WINTER BLUES!
PAUL TATTON, the ECB Cricket Pitches Assessor for Lancashire, says the old idea of ‘putting a cricket square to bed’ just isn’t the case anymore. There is much needed work that can be done throughout the winter to improve facilities for the forthcoming season
C
hanging temperatures, weather fronts, vandalism, no sign of hard frosts, firework debris, foxes and rabbits, not to mention worms and moss; just some of the trials and tribulations that face a cricket Groundsman through the winter months.
I hope, during this article, to help both
the experienced and novice Groundsman to forget that dreaded phrase of putting cricket squares to ‘bed’. It just is not the case. We need to continue with some much needed winter work to keep, and improve, our facilities for the forthcoming playing season. There are plenty of jobs to be done; a major time saving project is to re-identify all the square markings, i.e. location of centre stumps and 10 ft spacing of pitches. This helps with winter presentation and cutting and spiking procedures. Re-measure from stump to stump and check that they are square using 3:4:5
74
(Pythagoras therum) method, which helps you establish a right angle triangle to square off the square. Little plastic umbrella pegs are ideal for this as continually topping up with paint markings can be repetitive in wet weather. Be careful to remove them when machinery is being used, they can obviously damage cutting cylinders for example.
It is good practice to erect some sort of
protective fencing around the square, which not only protects it from animals but deters people from trampling all over it and disturbing the renovations. Fencing off the square will be dependent on your own requirements. However, the provision of a good rabbit proof perimeter fence will help prevent damage by rabbits, foxes, badgers and deer.
Mowing: keep both the square and outfield topped off when appropriate, and when conditions allow. Height of cut
for square between 10-12mm, and outfield 15-20mm. Too many clubs neglect their outfields, often leaving them alone until the spring. This is poor practice. They should receive regular maintenance regimes in the form of aeration, brushing/harrowing and mowing to keep in good condition. The square will usually be compacted to depth after a typical season’s play and it is essential to decompact our squares during the winter months. The lack of heavy frosts these days means that there is no natural heaving of the soils, so it is important to undertake a programme of aeration using solid tines with the aim to spike on a monthly frequency. Throughout the winter until February, but no later; spiking when the ground is drying will leave you with tine holes that may affect the performance of your square at a later date.
Begin spiking as soon as there is
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84 |
Page 85 |
Page 86 |
Page 87 |
Page 88 |
Page 89 |
Page 90 |
Page 91 |
Page 92 |
Page 93 |
Page 94 |
Page 95 |
Page 96 |
Page 97 |
Page 98 |
Page 99 |
Page 100 |
Page 101 |
Page 102 |
Page 103 |
Page 104 |
Page 105 |
Page 106 |
Page 107 |
Page 108 |
Page 109 |
Page 110 |
Page 111 |
Page 112 |
Page 113 |
Page 114 |
Page 115