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Golf greens currently contain surface thatch levels on average 60% higher than is desirable for optimal turf health and playability. And that average masks some parkland courses with more than 25% organic matter in the top 20mm, compared to a target of four to six percent, according to STRI reports.

Syngenta has welcomed 2015 Solheim Cup Captain and leading Ladies European Tour (LET) professional Carin Koch as the company's first Golf Ambassador.

Summer outbreaks of Fusarium may not cause the large-scale damage seen in winter, but, at a time when all players expectthe very best possible greens quality, any complaints can be especially vociferous.

Results of a detailed questionnaire of golfers at the prestigious St Mellion International Golf Club in Cornwall has clearly highlighted that course condition is the key priority for their members. It has also provided some key pointers regarding turf management practices and priorities for investment in the future for Course Manager Mike Bush MG.

 A new award that will reward golf clubs which have successfully created pollen rich habitats on courses, leading to an increase in pollinating insects, has been launched by The Sports Turf Research Institute (STRI) and Syngenta. The Operation Pollinator Award 2013 will be eligible for entry by all clubs implementing the Operation Pollinator programme. The awards will raise awareness of Operation Pollinator, an international biodiversity programme driven by Syngenta, which aims to boost the number of pollinating insects by helping to provide essential habitats for feeding and nesting. Operation Pollinator guidelines and advice has been developed specifically for golf courses in conjunction with STRI.The award entries will be judged by Bob Taylor, STRI's Ecology and Environment Manager before the end of September 2013.Judging criteria includes successful habitat transition, variety of wildflowers, scale of the project and participation levels, and how effectively the club is communicating its…

The bio-inspired Syngenta Contact+ fungicide active for turf, fludioxonil, will offer an entirely novel action that effectively explodes targeted disease spores. Syngenta Technical Manager, Dr Simon Watson, reports that fludioxonil's mode of action is unique and extremely exciting, creating the opportunity to develop new disease control strategies.

Syngenta has launched an exciting new fungicide for high-performance turf disease control. Instrata contains the exceptional long-lasting residual control of fludioxonil - the first new contact active ingredient for turf diseases control for over 20 years.

Greenkeepers, golf club managers and consultants can now get instant access to a series of exciting case studies and initiatives that highlight the best practice in golf business management and sustainability.

Entries for the Operation Pollinator Awards have been extended to September 8th, as part of the Golf Environment Awards.

Turf sprayer operators should calibrate sprayers and check nozzle output far more regularly to ensure accurate application. Fewer than one in 10 operators check the water volume application rate before each treatment, with many only checking for nozzle wear and consistency less than once a season.

New trials to evaluate the optimum intervals for Primo Maxx II application have concluded that Growing Degree Day (GDD) calculations used by greenkeepers in the US are too simplistic and imprecise for use in the UK and northern Europe.

Last year, for the first time on record, the average 24-hour UK temperature for December was below freezing. In fact, at -0.9°C it was a full degree below the previous record freeze, in 1981. And for the east of Scotland it was particularly harsh - experiencing 25 days with an air frost, an average daily low of -6.1°C and an overall 24-hour average of -2.6°C - which was more than 5°C below the norm.