14 AGROST I S Multi-spectral mapping of golf courses Agrostis is pioneering the use of drone-based technology for golf courses, to map grass health and condition, and combining this with over 30 years’ experience in agronomic science. Our approach involves the collection and interpretation of ground cover and soil condition data over large areas and identifying the most appropriate and precisely targeted management practices. This delivers significant economic and environmental benefits through, for example, the more efficient use of precious and costly resources such as fertiliser and water. By using a sophisticated, drone-mounted camera, a par four, for example, may be photographed at regular, pre-determined, intervals, perhaps 200 or 300 times. The images are then combined to produce one picture of the entire hole. Taken from about 30 metres, that picture, as a conventional RGB (red-green-blue) image and at very high resolution, is of interest for yardage determination or bunker evaluation. But, after some years of using a drone-mounted optical camera, we have introduced a rather special instrument which captures light from outside of the visible spectrum and that cannot be seen with the human eye. This multi-spectral imagery provides information on a range of features related to the health of the grass and the general condition of the ground cover. Those features include the grass chlorophyll content, its water status, species composition and shoot density, all key components of the playing quality and aesthetics of sports turf surfaces. This very clever stuff is only of value if it can be interpreted in terms related to the actual quality of the surface from a golfing point of view and in ways that can be appreciated and acted upon by the greenkeeper. So, accompanying the multi-spectral mapping capability, Agrostis provides a hands-on assessment of the key areas flagged up by the mapping exercise. That assessment, based on actual observation and the sampling of soil and surface features on the ground, incorporates our long experience in golf research and agronomy and integrates this with the extraordinary capabilities of drone technology. The upshot is a comprehensive assessment of the agronomic needs of the course, providing environmental and economic benefits, notably in reduced fertiliser, water inputs as well as enhancements in biodiversity and habitat quality. For more on Agrostis, turn to page 24 or visit www.agrostis.co.uk Dr Tim Lodge explains how Agrostis Sports Surface Consulting uses drones to provide clubs with information about their course’s grass health
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