November Rugby Diary 2013

November can often be a challenging month, contending with an ever changing weather front; the recent mild wet weather has increased the incidence of disease, with leaf spot and red thread showing on many pitches. November weather can also bring cooler air temperatures, frost, snow and heavy periods of rain.

The demands on the pitches remain the same whilst the day length for doing the work is shorter with the clocks going back. Many clubs also organise bonfire events, which often leads to a lot of work for groundstaff, who are usually responsible for building the bonfire and clearing up afterwards.

Playing surfaces are more prone to damage in the winter months when ground conditions tend to remain in a wet state. Also, the onset of frosty weather can affect maintenance regimes. Playing on frosted and flooded pitches will only cause damage to the playing surface. Allow for the frosts to clear and allow time for the saturated pitches to drain before use, or indeed using equipment on the pitch.

You will soon lose grass cover if you play on wet playing surfaces. Grass growth is slowing down due to the low soil and air temperatures. Grass struggles to grow when temperatures drop down below 5 Degrees C, and recovery after damage is limited.

Keep up your weekly routines of pre and post match maintenance - mowing, marking out, divot replacement and brushing. Presentation of the pitch is important. Use string lines to help keep straight lines and mowing bands.

It will be a good practice, if you have the time, to brush/knock off any heavy early morning dews that form on the playing surfaces; this will help reduce the incidence of disease.

Keep a check on pitch equipment, flags, post protectors and ensure they are fit for purpose. Remember to keep a good supply of marking materials and keep the marker clean after use.

RFU guidelines stipulate that the accepted heights of cut during the winter months should be maintained at between 30mm to 90mm.Many junior club pitches tend to have too much grass on their pitches.

I often see rugby pitches that are not cut on a regular basis and the grass length often exceeds 125mm - far too long, thus it becomes weak, straggly and often flattened after play or training.

Most senior clubs now maintain their pitches between 30-40mm, giving them a faster surface to play on. Ensure your mowers have sharp, well-adjusted blades and that there are no oil leaks.

In recent years, we have seen the popularity of rotary mowers increase with manufacturers offering a wide range of mower choices with roller rotary decks delivering a fine cut and presentation.

Grooming/ verticutting - as required - Grooming and verticutting are operations that remove unwanted side growth and reduce the amount of debris in the sward. These operations are completed in conjunction with your mowing regimes. Brushing the pitch in the opposite direction prior to cut will produce a cleaner finish and a healthier sward when used in partnership with verticutting.

Generally, few fertiliser applications are made during the winter months, as plant growth has slowed down. However, some groundstaff may apply a dose of liquid iron to colour up and provide some strength to the grass plant during the winter months.

Useful Information for Mowing

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	Leeds Rhinos on the charge		Rugby Posts

The presentation of the pitch is important. If it looks tidy and well presented, with bands and stripes, it often inspires the players to perform and, more importantly, gives them a safe, consistent surface.

Soil based pitches, generally the heavy clay and clay loam ones, will be susceptible to surface damage during wet weather, especially when the top 100mm becomes saturated.

Soils, when saturated, lose their stability and strength. Damage from scrummage and line out play are the main causes of damage on rugby pitches during wet weather periods. The severity of the damage will be dependent on the soil type and the ability of the top 100mm to drain quickly.

It is important to repair any damage to pitches after play, replace large divots. The use of a brush / harrow or, if you have one, a SISIS Quadraplay Unit will help restore the playing surface. The added benefit of the Quadraplay unit is that it can do four operations in one pass (brush, rake spike and roll) leaving a well presented pitch.

Training areas : try and rotate areas where the teams train, this will help reduce wear and loss of grass cover.

Check and ensure goal posts are safe and secure and that you have the appropriate post protector pads fitted for matches / training matches.

Useful Information for Presention

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	On the wing at Twickenham		Football Pitch / Rugby Pitch Grass Seed

Line marking:- Check with the sports governing body (RFU) for any amendments to the laws and markings of the pitch. Care should be taken when initially marking out new lines, ensuring that they are true, straight and measured correctly, using the 3,4,5 method to achieve accurate angles. A selection of line marking paints and markers are available in the Pitchcare shop.

If the grass is maintained at a height above 50mm, it may be better to mow the lines with a pedestrian rotary mower. This helps define the lines and prepare the surface for marking.

There are a number of machines available for marking out lines - wheel to wheel, spray jet, dry liners and aerosol markers. The choice will be dependent on cost, efficiency and the type of line you want. Use string lines to help keep lines straight.

Keeping your marking equipment in good order and clean will help you produce better quality lines; dirty and unkempt markers tend to malfunction, drip and leak.

Useful Information for Line Marking

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	Graco - what's in a name?		Line Marking Machines

To help keep the top 100mm free draining, a programme of surface aeration is necessary. This is achieved by regular spiking with solid/slit tines to a depth of 150mm or more when conditions allow.

There are other specialist machines that can help with improving surface drainage, for example the Blec Groundbreaker and the versatile vertidrain machines that are now available. In recent years, we have seen the introduction of linear aerators, machines that cut a slot through the soil profile, usually at 200mm centres.

Regular autumn aeration provides air space for the roots to expand into and the plant to breathe. Achieving an improved root system will stand you in good stead for the coming winter months.

Inspect drainage outfalls, channels and ditches. Ensure that they are working.

Useful Information for Aeration

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With the recent rainfall, we are now seeing an increase in worm activity due to the moist soil conditions and the abundance of organic matter in the sward.

Earthworms can survive in a wide range of conditions, but most earthworm activity is dependent on the quality of food available. Worms like plenty of Organic Matter (OM), therefore greens with a high thatch problem tend to encourage worm activity.

Soil pH also affects where earthworms are found. In strongly acid or alkaline soils, earthworms are rarely seen (pH less than 4.5 or greater than 8). The soil texture will also affect the number of earthworms found; they prefer clay soils and are less frequently found in sandy soils.

Worm activity inevitability leads to worm casts appearing on the playing surface. These worm casts can be very problematic; casts tend to smear the surface, which in turn can affect surface water drainage capacity as well as providing a seed bed for weed germination.

Leaf clearance will also be a priority. Wet leaves left on playing surfaces will eventually cause problems; they will affect line marking and, if left on the surface for too long, will cause the turf to become yellow and even begin to die. The use of blowers and sweepers will help keep surfaces clean.

Diseases can still be prevalent in November due to the cool, wet ground conditions, and particularly with heavy dews on the playing surfaces. It is important that groundstaff remove these dews to prevent disease attack. Many stadium clubs are experiencing outbreaks of leaf spot and red thread. A dose of approved chemical fungicide will help control and prevent the spread of these diseases.

A wetting agent is sometimes used with the fungicide to help it penetrate deep enough into the soil profile. With the sun now lower in the sky, shade problems in stadium environments tend to be increased. The sun tends to cast longer shadows that often remain on the ground for long periods. Shaded areas tend to take longer to warm up and dry out, which in turn may affect maintenance operations and playability.

Brush or sweep daily to remove dew and remove surface debris. Using a brush or a SISIS quadraplay will restore levels and produce striping or banding aesthetics.

Useful Information for Pest and Disease

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	Return of the worm ...		Professional Fungicides