Summer Sports - Cricket
The first Super Sopper was acquired from the Oval in 1992, which was one was the first to be imported into the UK back in 1976 by Harry Brind
Thatched pavilion complete with red telephone box
The chalk underlying the soil dictates his maximum depth of spiking (150mm), so more emphasis and time is devoted to spiking the top 100mm on a regular basis to help improve surface porosity. However, last winter, Simon resorted to using a mole plough to help further improve the drainage capabilities of his outfield. With the ground set in the Chiltern Hills, it
tends to have its own microclimate, resulting in cooler temperatures caused by wind chills, later frosts and windier conditions. The strong winds play havoc with the raised covers and handling of the flat sheets. Simon has devised deep pegging systems to secure site screens, raised covers and the use of iron bars to weigh down the flat sheets. Like most groundsmen, he constantly keeps an eye on the weather radar to see what is predicted to be coming his way. However, there are many times when rain has been forecast but, due to the windy conditions, it has passed them by.
Last year’s end of season renovations for the square was centred on a heavy scarification programme using his faithful tractor mounted Graden. Simon scarified in four directions, going deeper with each pass, starting at 3mm, 6mm, 9mm and finally with the last pass set at 12mm. All the surface debris was cleaned up using an Amazone
Flail collector, and then oversown with two bags of Barenbrug Extreme grass seed. Over four tonnes of Ongar loam, a heavy dressing (20 bags per pitch) was then applied and brushed/looted in. Finally, a bag of 6:9:6 NPK granular fertiliser was applied and then covered with germination sheets. Both the tennis and croquet lawns are
treated in the same way, however the croquet lawns are topdressed with sand and the tennis courts with tennis loam from Binders instead of the heavier cricket loam. Once the seed has germinated, the sward is cut using pedestrian rotaries. Spring preparations are governed by the
colder weather conditions. Simon likes to get an early application of worm suppressant, followed with a dose of fertiliser, with the aim to get some decent growth before commencing his preseason rolling programme. After reading about the Cranfield rolling
project, Simon has, like many groundsmen, reduced the time spent rolling his square. He usually starts with a couple of passes with the Allett mower, followed by four passes with a one tonne roller and then finishing off with four passes with a two tonne roller, all spread over a four week period and all done in the traditional Union Jack pattern. It was interesting to learn Simon’s pitch
” Even the nets area provides lovely views
The drive up to the ground. Grassed areas are also maintained by Simon and his team
Remove that thatch!
Thatch is without doubt one of the most common problems on golf courses and sports surfaces – but no problem for a Graden! These machines are proven to penetrate through the upper surface to remove thatch and increase drainage. Available as a pedestrian unit or PTO driven up to 2M wide to cover larger areas.
Find out more about the Graden Products today. Designed for durability 01428 661222 |
www.charterhouse-tm.co.uk PC JUNE/JULY 2015 I 73
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