We have some serious compaction problems on one side of the outfield that needs work to relieve it. The ground is only used for cricket so no problem with any other use for a while yet.
I am considering the possible options with the method of deep spiking (verti-drain) looking favourite at the moment, but have not used it before on a cricket outfield. I was wondering what other people's experience was of using this method.
If it is done in the next month or so (after the snow and ice has gone!), would the holes created by the spiking remain or be likely to open up across summer affecting the surface?
Would it be better to spread sand-based top dressing following spiking to help fill the holes and improve the condition of the heavy clay soil we have?
Has anybody any suggestions for alternative action that has been successful?
whereabouts are yougar-du-nor ?
4 wheels are better than none
I had the same problem some 3 years ago on my outfield which is heavy clay, verti drained and had a lot of heave if you do verti drain look to see if you can fit retainers, caused a lot of extra work putting all the divots back, but since then have done it regular and had no problems just that intial first 1. It all depends on what weather we get as to what happens to holes in the early spring.
Gar-du-nor
Vertidraining has been used successfully for decades on compaction relief so you may be well advised to follow your own advice.
You mention the possibility of using a sand based top dressing after decompaction which is a sensible follow up as long as your budget allows. What you need to ensure is that the vertidraining takes place in the right conditions i.e. when the soil is not too wet so as to cause a lot of smearing of the vertidrain holes which will compromise your soil structure.
Other options include the Earthquake machine which has had successful results but make sure you carefully calculate the condition of your soil whichever option you decide to use.
The light at the end of the tunnel is not a train
8 Jan 2010 by Mike
One other consideration which hasn't been mentioned so far is the possible addition of gypsum if the nature of your soil is problematic. In certain circumstances, gypsum can help to flocculate the clay particles, which in turn will aid with drainage, root growth etc. When sourcing the gypsum, try to get the granular variety as the powdered can be a nightmare to apply.
Hope this helps.
Don't leave it too late. A local club around here shares the outfield with rugby. They vertidrain and sand dress the rugby pitches at the changeover, but it can take well in to June for the outfield to run anywhere near true. The lack of grass cover on the rugby pitches at the season end obviously doesn't help. I guess grass cover won't be a big problem for you.
The ciderman rolls
The crucial thing to bear in mind is that the soil must be dry enough to "shatter" and form fissures when vertidrained.
If the soil is still wet enough to deform then you will
achieve nothing or worse! I try and vertidrain at the end of the season. But with care and not too much heave it can be carried out during the playing season. All is a little dependant on the size of tines and the size of vertidrain as well.
Not heard from you yet jontaylor
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