mixing limestone with water to make awhitewash; digging trenches and fillingthem with limestone, or burning thelines into the turf by spraying with anon-selective herbicide to destroy the"vegetation, and then chalking the lines.Using the last method allows the linesto remain visible even when the lime isgone, but results in an uneven playingsurface.1) All lines are 5 em wide.2)Lay out the field using the dimensionssuitable for the level of sport to beplayed (baseball, softball, slowpitch,etc.). Tie a cord to a large spike or nailplaced at the rear point of home plate,stretch it out and attach it to the foul linepoles extending out past first and thirdbase.3) set the line marker on the string andstarting at the back of home plate, run itparallel over each 30 em edge of homeplate, extending to the foul line poles forbase and foul lines.4) Use a dry line marker for skinnedareas and a wet lime marker for turfareas.5) Mark in the batters' boxes, catcher'sbox, on-deck circles, coaches boxes,pitcher's circle. In addition, mark in a0.9 metre line parallel to and 0.9 metresfrom the first base line, starting half waybetween home plate and first base.6) As a time-saving measure, framesmay be constructed of wood to the re-quired dimensions and used to mark inthe batters' boxes, removing the need tomeasure them out each time.

Grass Roots Ball Diamond Maintenance

Properly maintained ball diamondsare necessary to ensure player

safety as well as fairness in the sport.Rutted infields and basepaths not onlycause the ball to bounce erratically, butmay also trip up players. Home plate andpitcher's plate should be set flush withthe ground for the same reason.

Most maintenance of ball diamondssuch as aerifying, fertilizing, seeding orsodding should be carried out in the fallfor a variety of reasons. It allows moretime for seed or sod to become estab-lished or for fertilizer to work, promot-ing good vigorous growth before playstarts in the spring.

It also lessens the chance of delays inpreparing the field because of uncertainspring weather.

Basepaths andSkinned Areas

Power brooms or fire hoses should beused occasionally to remove dirt andsurface material from the turf and pushit back on to the basepaths and skinnedinfields. Basepaths and skinned infieldsshould also be edged occasionally toprevent turf from encroaching and tokeep the lines neat and distinct.

On occasion, the skinned infield mayrequire blading to level high spots andfill depressions. Compacted surfacematerial should be scarified to loosen it,and then dragged to level. A satisfactorydrag can be made from a section of chainlink fence, dragged behind a tractor.

Rutting is one of the main problemsencountered with basepaths. Theyshould be maintained frequently toprevent them from becoming 'dished'and affecting the direction of the ball.

The areas around the bases should beraked daily if possible, and surfacematerial added to the basepaths whennecessary to bring them up to the levelof the surrounding infield.

The surface material should also bechecked every fall to ensure a propermixture. The surface should have

enough sand to allow water t drainthrough it and keep the surfa e frombecoming too sticky when we or toohard when dry.

The surface must also have noughclay to bind the sand together a d keepthe surface from blowing. If san or claymust be added, the infield sh uld belevelled and scarified, the aterialadded and the field dragged.1) Rototill or gill skinned aredepth of 2.5 em,2) Rake and float skinned area with asteel mat, leaving a slight cr wn forwater drainage.3) If skinned areas are too soft roll tocompact soil, and rake.4) Fill depressions on skinned surfacewith silt or suitable surface mat rial.5) Fill any holes dug in. fron of thepitcher's plate, and ensure p tcher'splate and home plate are set fl sh withthe ground.

MarkingsA variety of materials are sed to

mark the playing lines on the fi Id.Hydrated lime has been use in the

past to a large extent, but i beingreplaced by latex paint which is quickerto apply, easier to see and lasts longer.Caution should be exercise wh n usinghydrated lime for safety reas ns (Ed.Note: hydrated lime should not be useddue to potential burn of the eye ).

Other marking methods nclude

AerationThe process of aeration promotes the

growth of good turf by allowing water,air and nutrients to penetrate the soil andaid in root development, giving the turfgreater ability to withstand dry periods.

Aeration is required when constantuse of the field causes the soil to becomecompacted. Rollers or the use of heavyequipment on the field when it is wetcan also aggravate the condition. When

compaction develops, it becomes dif-ficult for water, fertilizer and air to enterthe soil, and for nutrients to break downinto a form useable by the plant.

Ball fields are usually aerated twicea year, in the spring and again in the fallafter the playing season is completed. Ifthe ground is too hard for the aerator topenetrate, a light watering will helploosen the soil.

Aeration also alleviates compactionproblems in the dirt areas of the balldiamond, and the practice should not belimited to turf only.

After aerating, a topdressing can beapplied and the field then dragged tosmooth the surface, break up the plugsand fill the holes.

FertilizationFertilizers provide the nutrients that

turf requires, including nitrogen, phos-phorus and potassium.

Types of fertilizer used and rates ofapplication are dependent on the grow-ing conditions, and should be based onperiodic soil analysis to determine ac-tual amounts.

Fall applications of fertilizer willprovide adequate nutrients at the start ofthe growing season the followingspring, and lighter rates of nitrogen canbe applied in the spring and early sum-mer as required to promote healthy turf.

Commercial salt-based fertilizersshould be applied evenly and when theturf is dry, to avoid burning. To ensureeven distribution, it is best to applygranular fertilizer in two directions, ap-plying half the recommended amounteach time.

Reseeding/ResoddingLike other major maintenance prac-

tices, reseeding or resodding of worn ordamaged turf is best done in the fall. Itprovides an opportunity for the newgrass to become firmly establishedbefore it is subjected to use - time thatmay not be available if seeding or sod-ding is done in the spring.

Small areas can be reseeded by dig-ging out or scalping the old turf, fillingwith a mixture of peat, sand and loam,

and reseeding.Large areas or completed fields can

be reseeded by aerating thoroughly;overseeding the area; adding 1 to 2.5 emof peat moss and overseeding again. Thefield should be dragged and rolled light-ly to ensure good contact between theseed and the soil.

In some cases where major renova-tion is required, a sod cutter should beused to completely remove the old turf,and the field should be graded. Topsoilcan then be added and the entire fieldreseeded.

When building up low areas, 1 to 1.5em layers of peat, sand and loam mix-tures can be added at a time, seeded andraked. Up to 2.5 em of soil can be addedand the grass below will still growthrough.

When resodding, the old turf must becompletely removed and the arealevelled. Add a proper topsoil mixture,if necessary. Particular attention mustbe paid to the depth of the new sod, sothat when installed, it is level with thesurrounding area. All crackers andjoints should be topdressed.

Resodding is best done in the fall, atlast 3 weeks before freeze-up, to ensurea good bond with the soil before it issubjected to heavy used. However,resodding may be dictated by theavailability of the sod.

WateringThe moisture requirements of a ball

diamond vary according to a number offactors, including type of soil; amountof natural rainfall; moisture loss throughhigh temperature and winds, and thelevel of maintenance available.

As a rule, an average of 2.5 em ofwater is required per week to maintaingood turf growth. Water should be ap-plied only as fast as the soil will absorbit, and until the water has penetrated thetop 15 ern of soil.

Timing the watering practicesdepends largely on when the field is tobe used. If the field is used for eveningplay, watering should take place in earlymorning so the turf is dry when playstarts. Ideally, however, watering is best

done in the evening when there is lessevaporation and more water will be ab-sorbed into the soil.

MowingMowing frequency should be such

that the turf does not grow more than 3.2em above the desired height.

Proper grass height is necessary be-cause close mowing and light wateringwill cause shallow rooting of turf,making it susceptible to heat stress.Grass that's mowed to short may alsopromote weed growth by reducing thevigour and density of the turf.

Most grasses should be maintainedat a height of 3.2 to 6.4 em, although therecommended height varies with thespecies of grass.

Methods of mowing the outfieldshould be alternated to reduce the num-ber of bare spots and encourage densegrass coverage.

With the first method, start at thirdbase and mow down the left field foulline to the fence. The same procedure isfollowed from first base down the rightfield foul line to the fence,and fromsecond base out to the centre field fence.

In the other example, the outfield ismowed crosswise, mowing back andforth along the infield edge of the out-field grass, and then working from theoutfield edge of the grass toward theinfield.

Weed, Disease and InsectControl

Well maintained and established turfis rarely susceptible to weed or diseaseproblems.

The turf should be examined for anysigns of weed, disease or insect infesta-tion whenever routine maintenancesuch as mowing or watering is per-formed. However, no control should beundertaken without consultation withspecialists to ensure an accurate diag-nosis of the problem.

[Reprinted with permission fromFacility Forum, Vol. 2: No.5, pp.38 &41, July, 1992]