Technical
MONTHLY Diaries
February
February is a good time to carry out some aeration works (when conditions allow, but not during frost), thereby opening up the soil profile, alleviating any compaction problems and, at the same time, keeping the surface free draining.
BOWLS
AS a new year begins, it is perhaps a good time to reflect on what you achieved last year, and then plan what you want to achieve in the coming year. Keeping records and monitoring the performance of your turf facility should be encouraged. How can we be expected to know how to improve the condition of the sward if we do not recognise or understand its current state?
Always keep records of the work you have carried out and the materials/products applied. Also, take the opportunity to take soil samples to monitor soil nutrient status and level of soil pH. When taking core samples, you can also keep an eye on thatch content and soil moisture content.
To help you remember and record the facts use a digital camera.
January
If you have had a lot of snow, keep an eye out for disease (snow mould). Snow can act as an incubator and induce the incidence of disease. Treat with an appropriate fungicide.
It is important to ensure you are carrying out your daily brushing to keep the surface clean and, at the same time, removing any early morning dews. Keeping the playing surface clean and dry helps prevent disease and
Sarrel rollers should be used to aerate the playing surface (top 30mm), and a deeper tined aerator to relieve compaction to the base of the rootzone layer.
Care should be taken not to go too deep. Some bowling greens have been constructed with shallow rootzones, often less than 200mm in depth. You could do untold damage or begin to bring up base debris or, even worse, damage sub surface drainage systems if aerating too deep.
Soil temperatures should begin to rise towards the end of February/early March, enabling the grass plant to make use of any fertilisers being applied. The grass plant’s transpiration/respiration rates need to be active to initiate movement of soluble solutions from the soil into and through the plant's tissue.
To ensure you are applying the correct amount and balance of fertilisers for your turf, it would be useful to have a soil analysis undertaken, which will give you a full nutrient analysis of your soil’s requirements. Based on these results, an appropriate fertiliser programme can be initiated for your facility.
The PSD Analysis will identify the ratio of these and confirm soil type, thus giving you a better understanding of what soil you are dealing with.
Also, you can establish the amount of organic matter content, as well as soil nutrient status and soil pH.
CRICKET
JANUARY'S weather can be fairly unpredictable, with snow, rain, along with freezing temperatures that are not always conducive to your planned winter maintenance regimes. Many grounds may well be saturated, preventing you from doing any work to the square or the outfield. Clay soils at this time of the year can become plastic (destructured), especially after a lot of heavy rain. Whilst in this state, the square is prone to damage from foot and mechanical activities. It is usually best to stay off the square and refrain from doing any work until it has drained and the surface has dried.
January
On your return after the Christmas break, you are likely to find you may have accumulated some surface debris on the square (leaves, litter etc). It is important to remove them, as the sward will not be able to survive and will be subject to lack of light and could die.
Many clubs often erect temporary fences around their squares to protect them. It is important to ensure the fence remains in a safe and effective condition.
If you are not able to work on the square, you could spend some time on the outfield. Regular brushing will help remove dew as well
Pitchcare’s online monthly diaries are offered as a general overview of the work required at that time of year. Here, we offer a summary of the work to be carried out in January and February..
For more up-to-date information visit
www.pitchcare.com where you will find details for all sports
contamination. This can be achieved by using brushes and dragmats. Also, brushing of the green will help the sward stand upright allowing good air movement around the grass plant.
134 PC DECEMBER/JANUARY 2012
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 |
Page 116 |
Page 117 |
Page 118 |
Page 119 |
Page 120 |
Page 121 |
Page 122 |
Page 123 |
Page 124 |
Page 125 |
Page 126 |
Page 127 |
Page 128 |
Page 129 |
Page 130 |
Page 131 |
Page 132 |
Page 133 |
Page 134 |
Page 135 |
Page 136 |
Page 137 |
Page 138 |
Page 139 |
Page 140 |
Page 141 |
Page 142 |
Page 143 |
Page 144 |
Page 145 |
Page 146 |
Page 147 |
Page 148 |
Page 149 |
Page 150 |
Page 151 |
Page 152 |
Page 153 |
Page 154 |
Page 155 |
Page 156