before, the day after or even on the morning of a match if I have to. It’s design and speed allow me to use it whenever I need to, making it a very handy machine to have.” Both the arena and training ground surfaces are watered with mains water and rain water. The latter is collected off one of the grandstand roofs into several tanks, which can hold up to 300,000 litres. This harvesting has led to greater efficiency. The irrigation control system used on the playing surfaces at both the stadium and the training ground is an old and simple Hardie system with a digital key pad. “I’ve thought about updating it, but everyone knows how to work this one” says Dave, “and it’s still operating well, so there’s no real need at the moment.”
The system controls fourteen stations of four hydraulic drive Toro 640 sprinklers, which spread over both the training and stadium surfaces. They have a rubber cap to protect both the sprinkler and the player and, so far, there has not been an issue where a sprinkler has interfered with match play. “The Toro 640s are proven” says Dave. “They have been here as long as I have, and there has been no real major issue with them.” There is no set schedule when it comes to the fertilising programme. It is indexed to events, weather and bi- monthly soil tests. Both liquid and granular fertilisers are applied, with a tendency to use more liquid fertiliser during the cooler months due to its quicker uptake by the turf.
Dave takes a more biological approach with the use of organic based fertilisers and biological inoculants. “We use chemicals when we have to, but we’ve had success with biological products.” he states.
Diseases which are preventively sprayed for are Pythium and Rhizoctonia, with the root-borne diseases posing a greater threat, with Dave adding, “Once you lose your roots, they don’t just recover, you have to wait for the new growth”. Several years ago nematodes became a problem, but at the moment the nematode count is at a manageable level and not creating any issues due, in the main, to the use of biological stimulants.
Some of the challenges faced by the groundstaff are the preparation and
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