It’s every greenkeeper’s worst nightmare – to receive a call informing them of vandalism on the course. That nightmare was the unfortunate reality for David Byron of Thorndon Park who returned from BTME 2025 to discover the ‘destruction’ of six greens, three tees and numerous fairways. With sheer determination, a concerted team effort and the outstanding recovery demonstrated by mixtures from across the Johnsons Sports Seed range, the surfaces were fit and ready for club championships just a few short months later.

The benefits of DLF’s 4turf® tetraploid perennial ryegrass have been well documented - the additional strength, winter performance and tolerance of a range of environmental stresses making them a popular choice for sports turf surfaces. One such sport reaping the rewards is equestrian, where the need for density, quick establishment, persistence and recovery makes 4turf® mixtures a firm favourite!

As one extensive improvement project comes to an end, another unexpectedly begins at Stockport’s Reddish Vale Golf Club – and once again, Johnsons Sports Seed is playing a key role in recovery and renovation. For the past few seasons, J Premier Tee has been transforming tees and aprons, bringing big benefits to play and praise for Head Greenkeeper Aaron Watkinson and his team. However, widespread flooding over the New Year period means a major recovery programme is now underway on the fairways – with the tried and tested Johnsons J Fairway ready to come to the rescue!

Vicars Cross Golf Club in Cheshire has recently undertaken significant enhancements to its facilities, focusing on both the practice greens and the driving range. Central to these improvements is the strategic use of Johnsons Sports Seed mixtures, ensuring top-tier playing surfaces for members and visitors alike.

Johnsons Sports Seed offers ideal grass seed mixtures for stadia and training grounds. Within each mixture the varieties have been carefully selected for top performance.

One of the UK’s most prominent sports pitch contractors has praised J 4Turf 50 from the Johnsons Sports Seed range for the pivotal role it plays in the renovations of a range of turf surfaces. White Horse Contractors note the versatility of the 50/50 tetraploid and perennial ryegrass blend, which has delivered reliable results and season-long performance at facilities across the country.

In their pursuit of high performance, sustainable seed solutions, DLF have introduced a number of new mixtures and formulations across the Johnsons Sports Seed range – all outlined in the brand-new 2025 catalogue. In a particularly exciting expansion of their fine turf range, 2025 brings two new mixtures and seven new formulations, while research across DLF’s global breeding centres has contributed to their strongest ever line-up for sports turf.

While the cricket season at Hertfordshire’s Aldenham School may not be long in duration it is intense, with students and community clubs using the facilities for training and fixtures between Easter and early July.

A programme of Johnsons J Fairway has been praised by the team at Woodbridge Golf Club, after delivering tried and trusted performance for more than a decade. Such is the consistency and quality of results from the 100% fescue blend on the fairways, Course Manager Paul Lawrence is now employing another 100% fescue mix from the Johnsons Sports Seed range on the clubs 27 greens as they seek to improve drought and disease tolerance.

For contractors Avon Sportsground Maintenance, when it comes to the overseeding of bowling greens it’s the fine fescue and browntop bent blend of J Green that is sown every time! Delivering hardwearing but slow growing surfaces, the mixture from the Johnsons Sports Seed range is used on all 47 greens in the Bristol and Bath area currently under the remit of Owner Matt Phillips and his team.

When previous attempts to get a practice putting green back into play at Vicars Cross Golf Club in Cheshire had failed, in stepped new Golf Course Manager Richie Stephens, armed with the J All Bent mixture from Johnsons Sports Seed. A few short months from seeding, and with some favourable assistance from mother nature, the USGA spec green was in business – with the programme then implemented on the construction of a new chipping green that enjoyed similar success!

Ticking the boxes for wear tolerance and fast germination, J Premier Pitch from Johnsons Sports Seed has impressed during its debut season at Dartford Football Club. Under the supervision of Head Groundsman Jay Berkhauer and the team at Jordans Sportsground Solutions, J Premier Pitch was chosen due to a tight six-week renovation window, delivering a quality surface for the first game of season and demonstrating great resilience, despite challenging conditions, ever since.

J Premier Pitch from Johnsons Sports Seed has been described as a ‘game-changer’ for Northampton Saints Rugby Club, delivering outstanding resilience, weartolerance and overall turf quality at both the stadium and new high performance training centre. As one of just three clubs in the Premiership with an all-natural pitch, expectations and demands on the turf are high – but with the right seed, feed and maintenance programme in place, the team lead by Head Groundsman Andrew Miller are delivering on every front.

The Johnsons Sports Seed catalogue for 2024 has landed – bursting at the seams with sustainable seed solutions for sports and fine turf applications. In-field trials and the results from DLF’s leading global ‘Disease Watch Programme’ has led to two new mixtures and more than 10 new formulations making this year’s portfolio stronger, more resistant and more reliable than ever!

The exposed location and sandy loam soil profile of Cardigan Golf Club mean the links course is subject to harsh conditions, yet the greens and fairways have never performed better according to Course Manager Stuart Adams – who attributes the improvements in visual merit and plant health down to the bespoke seed programme delivered by Johnsons Sports Seed.

Following another year of extensive trials and research, Johnsons Sports Seed return to BTME with a bolstered fine turf portfolio – including two brand new mixtures and five new formulations for 2024. Created to address two of the biggest issues currently facing the industry, drought tolerance and disease resistance, visitors can find out more about new Johnsons J Sustain-Fairway, J Ultrafine Rye 100 and more by stopping by stand 126 in January.

While only launched in the summer of 2023, the new hard fescue J Sustain-Fairway mixture from Johnsons Sports Seed is already making a strong first impression at the birthplace of The Open Championship. Delivering quick germination and coping with the challenges of the undulating links course, Prestwick Golf Club have commended the blend of top-rated cultivars and the role they’ll play in futureproofing their fairways.

A trial of J Tee from the Johnsons Sports Seed range has now been rolled out course-wide at Knutsford Golf Club in Cheshire, after solving a number of issues on their heavily shaded tees. The combination of high footfall and a lack of sunlight caused by trees have previously posed a number of problems when it comes to the maintenance of the small tees, which Course Manager David Jones now claims to be a thing of the past thanks to the ‘second to none’ results from the J Tee mix.