LEAF REDUCER TO SOIL IMPROVER AND MANY WAYS OF DRESSING
Our Groundcare division is now supplying equipment from GKB Machines – enhancing our offering to local authorities, golf courses, parks and sports recreation clients.
A new supplier to our diverse Groundcare portfolio, GKB is a 3rd generation family business based in the Netherlands. Their machinery range has a strong focus on sustainability through an energy neutral manufacturing process and their positioning heralds the ‘worker as king’ acknowledging the comfort of operation and pride in the finish that all Groundcare operators aspire to.
GKB’s new Leaf Reducer unveiled at Saltex last month is already turning heads. It provides a solution for large-area leaf clearance – offering an economical and environmentally-friendly alternative to the time-consuming task of leaf collection. It effectively mulches the material and returns it, together with its nutrients back into the surface to the benefit of impoverished soils. The Leaf Reducer has been developed in response to demand from local authorities looking for a more sustainable method than using blowers, vacuums and trucks to collect and dispose of fallen leaves.
In a single pass, the flails on the Leaf Reducer collect the leaves before a turbine provides both initial fragmentation and the airflow needed to pull the material into the machine where it is further milled into a fine mulch. The fine material is then returned to the surface via a rear ejector which can be adjusted to a desired direction depending on the location. Local trials have proven to deliver labour and cost savings to this laborious task, whilst being effective in returning an all-important source of food and nutrients back into the soil. The Leaf Reducer is available with a 1.5m working width, and an adjustable working height to treat areas with both low and higher heights of cut.
GKB’s top dressers are a talking point too. Available in either trailed or mounted options, the 7 models in the Sandspreader range cater for 2-12m working widths and bunkers of 4m3 /141ft3 flat filled. The benefits of frequent Top Dressing are well documented. It is an important step in the maintenance process, and when conducted in conjunction with aeration, can:
- Assist in the dispersal of excess water down into the profile
- Allow oxygen to get down into the soil
- Dilute accumulations of organic material that can form in the top layer
Topdressing usually consists of a mixture of materials such as soil, sand, loam and peat which should be mixed in a way to resemble the existing soil in terms of composition. Since topdressing will eventually become a part of the root zone, it’s important that it blends well with the already established soil.
A solid and efficient topdresser such as the GKB Sandspreader, is therefore indispensable to a greenkeeper or turf manager alike. The robust build, perfect stability and weight dispersion, combined with adjustable conveyor belt speed and adjustable spreading discs all result in an incredibly efficient discharge of sand. A whole host of optional extras are also available from GKB including central control touch screen for tractors, swinging wheel sets and lockable hydraulic valves. The SPM model can also accommodate discharge belts for quick filling of bunkers. The standard three point coupling or electric drawbar makes connecting the trailed unit super easy and bespoke solutions can be undertaken to fit Sandspreaders on various brands of turf truck.
For the more environmentally conscious among you, the GKB EcoDresser is a 3-in-1 maintenance machine that evens out terrain, aerates and spreads dressing soil from the existing top layer – thus offering a more sustainable alternative. These tasks in combination with the nutrient-rich material placed on top all ensure a greatly improved quality of surface. What’s more loosening soil eliminates weeds in the top layer creating improved surface appearance and enhanced conditions for overseeding.
The EcoDresser will save purchase costs for sand, but also offer benefits to the environment. Not only do you not have to bring in sand but you also prevent introducing pollution or extra weed seeds from purchased sand batches. Natural application also eliminates the need for pesticides, controlling weeds by mechanical means.
With working widths from 130cm to 240cms, milling knives, field teeth and spring-loaded coulters to prevent stone damage, the EcoDresser spec is impressive – completed by an optional stone sieve, collecting tray and conveyor belt option for spreading the top layer elsewhere.
GKB’s new Leaf Reducer and Topdressers are complemented by a wide range of innovative forward thinking solutions for natural, synthetic and hybrid turf such as their Topair, for aeration and rolling, and the Sandfiller which combines scarifying, removal and sand filling in a single pass. A functionality at a surprisingly affordable price – speak to your Groundcare representative today to give GKB a try?
