Keeping grass out of IF dirt.

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Well up here in the North, where our summer officially started just a few days ago, the infield grass gets trampled by ballplayers. Our weed killer we get a pair at a time from Cleats R Us.



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The best thing to get rid of weeds on the IF as long as you are doing weekly maintenance is to get a hula hoe. Google one and you will see what it is and how it works.

If you’re dragging 3 times a week, it would be impossible for grass to grow where you’re dragging, unless you’re using a bed sheet to drag.

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Three sheets to the week!



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Nicholas, if you are doing this on a school ball diamond, you have to be careful about what you spray ona diamond. Believe it or not, most of the grass/weed control sprays can't be sprayed on a surface that kids are going to play on. Just an FYI.

Check out Weed-B-Gon
Weed-B-Gon is a postemergent herbicide, meaning that it is applied to already-growing weeds to control them.

Check out Round-Up
Pre-emergent weed killers are applied to the soil environment, before weeds emerge, to keep them from coming up.

Both have been used on playgrounds, football fields and baseball/softball fields w/o injury or sickness.

Email Ortho for product reports

quote:

Originally posted by Bear:
Check out Weed-B-Gon
Weed-B-Gon is a postemergent herbicide, meaning that it is applied to already-growing weeds to control them.

Check out Round-Up
Pre-emergent weed killers are applied to the soil environment, before weeds emerge, to keep them from coming up.

Both have been used on playgrounds, football fields and baseball/softball fields w/o injury or sickness.

Email Ortho for product reports

I don’t think you got the full impact of what CoachB25 was trying to say. As much as it seems silly, since all those products can be bought at literally even a lot of grocery stores here in Ca, people just can’t to a public place and apply them at will. Here in Sacramento Co, every one of those products, as well as all other chemical additives, have to be accounted for, down to the ounce. I know it sounds stupid and unnecessary, but it really isn’t.

If you want to do something to improve a school ball field, just work together with whomever has that overall responsibility. That way you’ll know what they’re doing and won’t duplicate it, and they can provide you with information and perhaps materials.

Nicholas25 - sounds like you are heading in the right direction. Weeds and grass can and will grow even if you are dragging three times a week. I am sure you are starting to see the baselines creep in by now (where you don't drag). That is where the hula hoe is worth its weight in gold... or 24$, but you know what I meen.

As far as the herbicide i would recommend: SPEEDZONE for the infield grass - Can be found at a local lawn a garden specialty store, like John Deere. This stuff does not target grass, but the broad leaf weeds that like to appear through out the summer. Apply this stuff to the entire infield grass.

Infield skin - IF you see grass, weeds, pretty much anything but dirt, go ahead and put ROUNDUP on it. Get the industrial stuff if you can. Trick is - let it sit on the plant for 2-3 days before you dig/hoe/cut it out of the infield. You need to let the roundup soak THROUGH the plant into the roots. If you spray it and dig it out in the same day, the roots never got treated and will come right back.

If all else fails, find a "golf course super attendant" (Head greens keeper) that is willing to come out to your field for an hour or so. And if you do find one, take notes, buy him/her lunch. You wont regret it.

Good luck!

quote:

Originally posted by Stats4Gnats:
If you want to do something to improve a school ball field, just work together with whomever has that overall responsibility. That way you’ll know what they’re doing and won’t duplicate it, and they can provide you with information and perhaps materials.

The Head Coach is responsible for the field, just ask the players, parents and principal. Hey what happened to Coach's field over the summer - - I dunno, I guess he went on summer vacation.

We have a (5 years old) new school, new fields, new facility and only one grounds keeper for the entire school district. That is 15 high schools. My grass is cut once a week at about 30mph. I am thankful to have a great bunch of kids, parents and booster club to keep the fields maintained in the off season. We have started to cut our own infield.

You know what they say, if you want the job done right...

quote:

Originally posted by bballdad2016:
The Head Coach is responsible for the field, just ask the players, parents and principal. Hey what happened to Coach's field over the summer - - I dunno, I guess he went on summer vacation.

We have a (5 years old) new school, new fields, new facility and only one grounds keeper for the entire school district. That is 15 high schools. My grass is cut once a week at about 30mph. I am thankful to have a great bunch of kids, parents and booster club to keep the fields maintained in the off season. We have started to cut our own infield.

You know what they say, if you want the job done right...

I don’t think you’re quite getting what I’m trying to say. It doesn’t matter what the players, parents, and principal think. Depending on what the laws are, there can be some very substantial fines for ignoring the law. I’m not saying it’s a guarantee that there will be repercussions. I’m saying its not worth the risk when all it takes is a simple phone call to the maintenance authority to resolve any questions.

I’ve got a degree in Horticulture and had my applicator’s license when I applied some Herbicides I paid for to our school’s infield. I was seen and reported, and spent several days and several trips to the county and the school district to get the issue resolved. In the end, it was made very clear to me that if I did it again without permission, I’d be prosecuted. For 3 years after that, all I did was call the maintenance supervisor, got the written permission, and the equipment and chemicals supplied for nothing. I don’t think you realize the liability a person takes on when they start applying chemicals to land used by the public, or used to grow food. I didn’t and I had passed the test for the applicator’s license. Its only a phone call!

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Take Stats4Gnats advice on this one Nicholas25. He's been there, done that...and came very close to paying dearly for it. I, like Stats, also had an Herbicide Applicator's license. He knew what he was initially doing was completely safe. He probably knew more about the actual situation on the ground than the regulators. But the law is the law and you don't want to get tripped up by a bothersome violation. Know the laws in your state. Some are overly strict while others are more lax.

Take the route that Stats took. His was cheaper, as productive, and worry free.

Let us know how it works out.



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Stats - I do get what you are trying to say, do you get what i am saying. You are in a very unique position to be a licensed applicator with a degree in horticulture AND be a HS coach / assistant.

I agree - seek professional advice. Greens keepers are a wonderful source of knowledge (and licensed) if your school or school district it not staffed properly to maintain the fields.

quote:

Originally posted by bballdad2016:
Stats - I do get what you are trying to say, do you get what i am saying. You are in a very unique position to be a licensed applicator with a degree in horticulture AND be a HS coach / assistant.

I agree - seek professional advice. Greens keepers are a wonderful source of knowledge (and licensed) if your school or school district it not staffed properly to maintain the fields.

If I was a plumber or a CEO and knew that if I sprayed Roundup, Weed-B-Gone, or any other chemical homeowners all over the country use every day, I could be putting myself and the program in jeopardy, I hope I’d have enough sense to at least check.

Believe me, I understand the frustration! Heck, I’ve been forced to stop mowing. I’ve also watched broken, plugged, and leaky sprinkler heads wait as much as 2 years to get repaired when I could fix them in 10 minutes. I see clover and dandelions turn our outfield into a sea of white and yellow, when a couple applications of almost any of the modern broadleaf controls wipe it out in 2 weeks. I watch spurge take over in even the smallest of bare spots in the turf, and see wild Bermuda literally take over if allowed to get any kind of a foothold.

What people don’t get is, an area the size of a “normal” 60/90 field ain’t like taking care of a 1,000 sqft of yard at home. It’s a lot of work, costs a lot of money, and if anyone screws up and doe as something like sprays POAST instead of 2-4 D, you’ve cost someone tens of thousands of $$$. In short, it only takes a phone call. Most people get frustrated though, because its virtually impossible to get an answer in any kind of timely manner, and that’s why the process should be started in the fall, when there’s no rush to get anything done.

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"I watch spurge take over in even the smallest of bare spots..."

I use this regularly. I end up with patches of hideous spurge, but hey...it's better than nuthin'. right?





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Stats - I am going to be polite and say... don’t assume I didn’t check. I am not and was not 20 years old when I started maintaining ball fields. Sounds like you are not well supported by your school administration, athletic director or HC if they do not allow you to seek outside help maintaining your fields to the extent that they "forced" you to stop mowing and allow irrigation (Water cost big $$$) systems to go unattended.