FOODforTHOUGHT
When using sand for backfilling land drainage trenches, take care it does not migrate into the pipes. David Shelton goes to work on an egg!
‘Go to work on an egg’ was a slogan used in an advertising campaign by the British poultry industry some years ago, aimed at boosting
consumption of eggs. The message
reached me and eggs are regularly on my menu.
But boiling a newly laid egg to perfection
calls for accurate timing and, hence, it is essential in my household to use an egg timer. Those filled with sand which passes through a small constriction consistently give the best results. So what has this to do with land drainage? Let me explain: Consultants/advisers on sportsturf drainage advocate the use of free-draining sands when backfilling piped drains and sand slits. Indeed the Land Drainage Contractors Association in their guidelines to sportsturf drainage has advocated this for the past 25 years. Over pipes, the widely accepted
techniques of using small-sized gravels
topped with 50-75mm of sand is now being challenged by some who advocate changing the ratios. For example, with a pipe at 600mm depth the accepted system would be to use 550mm of gravel and 50mm of sand, whereas the advocates of change would use 50mm of gravel and 550mm of sand.
And this is where the egg timer can
teach us a lesson. Sand, when very dry, will pass through very small crevices. Certainly, the sands being advocated by the new thinkers will pass quickly through the slots in the land drainage pipes manufactured to BS1 specification For a moment let us consider the
important differences. In what I shall refer to as ‘the accepted system’ - ie, a sand topping of 50-75mm depth over gravel - it is inevitable that some sand will migrate into the gravel below almost immediately. This is a good thing for it enhances the drainage. Very quickly root hairs from the surrounding grasses grow into the sand and stabilise it, after which little movement of sand takes place.
But change the ratios so that 50-75mm
of gravel is over the pipe or sand slit which is then topped-up with sand, and serious problems can arise in very dry weather. There are fewer root hairs at depth to hold the sand, hence the fine sand particles migrate through the gravel into the pipes causing real problems.
We live in an age of rapid technological change and our minds should be receptive to new ideas. But think carefully about their suitability for your particular situation, you wouldn’t want to go to work with egg on you face!
David Shelton heads Shelton Sportsturf Drainage Solutions. The company has been closely involved with the drainage of pitches used for the world cricket series in South Africa in 2003, the West Indies in 2007 and the world football series in South Africa in 2010.
Chris is off to OAKMONT
CHIPPENHAM Golf Club Head Greenkeeper Chris Sealey will be trimming the fairways and raking the bunkers for Tiger Woods this summer at the 112th US Open.
Chris will be part of the volunteer
“It will be a lot more intense than anything I’ve ever had to cope with in England” CHRIS SEALEY
greenkeeping team at Oakmont Golf Club in Pennsylvania, who will be charged with making this year’s event one of the toughest major championships in history. Though he won’t be allowed to ply his trade on the Oakmont greens - that honour is strictly reserved for the home staff - Chris says he is thrilled to be part of one of the world’s biggest sporting events. “I could hardly believe it when I found out I had been selected. It’s a great honour to be asked.
“It’s a completely different world to cutting the greens and fairways here at Chippenham. I just can’t wait for it to start now.’
The US Open is one of golf's four majors and is regarded by professionals and commentators alike as the toughest one to win.
Chris expects to be working day and night in June to make sure this year’s event runs just as smoothly as the last at Winged Foot in New York. “It will be a lot more intense than anything I’ve ever had to cope with in England. At the Open Championship in Britain the volunteers don’t do much more than raking the bunkers, but in America it’s different. We will be cutting and repairing fairways, moving the tee boxes and looking after the rough.”
Chris, 52, began tending greens in 1970 when he was at awarded a three-year apprenticeship at Lansdown Golf Club in Bath. He has since worked at Saltford Golf Club and Chippenham Golf Club and is the current south west chairman of BIGGA.
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