, apply the seed, put on some topsoil and keep it irrigated. It just gives us the potential to get seed in the ground more quickly and more efficiently. We’ll also be using it on sportsfields such as football repair in goal mouth areas and any other over seeding. To be honest, it does everything we expected it to do – it’s very easy to use, simple and straight forward to set-up.
“When we make any purchase there are a few factors we have to consider such as operator comfort and length of time using the equipment, so it is good to see a machine such as the S500 PLUS manufactured with those considerations in mind. The reality is that when you use it – it’s a pleasurable machine to operate.”
By Alistair
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