Winter Sports - Football


I like to keep the grass working for its water and nutrients. If you make it too easy, then I believe the plants won’t root as deep, and you only suffer for that in the winter


mowing in the summer months, though during the winter months the pitch is almost exclusively cut by hand mowers. I am fortunate enough to have a verti‐cut cassette for the G860, which allows me to groom the surface, keep it cleaner and control our levels of organic in the surface. This is done at least monthly and, in the summer, it will be done even more frequently, weather permitting.


As a contractor, I have my own verti‐drains ‐ a 7521 and a 7316. These are put to good use on the pitch and it is aerated every month/six weeks, depending on the fixture list. Whilst I am a big appreciator of keeping


pitches open, I am also mindful of aerating too heavily too close to fixtures, because it can cause us to destabilise the surface too much.


I also have my own sprayer. Weeds are sprayed at least once a year. Worms have become a big problem after the removal of carbendazim, however we are currently trialing a new product. This summer we trialed Primo Maxx to help the pitch develop, and it really made a massive difference. I was amazed by the effect it had and will certainly be experimenting more to get our happy medium between budgets and inputs of chemicals.


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Overseeding is generally budget‐dependent, and frequently we won’t see much more than a couple of bags a year other than at renovations, but when conditions and finances allow, I do like to drill seed into the pitch in the spring to bring the pitch back after the winter.


Do you have specific tasks for specific staff or is it an 'all hands to the pump' approach?


Only two hands ... lots of pumps. Where does presentation rank?


Presentation for the club is key. The club are proud of having one of the best pitches in the league and like to see it kept that way.


PC FEBRUARY/MARCH 2018 I 65


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