SportsTurf provides current, practical and technical content on issues relevant to sports turf managers, including facilities managers. Most readers are athletic field managers from the professional level through parks and recreation, universities.
Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/50965
FieldScience | Jim Hermann, CSFM >> Top Left: BASE PATH: Offset foul lines minimize lip buildup in the grass adjacent to 1st and 3rd base. >> Middle Left: "WALK SOFT AND CARRY A BIG RAKE." Low ground pressure equipment was used to install the big roll bluegrass sod. >> Bottom Left: RED SCREENINGS were used to create wide paths and minimize turf wear. >> BATTER BOARD was used to define and elevate the infield arc to establish a diversion around the infield. as this would be like Charlie Daniels playing Tchaikovsky's Violin Concerto. Rather most of us maintain infields in the grey area of right and wrong somewhere between a profes- sional infield and chase out the cows close the gate and play ball. Considerations in infield construction and renovation M OST OF US have managed an infield under less than perfect conditions at one time or an- other. The infield may be in need of reconstruction due to years of use or it may have in- herent problems caused by im- proper construction. Whether simply a facelift for an existing infield, or the construction of a new facility, a successful project requires consideration by those involved in the con- struction process and by those who manage the use of the field. It's natural to want the best infield you can have when the opportunity arises to renovate or construct an infield. Typi- cally, designers and engineers look to construction practices used on professional infields as a reference when designing for schools and municipalities. For the sake of this article I would like to take the liberty of providing my perception of Some designers recommend a heavy textured clayey infield mix like XYZ stadium, not understanding that unless the moisture in that mix is impeccably managed, it's going to get hard as a rock. 20 SportsTurf | January 2012 a professional infield. A profes- sional infield is an infield con- structed on a full gravel blanket below a loamy sand or pure sand root zone. It has a ½% slope radiating out in all directions from the area around the pitcher's mound. The skinned area is con- structed with two distinct lay- ers. The base is constructed using an infield mix with less than 70% sand. This mix is managed at a precise moisture level to provide just the right resilience to the players. The base is covered with a thin layer of topdressing such as calcined clay, vitrified clay or possibly a mixture of both. The integrity of these layers is protected with the utmost care. For most of us, manag- ing a professional infield such PERCEPTION IS NINE TENTHS OF THE FLAW I have witnessed municipal infields constructed on a full gravel blanket using heavy tex- tured impermeable top soil and a heavy clay infield mix because the perception is that this gravel blanket is going to provide superior drainage for the infield. These designers don't realize that unless the root zone has a very high rate of hydraulic conductivity and is capable of allowing water to pass through it efficiently, the only real benefit to any subsurface drainage is the control of ground water or a high water table. These same designers like the ½% slope because; actually I don't know why they use it other than because it's used on professional infields. What they fail to realize is that ½% slope is almost as ineffective as a gravel blanket in a turf area unless again, you have a very permeable root zone and some www.sportsturfonline.com By