New 2003 Barenbrug seed catalogue out

NEW BARENBRUG CATALOGUE BRIMS WITH INNOVATION

By Sue Meeken

Barenbrug UK's annual Amenity Grass Seed and Wildflower Mixtures catalogue is established as an invaluable reference on turf professionals' bookshelves, and the newly published 2003 edition is no exception.

The 40-page, A4 publication details all Barenbrug's high-quality varieties, including the latest leading-edge introductions. These include BARGOLD perennial ryegrass, the finest-leaved variety on the market, with a tolerance of close mowing that makes it suitable even for golf greens. Other new perennial ryegrasses from the specialist breeders include the highly wear-tolerant ROMANCE for winter pitches, and BARTWINGO, which has excellent shoot density and superb cleanness of cut, making it a preferred choice for medium/fine turf applications and turf production. BARLOUISE, another new perennial ryegrass, has excellent disease resistance and good wear tolerance.

For 2003, Barenbrug have introduced BARONIE, an extremely fast establishing smooth stalked meadowgrass with strong disease resistance, along with BARIFERA creeping bent, bred specifically for northern Europe offering excellent recovery from damage. Details are also provided on exclusive Barenbrug varieties, including the shade-tolerant tufted hair grass BARCAMPSIA, and the low-maintenance crested hair grass BARKOEL, ideal for poor soils.

Barenbrug has augmented its mixtures line-up for 2003 with the re-introduction and re-formulation of the BAR 10 mixture for soccer pitches and other heavily used sports fields. Its major component is BARBIZON tall fescue, whose roots can penetrate as deeply as 1.5m, allowing it to thrive in extreme conditions, including areas prone to drought or waterlogging.

Making its debut during 2003 will be the Barenbrug-bred rhizomatous tall fescue,

LABARINTH RTF, producing an astonishingly dense root system that recovers quickly from damage and can fill in patches in a sward.

"Our 2003 portfolio shows we are moving forward and keeping customers' needs at the forefront," says Barenbrug UK's Managing Director, Paul Johnson. "Our latest purpose-bred varieties enable turf managers to counter the demands placed on modern sports and amenity turf, and

BAR 10 pro-actively meets emergent market needs".

"Given the breadth of our 2003 offering-up, Barenbrug's exclusive varieties and mixtures mean that all the turf professional's grass seed needs can be met from one source," he continues.

Please contact Paul Johnson on 01359 272 000 for more information and your catalogue.