The cricket square
John Bishop (left) and Geoff Calcott
drainage system whatsoever. Fertiliser programmes are in keeping with the performance of the sward. Annual soil tests are carried out in March, both on the cricket square and sportsfields, to establish the nutrient status of the soil profile. Even then, the amount of fertiliser applied is often dictated by the budgets available. The fertiliser regime for the winter pitches and outfield areas begins in August when a 12:6:6 large granular slow release fertiliser is applied at 10 x 25kg bags per pitch. Ideally, this will be followed in March with a spring fertiliser to help restore some much needed growth back to the rugby pitches, which also double up as the cricket outfields. Grass mowing height is kept at between 35-50 mm all year round, mowing as required - usually twice weekly during the growing season and once a week during the winter months.
The Quadraplay is used extensively, a combination of its brush slitter and light roller in varying configurations, which present the pitches for play and helps restore levels after.
The winter pitches, for rugby and
hockey, are marked out weekly using a battery powered spray jet line marker.
During the summer a 6 lane 300-metre running track is laid out and over marked weekly.
The rugby season ends in April and the pitches are immediately given over to cricket. What is remarkable is that, with less than 40% grass cover left on these pitches, and with no topdressing or overseeding ever being implemented during the past nine years, they seem to respond to some tlc and recover to provide an acceptable surface for summer sport. The square is small in comparison to many schools, with just five strips, but that is adequate for the number of fixtures the school plays. A dose of worm killer (carbendazim) is applied in March to keep the surface free from casts. Pre season work begins with 6-8 hours
of rolling with a 30 inch cylinder mower building up the weight with ballast until it is time to use the heavy 1¼ ton cricket roller. Verticutting is carried out fortnightly on the square to keep the sward upright and to allow air circulation around the base of the grass plant. During the playing season the pitch is
prepared on a 10-14 day cycle depending on its condition and the prevailing weather conditions. An old Ransomes Auto Certes is used to prepare
the strips.
Once the cricket season is over, usually early August, a programme of renovations are instigated. Geoff brings in a Graden to help key in the new Kaloam topdressing materials, applying around 5-6 25 kg bags per strip, and then overseeds with a pure ryegrass mixture.
Aeration of the square is usually
carried out three times between October and December with no further aeration until the following autumn. Geoff regularly takes a number of cores
from the square to check on its condition and root performance, taking them from areas between the strips. Visual inspection of the 100mm cores allows judgements to be made on the square’s performance and help diagnose any relevant work that needs to be carried out.
In the last fifteen years the school has only lost a couple of fixtures due to wet ground - a testament to the benefit of having free natural draining soils and the dedication and skill of the groundstaff. Both John and Geoff are proud of the standard of the work they manage to produce under the circumstances and, like most Groundsmen, are always striving to improve their facilities.
33
The rugby pitches
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