Message Board - Cricket: Is spiking in early April bad and why?
7 Feb 2010 by Greg Spence
If the research shows that drying has as big an effect on wicket hardness as rolling I was wondering whether some thin tine spiking should be done in April to aid the drying process. Ground would already be a bit harder hence no likely damage from the process other than holes which presumably would be removed by light rolling.
I sense from previous messages this is not a good idea but don't know why.
What are the issues?
Greg
7 Feb 2010 by Anthony Asquith
Greg
If you are talking about sarrell rolling (pricking the surface), then yes, but, if you are talking about actual spiking then it is a big no no. Because the soils used for cricket are reactive and unstable they are subjected to shrink/swell cycles in the soil, so as the soil dries, any areas of weakness will fail first (examples are deep scarifying, aeration etc) and fail in those areas as they are weak points or lines of weakness so to speak, so if we had a dry or warm spell, the soils might not swell up enough to close the tine holes (remember the weather is so variable these days, so hot dry spell might occur - remember Aprill 06?)
Cheers
AA
7 Feb 2010 by Greg Spence
AA,
If the tiny holes aren't completely closed,other than aesthetics, what problems does that create.
Greg
7 Feb 2010 by barry glynn
Greg
Im no expert but if no experienced cricket groundsman would ever consider deep spiking in April, doesnt that in itself tell you something?
You say as the ground would already be harder, no damage would be done but that isnt true is it? Ask yourself, would you deep spike in winter if the ground was hard with frost? Then spiking when the ground is harder through dryer warmer weather must also be a no go. Plus I have always been told by people who know a lot better than me , never to spike much past end of January.
We spend all summer compacting for obvious reasons and having deep spike holes in April that would not close up sounds recipe for disaster to me. I would imagine the thing would crack up and the ball would go through the top and you could even cause breaks further down.
What do I do? I just cut the grass.
7 Feb 2010 by Anthony Asquith
Greg
Anything that creates area or lines of weakness is to be avoided(ex aggresive scarifying or aeration) as during drying these areas will fail and introduce lines of weakness. This is the kind of thing I looked at when I was looking to change the crack patterns or change the shape of structural blocks via hand forking and bolster chisel.
Basicaly, the holes might not close up, thus creating areas of inconsistency which may affect playing characteristics.
Cheers
AA
7 Feb 2010 by Mike Last edited 7 Feb 2010
Just to add a quick point to Ant and Barry's comments, if you were aiming to tine to any sort of depth with microtines, or any tines less than 5/16", you may find that the heat buildup within the tines may be too much, leading to deformed/broken tines.
Mike
7 Feb 2010 by mackay
I have known squares that will take a spiking in March without buggering things up, however, these were on sand. I have also spiked one half of a problem square into April without causing problems, however, this was because I used the other half of the square during the first few months of the season and didn't go on to the spiked half until later in the year.
I agree with the above in that it is probably best to avoid spiking past Xmas, but that is not to say that it is the only approach, just be wary. Indeed, most First Class Groundsmen would not dream of spiking in spring, however, there is one notable exception that uses a vertidrainer during the summer as a matter of course. If you are not sure then try something on just one wicket this year.
Never understood the point of using a sarrel roller for superficial aeration on a square though.
7 Feb 2010 by olaf
I spike roll the square out of season to aid ingress of any applied product Andy (fert & any non foliar acting chemical such as Activate or carbendazim) it increases surface area and seems to aid penetration. Might make no difference at all but as it's with a tractor mounted vari seeder hardly a great effort. The thought of shoving a sarrell around gives me the quivers though, to much like hard work.
Some people are like Slinky's, totally useless but amusing if you push them down the stairs
7 Feb 2010 by Grassman2011
This might open a can of Worms Andy Mack, not to be confused with Andy Olaf, but that man with the verti drainer also uses a wetting agent. Something else most/if not all, would shy away from.
My guess is this. If you are using a wetting agent of a particular kind, it may well hold the lines of weakness together that might be created by the vertidrainer.
I have certainly spiked to an inch or two when conditions allow on a used track. Cannot say cracking or playability were affected any more than usual when the wicket was played on next.
All very interesting and no doubt the spiking trials from Cranfield will create much debate as the trials unfold.
8 Feb 2010 by mario
Got to agree with Andy MacKay re using a sarrell roller. I just don't believe in disturbing the surface in season to a depth beyond what is necessary to sow seed at.
In my case I use a Vari-seeder on the back of the tractor but equally appreciate that this sort of kit isn't available to every groundsman out there....and Olaf - push/pull a sarrell? Don't think so!!
Did we ever establish the conjecture that the Oval haven't out of season spiked for many years?
I know I haven't, but that's down to weather.
I know no boundaries.
8 Feb 2010 by barry glynn
vari-seeders, tractors, oh the luxury of it all!
Ive got a hand seed slotter, gets the blood pumping round pushing that about.
Dont know if the Oval hasnt spiked for years but I do know they have 9 inches of solid loam on their square. Went out and looked at it last off season, a carpet of lush grass it was and they only have to put 3/4 bags of seed to get it like that for what must be the biggest square in the world. Must be over 30 strips on it, virtually the whole width of the ground is square now
What do I do? I just cut the grass.
8 Feb 2010 by Tom Wood
squares built on sand???
Back to Top - Go to Next Unread Message
This Message is closed, you may not post a reply at this time
