August Rugby Diary 2023

General Maintenance

• Maintain sward height at 30mm-75mm; the top height will cushion heavy falls on any hard ground.
• Mowing will increase as soil and air temperatures continue to stimulate grass growth
• Ensure that all areas are watered uniformly to promote healthy growth. Irrigation will be a priority, especially if maintaining newly sown or turfed areas. It is important to ensure that the water gets down into the rootzone to encourage deep rooting. Allowing areas to dry out can lead to problems of dry patch, a condition that prevents water infiltration into the soil, thus forming areas of non-uniform turf quality.
• Linear aerators now offer alternative methods of aeration to the traditional solid tine spiker and hollow core spiker, which can install a continuous slit 10mm wide 200mm deep at 200mm centres. The machine has also been upgraded to infill with kiln dried sand
• Brush to remove dew and remove surface debris. Using a brush will restore levels and produce striping or banding aesthetics
• Pre-season training will be well underway, with club coaches demanding marked out areas for practices. Ensure you have enough marking materials and an efficient, quality line marker for carrying out these tasks
• Check with your relevant governing body for any amendments to the laws and markings of the pitch
• Care should be taken when initially marking out new lines, ensuring that they are true, straight and measured correctly, using the 3,4,5 method to achieve accurate angles

The following points are essential requirements to help achieve accurate linemarking:

• A reliable, accurate linemarking machine
• Appropriate, approved marking fluid
• Careful planning and preparation (setting out lines)

Pre match inspections:

Pitch surface, linemarkings and posts.

Keep heavy wear areas roped off to stop unwanted early use.

Tidy up the edges of the pitch, strim around advertising signs and crowd barriers. Presentation on the pitch will be let down badly by unkempt edges.

Agronomy

As we wave goodbye to July, we must prepare for August, the starting point for shorter days and cooler nights.

July has been unforgivingly wet in some areas, which is a stark contrast to the drought conditions we were experiencing in June, where on average there was 42mm of rain compared to July, which in some areas has had on average 98mm of rainfall, with some seeing over 100mm! This has made July a tough month for turf managers, as we move from one stress (drought) to another stress (saturation point). Initially, following June, the rain was welcomed and much needed. However, it has felt like it hasn’t stopped in some parts. Anyone with annual meadow grass will have undoubtedly seen how this has struggled for most of the year to date, as it has rarely been out of stressful conditions and has definitely not been in that ‘happy place’. It has had to deal with wet, cold, drought, heat and now wet again.

When dealing with the weather, we now seem to face extremes more than anything else, flipping from one to another. These extreme weather conditions put extra stress onto the plant on top of the stress already present from the intensive management carried out to provide excellent playing surfaces. This can be the tipping point for pathogen populations to increase and disease incidence to occur. The sudden flip from dry to wet can also suit the development of turf diseases.

The start of August looks like a continuation of what we have had in July, rain! It is forecast for the first half of the month with improved weather to follow, although still a scattering of showers, temperatures will remain around 20°C for the majority of the month. The continued rainfall and environmental conditions will require careful management in relation to nutrition management to counteract any losses through the profile. Disease monitoring will also be required throughout this period.

Plant stress

Applications of biostimulants to support existing nutritional inputs will play a valuable role to mitigate the effects of stress. Seaweed will elicit important beneficial defensive and stress responses. Amino acids also play an important role in abiotic stress tolerance, helping plants to prepare for and cope with additional stresses such as varying changes in temperature and moisture. They are also excellent at ensuring nutrients get into the plant, therefore through dry periods where every part of the product counts, they can be a useful addition to tank mixes to ensure efficient uptake. Fulvic and Humic acids are a kind of plant growth regulator, which can promote growth and play an important role in fighting against drought, improve plant stress resistance and improve turf quality. Where possible, adjustments to maintenance practices, such as raising the height of cut and reducing cutting frequency can also play a major role in reducing stress and maintaining good overall plant health.

Plant stress

Applications of biostimulants to support existing nutritional inputs will play a valuable role to mitigate the effects of stress. Seaweed will elicit important beneficial defensive and stress responses. Amino acids also play an important role in abiotic stress tolerance, helping plants to prepare for and cope with additional stresses such as varying changes in temperature and moisture. They are also excellent at ensuring nutrients get into the plant, therefore through dry periods where every part of the product counts, they can be a useful addition to tank mixes to ensure efficient uptake. Fulvic and Humic acids are a kind of plant growth regulator, which can promote growth and play an important role in fighting against drought, improve plant stress resistance and improve turf quality. Where possible, adjustments to maintenance practices, such as raising the height of cut and reducing cutting frequency can also play a major role in reducing stress and maintaining good overall plant health.

Renovations

August, for some sports, can be a key time for carrying out renovations or for planning upcoming renovation work. Weather conditions can be ideal, with good temperatures and soil moisture available for getting recovery and establishment of seed. Different sports will have varying maintenance practices, however having set objectives planned out will increase the probability of a successful renovation. Ensuring the right seed cultivars are selected for the intended usage will increase the probability for success. If removing organic matter to improve playing conditions and rootzone characteristics, carefully selecting the most suitable method of removal is important to ensure the desired outcome is achieved efficiently, whilst removing the maximum amount with minimal disruption to playing conditions.

Disease

As we gradually transition from summer into autumn, where conditions can be cooler with more surface moisture present, conditions become suitable for the development of turf diseases. At a time when growth is still strong, utilising products to aid in the reduction of disease outbreaks can be challenging, particularly in terms of getting longevity out of product applications. However, making applications at the right time, although potentially not long lasting, can make a big difference in reducing disease. Moisture management is key, and reducing leaf wetness, when morning dews start to appear, will have a significant impact on the potential development of disease. Key diseases to be mindful of at this time of year are Microdochium patch, Anthracnose and Leaf spot.

Pests

Worm activity may increase with soil moisture levels. There is still no legally registered product for the control of worms, therefore management practices must rely upon cultural methods.

Cultural and biological controls in the form of Entomopathogenic nematodes are the only legally authorised controls available. This biological control method requires warmth and moisture in the soil to be most effective and, as such, this time of year provides an ideal window. Targeting larvae when they are small and susceptible gives the nematodes the best chance of success. Useful information can be found on this link Sportnem T Leatherjacket Killer (5000 m2)

Tom Wood
B.Sc (Hons) | BASIS | FACTS

Machinery

• Keep your machinery in tip top condition
• Grease where you find a grease nipple, oil where you see a metallic moving part, check the oil, check the water
• Clean it when you’ve finished