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HG Sports Turf - Management Appointment
26 Jul 2012 by: Mike kemmett
"Well done Nobby! Hes a good lad. Now employ me!!!"
MCG Head Groundsman Departs
20 Jul 2012 by: Roaring Silence
"Makes plenty of sense Turfie, unfortunately large organisati ..."
MCG Head Groundsman Departs
20 Jul 2012 by: Turfie
"Yes Arguably "Flash" is the best 2nd in charge in the countr ..."
MCG Head Groundsman Departs
20 Jul 2012 by: KeepitSharp///
"Why bother undertake a global search for a suitable replacem ..."
Who do you Believe?
8 Jun 2012 by: David McKEchnie
"Enjoyable reading - note also CEC is generally measured / ca ..."
By Editor in {CATEGORY} on 25 Jun 2012
Heaven may not exist but, on a sunny afternoon in June, the grounds of Wimbledon provide a workable approximation. Flowers are plentiful and co-ordinated in shades of purple and white with green foliage, the colours of the club.
On the Centre Court, the scene is even more idyllic and its curator, the head groundsman Eddie Seaward, surveys the arena with obvious pride. He is 68 now and has been master of this domain - "the grass whisperer", he's been called - since the days of Stefan Edberg and Steffi Graf in the early 1990s. Still, this summer provides a new challenge, probably the toughest he has faced in 22 years in the job. Not only do the courts have to be immaculate for the Wimbledon Championships that begin on Monday, but after the men's final on 8 July, Seaward and his team have just 20 days to repair the wear, tear, scruffs and scrapes before the Olympic tennis event begins.
Phase one, at least, looks in good order. The lawn is shaved to an 8mm stubble, just how Seaward likes it, and when Novak Djokovic opens proceedings on Monday there will be nothing approaching a blemish or discolouration. Even the shade of green has been specifically calibrated: too lush means too much nitrogen in the grass leaf and a slippery surface for the players. The hardness of all courts - 19 for tournament play, 22 for practice - is measured with a Clegg hammer, so as to be near-identical. Blades of grass have been counted - this is not a joke; there is an optimum number per square centimetre, apparently. How many is that? "A lot," says Seaward.
It is an odd job, when you get down to it, full of unexpected pitfalls. Seaward's greatest fear? Vixen urine. It kills the grass and, worse, the soil under it - Seaward shudders at the memory of a final in the 1990s where fox wee appeared overnight between the service line and the baseline, visible from the Royal Box, leaving a small soft area on the court.
"If you come here on a nice sunny Sunday in winter, you'll find foxes laying up on the BBC commentary box there," he says. "They like to sunbathe and they will look at you as if to say, 'What the hell are you doing here? This is mine - it's Sunday!'"
These days, Wimbledon's show courts are encircled by an electric fence for weeks before the event, and patrolled at night by guards with dogs. It's just one of the many changes that Seaward has overseen during his tenure. Rufus, an American Harris hawk, drops in three times a week to ward off pigeons - the sulphur in their droppings burns the grass. Seaward is also in regular contact with the Sports Turf Research Institute in Yorkshire to ensure they have the perfect surface. The current mix, introduced last year, is 100% perennial ryegrass, with a combination of Jessica, Pontiac and Melbourne strains. It is harder beneath your feet, less vulnerable to wear and maintains an improved colour throughout the winter.
The turf is sure to come under scrutiny during the Olympics, but Seaward is not fazed. A few days before the championships end, he will start pre-germinating seeds and, as soon as the trophies are handed out, his team will go to work. They will oversow the baseline, where coverage is most scarce, and feed the rest of the grass. Any divots will be filled with wet soil - "like a Polyfilla" - sprinkled with grass clippings and left to dry overnight. "I'll challenge you to come out here and find where we've done it," says Seaward.
Seaward is retiring after the Olympics - is he planning to spend more time in his garden? "My lawn doesn't look like this, before you ask," he says, smiling.
Source & More: www.guardian.co.uk
Read more articles in {CATEGORY}, by Editor or from June 2012.
