Technical available: T
here are some very basic aims when renovating a cricket square and these hold true no matter where the square, the standard of cricket played on it or the resources
- Clean the surface of any unwanted organic matter prior to topdressing
- Re-instate the sward and grass coverage with the desirable species
- Level the surface for the following season
… apart from that, anything else goes! There is no such thing as a standard renovation, so beware preconceptions about what you ‘should’ do.
Your aims, and how you get there are totally dependent on your square and your resources.
Take some time to examine your square and decide on the best way to approach renovations.
First, identify problems prior to renovations, then decide on an appropriate control method/approach
A visual examination of the surface is simply not good enough and you will need to remove cores in order to examine the soil profile and see what is underneath! If you do not have access to a corer, then use a knife to remove a slice of soil (though you really need to look a minimum of 100mm down). The three most common problems which should be targeted during renovations are:
Common problems on cricket squares: 1) Thatch/fibre
Thatch is the number one contributor to low, slow wickets
Thatch is easy to control if the right techniques are applied
There should be NO thatch on a cricket square
Why is thatch such a bad thing on cricket squares?
- Deadens/reduces bounce and pace - Soft and spongy surface
A visual examination of the surface is simply not good enough and you will need to remove cores in order to examine the soil profile and see what is underneath!
”
- Ball can ‘tear’ the surface or scar the surface leading to unpredictable bounce and ball direction
- Acts like a sponge, meaning a wetter square
- Can hold water and fertiliser at surface, meaning shallow rooting
- More prone to disease - More prone to pest invasion
- Annual Meadowgrass (Poa annua) thrives in thatch
- Thatch = Poa and Poa = Thatch
- Topdressing over thatch leads to buried thatch and fibrous profile = even more spongy surface
- Buried thatch causes a weak point or organic layer in the soil profile, leading to the surface detaching from below when the prepared wicked dries and the soil shrinks, causing soil fracture in future years
What is Thatch?
- Thatch is a tightly intermingled layer of living and dead stems, leaves and roots which accumulates between the layer of actively growing grass and the soil underneath
- Thatch accumulates when the production of dead organic matter exceeds the rate at
which it decomposes - Lignin is the biggest cause of thatch.
- Lignin is a tough, ‘woody’ type material which abounds in the older, tougher parts of the grass plant. It is also the main component of straw
- Leaf tips have low levels of lignin.
- Some grasses cause more thatch than others: annual meadow grass is the number one culprit, ryegrass is comparatively good
- Unfortunately, on a square, there is a conflict between the needs of cricket and good turf management - the heavy, compact soil does not encourage thatch decomposition
- Therefore, cricket groundsmen rely heavily on mechanical removal
What is litter?
- Litter is the term often used to describe loose, dead organic matter found ‘littering’ the sward. In time, this will pack down and become thatch
- Litter is easily identified because close examination shows brown and yellow leaves lying amongst the living leaves
- This can be removed easily using a powered brush or verticutter
- Regular removal of litter is the best way to prevent thatch build up and reduces the amount of scarifying needed at the end of the season
What is Fibre?
- Fibre is an ambiguous term used to describe several different phenomena, however:
- Fibre is buried thatch and root material intermingled with the soil, sometimes known as matting
- Fibre drastically increases the organic content of the soil and makes it ‘spongy’
- Fibre is often said to resemble coconut matting
- Removing fibre needs heavy scarification using a powerful scarifier
PC AUGUST/SEPTEMBER 2014 I 119
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