Let There Be Light!

NOV 18'

Let There Be Light!

Grow lights have been a valuable tool in stadiums over the last 15 years and we have been adding rigs to the Portman Rd since 2013, with our latest addition in November.

Having done much research across the three main manufacturers to get the best value for money, we decided to purchase a new LU120 from SGL. We also looked at TLS and MLR which would have also done a good job for us. 

TLS offered the same SqM coverage but with 18 bulbs to the SGL 24 and MLR offered two rigs with 12 in each rig covering 160SqM. 

The MLR option was of interest to us as we could split the two rigs up if necessary, covering 80SqM each. although the light intensity was diluted more over the extra 40SqM, I believe it would have been adequate to maintain grass coverage where we needed it. 

MLR are reviewing the design and build of this rig and when this has happened, I will be very interested in looking again and believe they will become very competitive in the grow lights market.

LU120

Every season the area in front of the dugouts loses a large percentage of grass coverage. The main reasons for this is lack of light, poorer soils in that area and increased foot traffic during games because of where it is. The LU120 is now positioned in this area and the expectation is that we will retain considerably more grass. We have already noticed that the light, with 1000w bulbs in dries the soil out a lot more quickly than the 600w MU360 which is based further along the wing.

Aeration with all three of the aerators has been taken place across all the sites this month to continue the battle with what has been a very wet month. Along with the aeration, we have been using penetrant wetting agents on some pitches to help pull water through the soil profile. extra care needs to be made on the stadium pitch that the top doesn't dry out too much, which can lead to the surface losing stability.

The pitch cover was used for the first time this season at the end of November for the Bristol City game to keep the 11mm of rain which fell off the pitch the night before the game. This did reduce our time we had to work on the pitch to turn it around from the Sky game on the previous Friday, but better that way and manage the rainfall.

We are fortunate in Ipswich to get half of the average rainfall for the UK, but it doesn't feel like it sometimes! In November, we had 25% more than our average but below overage over the previous 6 months, so it was time for natures payback...

During the Autumn, we usually suffered from, what I believe is called "Ghost Grass". I understand that it something to do with the plant not being able to control the production of gibberellic acid, therefore promoting growth. this is possibly some sort of fungal infection. The plant leaves are soft (probably due to cell elongation) and they do not get cut when the pitch is cut with a cylinder mower. The only way to remove them is cutting with a rotary mower. 

Ghost grass on 3 of the training pitches

Now that that the soil temperatures have dropped, we are currently at about 7 deg, the pitches have slowed in growth considerably and we are only cutting to present for matches and a tidy up when required. it is noticeable the extra growth under the stadium grow lights though, and showing a more dense plant. 

It goes to show how important the grow lights are, however many are owned, we always need more to maintain grass coverage in the high wear areas. We are now in our sixth year of not turfing the goal mouths at the stadium, which we will endeavour to continue this record through the season.

Disease Pressure

October 2018

Disease pressure

Now the days are getting shorter, it's getting cooler and a lot more moisture hanging around the turf.  We aim to avoid disease outbreaks in the plant at this time of year to prevent needing to spray chemicals to control it.

knocking the dew off the turf first thing in the morning is a must. This is done with a 2.5 meter dew brush on the stadium pitch and by either a tractor mounted brush or by pulling a rope across the pitches at the training ground. if dew is left, then it creates warm, moist conditions for disease to break out.
We have had disease (Microdochium patch) outbreaks on four pitches so far during October. It is expected, but we are working towards minimising them as much as possible. three of the pitches were sprayed with fungicide and the other with nutrients to help the plant fight the disease on its own. This pitch (pitch 4) has been chemical free since March 2017. The hope is we will learn to deal with disease attacks without reaching for the chemical bottle across the whole site. This might mean we have to be tolerant to some disease scarring on the turf at times but it's weighing up the negatives and the benefits.
We are also sharpening our own mower blades using Bernhard grinders and we do this as often as necessary to keep a clean cut. Mowing with dull blades tears at the plant leaf and leaves it vulnerable to infection.

An advanced attack of Microdchium patch from back in 2012

Off pitch area of pitch 2 (2018)

Annual Meadow Grass (Poa annua) showing up on pitch 6. 

We are suffering more the average with the grass species Poa annua on one of our pitches this year. I'm sure it isn't a coincidence that this pitch wasn't sprayed off with glyphosate before renovation. It was also heavily watered during the summer heat, encouraging the Poa annua species. It can stand out by being a lighter shade of green and shows up clearly in the morning dew...

We are still continuing with the aeration. The stadium pitch has been aerated twice this mont, once with the verti drain with 3/4 inch tines and also with the weidenmann G8xi with 12mm tines. the only difference to the aeration program from the stadium to the training ground is the addition of groundbreaking in season is not carried out at the stadium. Although it would be beneficial, our old Blec Groundbreaker we have leaves lines which is not acceptable for the stadium pitch. 

We have probably made the last Primo Maxx application as we will spray up until the temperatures start to drop below double figures. Growth has slowed considerably in the last couple of weeks as we head towards winter. We will continue with our bio sprays of sugars/carbs and seaweed every other week.

We are also spraying Clear cast, which is a sulphur based product to deter the worms from surfacing,thus creating a cast. We have had mixed results, but since carbendazim was banned last year our options are limited. We will also be adding a little penetrant wetting agent to help pull the water through the profile. We have used this before with unexpectedly effective results but drying the surface out too much. This time a quarter rate will be applied and it will be monitored from there.

The last U23 game to take place at the stadium is at the beginning of November, then except for the U18 cup games, it will be clear for first team use only.

We have been very lucky so far with the weather going through autumn and keeping our fingers crossed we get into the new year without any weather which is too harsh.



I wish every month was September!

September 2018

I wish every month was September!

September and October are my favourite months of the year because the renovated pitches are more mature and stronger, the temperatures have dropped a little and there is no need to chase around with irrigation to keep the turf alive.

At this time, a big emphasis is put on aeration. We continue with our regular programme of 20mm deep soilid tines with the verti drain 7516 and 12mm solid tines at 7-8 inches with the weidenmann GXi8 after a pass of the 1m Blec Groundbreaker, which really shakes things about. It takes more than a day to get across a pitch, but it is worth it for the benefits of aeration and drainage, especially on the pitches which need a little more help. 

During September we have had the MacLeod cover system inspected by Sports & Stadia, with some very useful tips . Despite knowing the cover for 8 years and there being one at Portman Road for almost 20 years , you always learn something new and find a better way of doing things. Earlier in the year, when “the beast from the east “ was with us , we had some of the worst conditions that there has been for many years and the cover kept the pitch frost free throughout.
There is a mains gas supply installed behind the south goal which connects directly to the heater unit where we are able to pump heat via vents along the central tube the length of the pitch. By shutting off vent outlets along the tube, it is possible to push the hot air evenly to the north end of the pitch .

MacLeod cover inspection September 2018

We are continuing to feed the pitches as much as they require, going with the weather conditions rather than the date as we are still getting good day time temperatures, although at night it is starting to cool off a little. The soil holds onto the temperature well in the autumn but will drop off quicker when we start to get a run of frosts, which I’m sure will be some time off yet in the south east.  

The bio-stimulant and trace element fortnightly sprays will continue throughout, with Primo Maxx growth regulator is still being applied for the time being, whilst the temperatures are still with us.

Good conditions during September

The stadium pitch has performed well during September hosting 5 matches including two U23 fixtures. Extra help from the Groundstaff from the Training Ground is required when we have a 1st team fixture on the Saturday and an U23 on the Monday. Although not ideal, it is better to fit in our five compulsory Stadium fixtures whilst the turf has some recovery time before the Winter. Much of the battle is getting the correct amount of moisture in the pitch for the game as this has a direct impact on the surface damage we take.

The October international break gives us an 18 day gap in fixtures at Portman Rd, which will give us the chance to carry out some verti cutting, deep aeration and liquid applications of a wetting agent, Primo Maxx and our bio-stimulant mix.

A New Season

August 2018

A New Season

 

As the new football season begins, the hot summer starts to cool and gives some rest bite from heavy watering. Although keeping the turf watered is essential, by doing this can also cause some side effects...

 

 Now the renovated pitches are approximately three months old and doing well after the grow in, some of the consequences of heavy watering are beginning to show. We are seeing a little more Poa Annua grass species among the ryegrass than usual. It's no surprise and something we have to battle to some extent every year.

Annual Meadow Grass (Poa Annua) in some training pitches

We are now verti cutting every couple of weeks to clean any seed heads out and applying a silicon based product to the turf to also help to stand the leaf and seed head up so the mowers can remove the seed. Having poor characteristics and performance for sport, it is important to control The Poa from spreading.

We have also seen an increase in Knotgrass weed, which I expect is due to the unusual weather we have had this summer. As a rule, we don't spray selective weedkillers, but as we walk over the pitches so much knocking back after training, we can hand weed them before they become too much of a problem. Notice the large tap root on the photo. We have had some reaching 10 inches down!

Knotgrass weed

Another consequence of heavy watering is black layer. Water fills the pore spaces instead of air and anaerobic conditions are present producing hydrogen sulphide gas, which is poisonous to the roots. Smelling the soil can detect anaerobic activity which will give an eggy smell, rather than a clean soil which will smell sweeter. Increased aeration and back to a normal watering regime will likely solve this. We tend to aerate approximately every 14 days alternating between 12mm tines at 7-9 inches and 20mm tines to 10-13 inches.

Soil Profile of Pitch 6 (training ground match pitch) showing a little blacklayer

During the very hot weather we held off applying the Primo Maxx growth retardant as it can stress the turf more if it is under some sort of other stress. This year our first applications were at the end of July and we shall carry this on until the temperatures drop below double figure, usually sometime in October.
Our Primo Maxx programme has slightly changed from one monthly application of 0.8 l/h to fortnightly applications of 0.6 l/h. This is with a view of keeping the product consistently active in the plant instead of it wearing off after about 3 weeks the giving it another hit on the fourth week. Although we have increased the monthly amount by a third, we haven't noticed any major reduction in growth, but certainly a more consistent growth.

First league game versus Blackburn Rovers

We are currently playing U23's fixtures at Portman Rd, with the plan of getting our 5 compulsory stadium matches played during the growing season so we can gain some natural recovery. This year we have not entered the U23 cup, which is in a mini league format and games must be played at the stadium. We don't have any choice over the dates they are played and last year left a problem when the home fixtures were scheduled in January and February. Along with other fixtures falling awkwardly, this left us with more games than the stadium pitch can cope with at that time of year, mixed in with poor weather.
We could play the U23 games at another stadium to spread the usage, but given the remote location of Ipswich, There isn't a non league stadium within a 25 mile radius, as per league/cup rules, which has the required facilities to host the fixtures.


We continue to work on the pitches to make them as strong as we can going into the Autumn and Winter, we appreciate the good times and plan as well as we can for the more challenging times ahead.

Heat Stress

July 2018

Heat Stress

With temperatures around 30 degrees Celsius for much of the month, it wasn't only the turf which was suffering from heat stress! irrigation breakdowns and high winds made it a challenging month.

I usually welcome the warm summer months, the pitches are at their best at this time of year and I feel I have more control over the pitches as they are growing and their health can be controlled easier with applications of products, water and mechanical operations.

This summer has been different, with no rain for 9 or 10 weeks, temperatures more than 10 degrees warmer than the rye grass plant thrives on, the pressure has been on to not miss a square inch of the pitch when watering or it shows up within a day or so due to the intense heat.

Heat stress caused by irrigation missing areas due to wind

With most pitches being on a semi automatic or fully automatic watering system, it shouldn't be too difficult to keep the pitch area watered - until it gets windy...

The wind was strong for much of the early part of the month, leaving some areas of the pitches with drought stress. Some early morning hand watering was required to try and catch up on these areas, hoping enough went on to see it through the day.

With such a long period without rain, the ground water has diminished with reduced amounts being drawn at the training ground and no water at all being taken from the bore hole at the stadium. We have the ability to switch the mains on and off as required, but it does come at a cost.

Pitch 6 holding up well after the first run of games

On some days when it has been really hot, we have missed cuts on the pitches to reduce the stress on the plant and avoided putting products down which may cause problems in the continued heat. 

Primo Maxx application at the end of July

Only at the very end of the month once the temperatures have fallen to just above average for the time of year has the growth retardant, Primo Maxx been applied to the stadium pitch. Like many stadiums, Portman Road has its own micro climate. the wind is stronger in certain parts of the bowl and it tends to swirl. It is certainly hotter in the summer than outside of the stadium and colder in the winter too. For this reason, the first Primo Maxx application has been held off longer than normal. The stadium pitch is now 9 weeks from seeding (23rd May), and the first application has now been made. Energy from the plant is redirected from the upward growth into creating plant density and increased rooting. It also reduces the amount of poa annua seed heads which can show up now.

The first use of the Stadium pitch is always at open day, which is a training session on the pitch in front of the fans. It is our first chance to see how the pitch performs. We are generally looking for evidence of the strength of the plant/rooting or lack of it which will be shown up quickly!

Pre-season friendly 28/07/18

As we have don't have any reinforcing fibres in the pitch, it is vital we work on root development as much as possible. coupled with a comprehensive aeration programme, we are applying products to the pitch regularly to encourage root development. We are also looking at more products which are trialled at the training ground to see if there is something better on the market we can use on the stadium pitch. As a rule, we don't try anything out at Portman Road unless it has proved its worth at the training ground first.

Two days after the open day, we had our first home pre season friendly, which is more full on for the turf than a training session. Tackles aren't held back and the twisting and turning is a good test to see where we are at.

Due to the first league fixture drawn at home on 4th August, the pitch was aerated 5 days before the friendly held on 28th July, which leaves the pitch a little on the soft side, so some damage was expected but I was pleased with how the pitch came through. The pitch will play a little firmer going into the first league game, then a two week gap in fixtures, so we will once again be able to relieve any consolidation in the soil created by the mowers in the build up to the game.

The Training Ground kept well watered in the heat

All in all, a hot summer is preferred to a cold winter every time, and we should be grateful for the irrigation we have, even if the wind does cause havoc now and again.

The Grow In

June 18'

The Grow In

After spending a long week renovating, the task of furiously growing in the pitch to reach a pristine condition begins.

If all has gone to plan and the sun has shone, we should be "match ready" in about 6 weeks. This year, we had germination on the stadium pitch in 6 days. after another week, we are mowing every day.

This years seeding was delayed because of a cinema screening on the pitch. As this would have coincided with the seed germinating, I delayed seeding for a few days so it came through after the pitch was clear.

Cinema screen post renovation but pre seeding

As soon as we are able to get a sprayer on the pitch, we will apply our liquid fertiliser package at a low rate every 7 days, continuously drip feeding until we are happy that we've grown in successfully then drop back to a fortnightly spray of a seaweed and molasses/ trace nutrient application. Granular feeds are applied approximately every three weeks and a slow release every 3 months.

Early signs of germination

We use a wetting agent called Qualibra on the stadium pitch to help the moisture applied spread evenly throughout the profile. this should help to avoid dry areas and to encourage the root system to develop.

Mowing every day continues throughout the growing season, with the height of cut gradually being reduced from 28mm to 25mm after the pitch is a few weeks old. We take care to make sure the plant leaf is cut cleanly as it is a vulnerable time for the turf, with it being susceptible to disease outbreak. With so much sand around the blades sharpness gets dulled quickly leaving the leaf being pulled or torn instead of cut. We have spare mowers being sharpened whilst the good ones are being used and as soon as we need to we can swap them over so the turf doesn't suffer.  

35 days after seeding

With the weather at the end of May and through June being so hot and humid, we have suffered from some disease outbreaks at the training ground during our grow in. We have suffered from an outbreak on 4  different pitches, suspected to be brown patch. Of the four pitches, three had different suppliers seed on them so it wasn't just a certain cultivar which was particularly susceptible.

Pitch 6 with disease

Pitch 6, 8 weeks after renovation

Although I am trying not to spray fungicides, due to the importance and the tight time scale to grow the pitches back in, applications were made to two of pitches most affected. Fortunately, these areas have now recovered and can hardly be seen where the damage was. As we are at the time of year where the turf is actively growing, good recovery is possible. During the winter, a bad outbreak of leaf spot can be more of a problem.

By the end of June, we are getting a pitch coming back into play every week and by the end of July all renovated pitches will be back in use as the Academy will be raring to go.

What to do with all the turf taken off the pitches during the renovation? We are currently levelling this out on unused land on site, so we are able to let it settle and tip on top next year. some of the soil which is collected on our second pass of the pitches is kept aside to dress certain areas like the goalkeepers training area as they don't like straight sand being used as this can cause splash into their faces whilst training.

Levelling of the pitch arisings

Now that renovations 2018 will soon be behind us, we are looking forward to seeing how the pitches perform in training and knowing whether our 6 week grow in has been a success. 

Stadium Renovation

May 2018

Stadium Renovation

I love this time of year as we put the Winter behind us and start afresh with newly renovated pitches, which will soon be looking their best for the beginning of the new football season.

Planning for renovations starts soon after the previous one has finished. Firstly,  dates for the start need to be agreed. This will depend on hiring out the stadium for corporate events, county cup finals and concerts. 

I start by working out the date for the expected first use of the pitch and work backwards. I aim for 8 weeks from the start of the renovation to the first football use, therefore giving 7 weeks to grow in, which should be adequate if all goes to plan.

Leading up to the proposed start date, I keep a close eye on the weather as this could cause delays to the stripping off of the pitch surface. The arisings are taken away from the stadium by a grab hire company, so they need to be notified if there is any change of plan. I also hire in a JCB digger so we can load the sand into the spreader more quickly, so the delivery needs to be taken into account.

The pitch is sprayed off with Glyphosate to kill all vegetation. I don't want any recovery from the old sward which could be our desirable rye grass or the undesirable annual meadow grass (poa annua). Although by fraze mowing (using the Koro at a shallow depth), the removal of the poa can be achieved, leaving the rye to regenerate. This is possible as the crown of the Poa is above the surface and the rye below.

I use four staff for the beginning of the renovation. One Koroing, two catching and the fourth to keep tidy any bits we spill on the pitch and helping tip/keep tidy out in the car park where we dump the surface of the pitch.

The first few runs of the koroing is to get the right settings on the depth of the machine. After that it should be plain sailing across the pitch. I try not to hurry though, as we want to do a clean job. We aren't under pressure to get done as soon as possible as we are not contactors needing to get onto the next job, but we do work as efficiently as we can.

Natural soil based surface built on an old rubbish tip. A bike wheel has been pulled up in the past. A brick exposed this year.

On day 1, the first pass of the surface is removed. Day 2, a second pass is made at a slight angle to clean up anything that hasn't been picked up, but this is just a skim. we remove 15-20mm in total.

When we are half way across the second pass, we drop one tractor/trailer off from catching as there is less surface being removed.

87 tonnes of sand being applied

We then start to dress the sand on the pitch. The first third of the pitch is completed first so there is something for the Blec Groundbraker to start working on. at this point the koroing is complete, which will free up two tractors.

Groundbreaking and Veti-draing

we use a small Iseki TXG237 with a greengroomer "zig zag" brush to drag sand down the crevices the groundbraker (linear aeration) has made, this helps to aid drainage. we then follow with 1" tines in the verti-drain and do the same with the brush to work the sand in the verti-drain holes. We usually have to do two passes with the verti-drain to lose all of the sand. We apply 80 tonnes to a full size pitch, but as we have 3x29 ton delivery's to the stadium we have an extra 7 tonnes to lose in the pitch compared to the training ground due to lack of long term storage at the stadium.

Sand is brushed into the slits which are about 7 inches deep

Once, the sand has been brushed down the holes, there should only be a dusting left. if too much sand is left on the top, it will cause problems later in the season with the layering effect.

next, seeding is done in three directions. passes are done at 11 o'clock, 12 o'clock and 1 o'clock. this allows the seed to grow in between the 3.5cm the seeder discs are spaced at.

Approximately 20-22 bags are applied, at a rate of around 60g SqM. This year we have Johnson's Prem Pitch pro nitro. I'm still considering the benefits or not of coated seed, but that's for a discussion at another time..

Straight afterwards, an application of sierrablen slow release and conventional pre seeder 8-12-8 fertiliser is made. 

Watering is then set on a timer for 4 short cycles per day to prevent seed wash. This is done until germination has taken place, then the irrigation time is increased and the frequency reduced.

At this time of year, I'd expect germination in 5 or 6 days with its first cut after 12-14 days.

Renovation Begins

April 2018

Renovation Begins

Is it just me, or have we had all four seasons in the last month? Freezing temperatures, then summer happened for about 10 days, to finish the month, High winds and heavy rain fall. Is this a blip or are we seeing a change in annual weather patterns?

Renovations began in earnest on 16th April with the first two small pitches being Koro'd off. I'm always a little apprehensive at the beginning of the renovations when the kit comes out of the shed as to whether we will pick up mechanical problems as it hasn't moved for 9 months. We always have a service and a mechanic will look over them, but until you start to actually use them on a full days work, you never know..

Due to the early start in renovations and with the weather usually a lot cooler during April, I opted to sow a perennial ryegrass tetraploid 50%/diploid50% mix as the tetraploid seeds are advertised to germinate quicker at lower temperatures and from soil temperatures of 4 degC.

As it turned out, we were having a mini heatwave and soil temperatures had risen to over 18 degC. We had germination in 6 days... usually we are around two weeks before we see anything at this time of year.

Once the surface is removed, approximately 12kg per SqM is applied. This works out around 80 tonnes per full size pitch.

The next job is losing it in the pitch. I opt for two methods. Firstly, the groundbreaker (linear aeration) goes over creating lines for the sand to fall into. Secondly, the pitch is vertidrained with 1 inch solid tines and then the sand is brushed into the holes. This method has helped the drainage of the pitches no end over the last few years. (Detailed renovation next month!)

All pitches are planned in to which week the renovation will begin on them so I have a pretty good idea to which week they will be available to use once the Academy and senior teams return from the summer break.

Typically, once the irrigation was started up, faults appeared. Even though we get fully drained down on the Academy pitches for the Winter to prevent the pipes freezing up and cracking, something is usually a problem. something usually electrical! 

I am planning for the upgrade of the system to run on only pop ups, so no need to pull hoses out onto the pitch for watering. this has been completed on three pitches so far - 9 to go.

The stadium pitch is looking back to what it was pre Winter, albeit with a lot of poa annua now instead of rye grass, which has filled the gaps. We did over seed with 200kg in March and fleeced, which was successful, but the poa is ruthless and gets in quickly when conditions are suitable. Many of us will take a bit of poa given the circumstances.

The end of the season run in to renovations brings a lot of games in the form of cup finals and club use of the stadium pitch. Once the 1st team has finished, I relax over how the pitch is used until the renovations start.
The pitch is weed killed to prevent all species of grass from regenerating after it has been koro'd. this has worked well for us over the past few years and updating our Koro machine has helped further still.

We are now in the best time of the year when we start all the pitch anew, we look forward to the long sunny days of Summer, a time when the Groundman feels a lot more in control of the destiny of the turf.