News
IOG expresses concerns about artificial turf in sport
Landscape and Amenity Magazine reports that The Institute of Groundsmanship (IOG) has make clear its serious concerns about any replacement of natural turf with artificial turf in professional sport.
IOG Chief Executive Geoff Webb stated "grass is the natural surface for our professional sports. It's what players and fans want. Natural grass - properly maintained to governing body standards - provides the optimum playing surface today."
Chris Carr from Q Lawns agrees wholeheartedly with the IOG. "Although there is definitely a place in the market for artificial turf, it will never be able to replace natural grass in terms of the environmental benefits" he says, "natural grass acts as an air conditioner, cooling the air, filtering out pollutants and converting carbon dioxide into oxygen for us to breath. In a garden situation, natural turf needn't be particularly high maintenance, so long as the seedmix is right for the situation and the ground is prepared properly before installation, the grass will be easy to care for. Don't forget that artificial grass needs a degree of maintenance too"
Q Lawns supports Princes Trust
Q Lawns have donated £400 of turf to a project in nearby Thetford run by the Princes Trust and involving teenagers and young adults.
A community garden has been given a new lease of life by a youth project team. 11 members of the Princes Trust Team Programme, cleared, levelled, planted, paved and turfed the 350 square metre garden at Thetford Fire Station. The members, aged from 16-23 raised over £1,000 to carry out the work as part of their 12 week course.
Chris Carr, Q Lawns' Sales and Marketing Manager said "we're delighted to have been able to help out with this project, for the same reasons that we support the UK Landscape Skills competition. It's important to encourage young people to get involved with landscaping and to learn how to do the job properly. Hopefully, some of the the Youth Project Team will be inspired to get involved with the landscape industry in the future"
For more information about Q Lawns products, please contact Chris Carr on 01842 828266 or visit the website at www.qlawns.co.uk
Q Lawns sponsors UK Landscape Skills Competition
Malvern Autumn Show – Live UK Landscape Gardening Competition.
Congratulations to plot one! Ewan Sewell from Bishop Burton College and Jack Stanford from Sparsholt College.
Left Jack Stanford, middle Wayne Grills BALI Chief Operations Officer and right Ewan Sewell.
Ewan (20) and Jack (17) have become the National gold winners of the WorldSkills UK Landscape Gardening Competition sponsored by Marshalls plc. Congratulations. Both competitors were extremely motivated and showed excellent accuracy with their garden construction. They both have a fantastic future ahead of them in their landscape gardening career.
We must not forget the other three finalists who triumphed against 27 others to come to the National Final. David Merton from GMC Landscapes in London was awarded silver for his excellent standard of work coming very close behind the gold winning team with John, his boss on plot two. David had the unlucky situation of having to work on his own because of one competitor withdrawal. Thank you to John Guildford, who stepped in to assist as his labourer for the four days.
Jonathan Dosiak from South Staffordshire College and Adam Clark from GMC Landscapes on plot three were awarded bronze position for their hard work. Both competitors showed good standards of work and complete dedication to delivering their best throughout the show.
On behalf of BALI and the judging team; Mitch Westwood from Westwood Solutions an industry expert from BBC TV Rogue Traders programme, Roger Clarke from Onsite Training UK and Charlie Maclauchlan from Country Gardens York and moderator Peter Killen of Peter Killen Landscape Designs; we would like to say a huge thank you to all competitors, their supporting tutors and our sponsors for helping to deliver an enjoyable event for all.
RESULTS
| Position | Forename | Surname | Organisation |
| GOLD | Ewan | Sewell | Bishop Burton College, East Yorkshire |
| GOLD | Jack | Stanford | Sparsholt College, Hampshire |
| SILVER | David | Merton | GMC Landscapes Ltd, London |
| BRONZE | Jonathan | Dosiak | South Staffordshire College |
| BRONZE | Adam | Clark | GMC Landscapes Ltd, London |
| WITHDRAWN | Kareem | Ali | Derby College |
Ewan and Jack will now be invited to attend the Gold Medal Ceremony for all WorldSkills UK Competitions at London’s ExCeL on the 6th of October. In addition they will be recognised along with their peers at the BALI National Landscape Award Ceremony on the 2nd of December at the Grosvenor House, Park Lane, London.
More News
- Use Nutrifusion to combat Red Thread Disease
- Autumn Lawn Care
- Q Lawns continue to support the industry with sensible turf pricing
- Little Oaks Preschool wins £500 to help Green Up West Norfolk
- TGA Advises "Hold Back on Watering Established Lawns"
- Drought Measures for Newly Laid Turf
- Q Lawns to support charity Festival
- New survey finds grass is preferable to decking
- Wild Flower Mat is ready for despatch
- New look for Q Lawns in the Midlands
