Sustainable grass care in Hungary will soon take a giant leap when grass care company Kite takes ownership of three Rhenac Sports LED UV-C 600 grass disease control units. The Rhenac technology uses a unique light to deprive algae and fungi of their preferred growing conditions.
Rhenac Sports LED UV-C 600 grass care technology is a sustainable pest and disease control technology. It is in line with the EU’s Green Deal to reduce by 50% the use and risk of chemical pesticides by 2030. The special light and light colour diminishes algae, fungi and diseases in natural and hybrid grass fields by treating them with UV-C light. This destroys the DNA of active growing fungi, which prevents them from reproducing.
By treating the pitch two or three times a week, a 95% reduction can be achieved within weeks. Treating a full-sized football field only takes 20 to 25 minutes. The device can be mounted on a tractor and unfolds to 6 metres wide. It derives its energy either directly from the tractor or from its own generator set. Special acoustic and visual warning signals indicate the correct speed and lane to the driver.
The technology is particularly embraced by clubs and grass care maintenance teams in Western Europe and Germany in particular, says Arnoud Fiolet of RSI SPORTS, the exclusive distributor of the technology. “It is a safe and easy to operate technology that doesn’t require special skills, permits or experience and will do away with the need for chemistry. As it allows the field to be treated much faster, in almost every weather condition, and as it doesn’t require special storage facilities, an investment in the Rhenac Sports LED UV-C 600 technology will make clubs and companies compliant with European legislation and will achieve significant savings.”
Horst Thiessen of Rhenac Sports LED explains that the company worked closely together with scientists in developing the technology. “Through our extensive collaboration with the Bio centre of the Ludwig-Maximilians University in Munich, we managed to establish the exact colour light and doses that will be as effective in diminishing algae, fungi and various diseases as chemistry. As our LED technology is capable of delivering the complete light spectrum, we have managed to translate the knowledge obtained by the Bio centre of the Ludwig-Maximilians University to settings for our technology and deliver accordingly.”
Kite will use the turf maintenance units to maintain stadium fields and a golf course. The three units will be operated by Kite’s own grass care maintenance teams. The experiences off the groundsman of 1. Köln FC will be the benchmark for the team. With most of the German football club’s facilities located in environmentally sensitive areas that are protected by environmental legislation, the club adopted the technology in 2017 and have been using it ever since.
Arnoud Fiolet explains. “Grass care at 1 Köln FC draws from our Stadium Concept philosophy, whereby new technologies and information from multiple sources are integrated to achieve the best possible pitch. Where Rhenac Sports LED grass grow technology can help producing and maintaining a healthy pitch, the UV-C grass care technology will ensure it remains free from algae, diseases and fungi.”