24 Mar 2004 by Iain Mallett
Overlap
Bit of a dilemma guys. We have just heard from our Sports Club Committee that the football season is to be extended to accomodate outstanding matches until May 2nd!!!
Our plans for reseeding and topdressing the pitches (which are also our cricket outfield) have been thrown into chaos.
Anyone have any ideas on how we can best achieve some decent results? Our plan was to sarrel roll the worst sections of the pitch (the middle third), overseed and top dress with a light covering of sand. Should we chain harrow first to get the levels back?
With the obvious overlap between cricket and football is it worht doing anything at all as it seems the seed will be kicked all over.
Late renovations
Yes, it is worth the effort. The damage done by cricket fielders (mostly) isn't much.
I work at a school and school groundsman usually have the two week Easter break to change over from winter to summer sports. Often the last match (rugby in my case) is on the last Friday, and they want to play cricket and athletics on the Monday they're back. With the weather in my favour, renovation will take place during those two weeks but of course no grass will have grown by the time cricket starts. My aim is to get all the work done - some sort of amelioration with sand on the worst areas, getting the ground level, aeration work and sowing seed, plus cutting the longer grass - before the school returns and then hoping that suitable weather will allow the grass to germinate. Even then, some of the old grass is of a tufty nature and as I don't want to cut too low, it can be slightly dangerous for fielders.
Usually this works but last year was so dry that we had poor germination and a few years ago it was so wet and cold that the seed rotted in the ground.
In your circumstances, I would try and keep the pitch level at all times with your harrow, and especially after the last match. With that you have at least made a safe outfield. Then carry on with your plan. If you have an aeration machine that will go deeper than a sarrel roller, try and use this too over the whole pitch. If time is a problem it would seem best to do the areas in the outfield first. After that you are in the lap of the gods, unless you can irrigate.
Overlap
Iain I like several groundsmen have the same problam as you, that is a winter sport being played on a cricket outfield which in my case I treat completely different to the rest of my football and rugby pitches. While I try to keep all my pitch level on this pitch I do at this time of the year[I am now expecting a huge out cry] use a heavy roll when conditions allow followed by the slitter and I also overseed so that when the cricket start in May they have alevel surface which they seem to like.I have found that this system work very well and to date have had no problams and have found that the few remaining games of football played on that pitch have had no effect on the germination of the grass seed and have a good take by the time they start the cricket season.
Heavy Rolling Outfield
Peter27: interesting. Whatever works for you! Experts, books, advice etc. are just for guidance.
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