diamond maintenance

Don’t feel bad about askin’. At least a couple times a year someone asks, and I’m always glad to help as are others.

How Lips Form:

There’s only one way a lip shows up on a field. Somehow, IF dirt gets piled in the grass forming a lip. Although just “normal” play will eventually do it if nothing is done to mitigate it, chances are, raking or dragging is the culprit.

Problems with Using Rakes:

Something to try to keep in mind is, a ball field is not like a lawn or garden at home. You can be fairly blasé about something as small as a lawn or garden at a normal home, but for something that gets as much traffic as a ball field, things have to be done in pretty much an “accepted” manner or you’ll start creating problems.

For instance, the base paths between home and 1st or home and 3rd. Unless you’re prepared to fix them once in a while, you should NEVER rake them “across” the foul lines. No matter how hard ya try, eventually there will be a “cupping” effect that happens.

That’s where the center of where you’re raking will be lower than the edges creating a concave or cupped effect. Its because when you put the rake down, there isn’t as much downward pressure on it, and the same thing happens when you get to where you’re gonna lift it. That makes the soil at the edges “firmer” and the soil in the middle more susceptible to being moved.

Also, whether you notice it or not, when you push or pull the rake, when it stops, not all the soil stops with it. It may be that only a few grains of soil bounce outside onto the grass, but do that a few thousand times and you have a substantial lip.

ALWAYS rake “away” from the grass. Its pretty easy to do between 1st and 3rd or home plate, but it’s a little tougher on the short lines from home to the bases. If you tried to only start at one side and pull or push the rake to the middle and did the same on the other side, then you start causing a convex or hump to form, and that’s as bad as a cupped baseline.

I suggest never using a rake on a ball field other than for very tight areas where it can’t be dragged. The pitcher’s mound and maybe to “dress” around the bases, or to clean up after you pick up the drag is ok, but other than that, keep the rakes off the field!

If you have to use a rake, make sure you get one smaller in width than the base path, but as close to the same width as possible. That way you can much easier keep the base paths “level” to where a ball won’t roll one way or the other all the time. Don’t “tilt the base path because of drainage either! If its “level”, the water will not sit there.

Drags

A drag is an amazing simple tool. What its intended to do isn’t to make the field pretty, which it does, but rather to level out the soil.

Let’s talk about a “normal” 3’X6’ drag normally used on a youth sports field. There’s a reason its 6’ long. If the drag is pulled over relatively soft soil, where the whole 6’ touches the ground, once the drag travels the 6’ length, the little high spots will be “shaved” and the low spots will have soil deposited in them, effectually leveling the soil.

For instance, if someone walks across a perfectly prepared field they leave footprints. What’s really happened is, the footprint is a slight depression. When you pull a drag across it, loose soil will gather in the little holes in the drag, then drop that soil in the footprint. So you’re not erasing it, the depression is still there, but now its filled up.

How to Pull a Drag:

Remember, there’s a reason the drag is 6’ long. One of the worst things anyone can do is put a short rope on it. When most people pull a drag, they stand up. With a short rope, what does that mean? It means the front part of the drag comes off the ground, so now there’s not 6’ touching the soil doing its work.

If it’s a little kid pulling the drag, it may be that they only lift a foot or so, but that same drag pulled by a helpful 6’2” dad will prolly have 1/3 of the drag off the ground. Now the drag is only doing 2/3 of the work its intended to do. Use a long enough rope that most of the drag will be touching the ground!

Along those same lines, if the drag has a “kink” in it, it won’t do its job the correct way. Use a bat, a piece of wood or something thing else to tap on the kink to make it lay flat. Also, NEVER pile rocks, bricks, blocks, or anything else on the top of the drag, and certainly NEVER, NEVER allow anyone to stand on it!

Although its made of metal, it is made with some precision, and once bent, will never be “right” again.

Another problem people create for themselves is whackin’ a drag in half, that way they can get 2 3’ drags instead of one. Bad move! Now the little kid will be lifting 1/3 of the drag off the ground and dad will prolly only have a foot or so. That’s fine for “dressing” the field to make it pretty, but its really stupid if you want the drag to really do what’s intended.

Another “misuse” of the drag is to pull it at varying speeds! In order to do the optimum job, it should be pulled at a steady walking pace. Definitely NEVER run with a drag or pull it with a vehicle so fast that it bounces along the ground. Those little edges will skip spots when the drag is bouncing.

When the drag is pulled at a varying pace or the person pulling it takes a step and then pulls the drag to them, there will be “waves” created. You can’t see them from the dugout or the bleachers, but I guarantee you they’ll create more bad hops than you can imagine! Keep the speed steady and not too fast!

The best way to pull a drag is with a golf cart, small garden tractor, or some other maintenance vehicle with wide or low pressure tires. That will keep the soil from compaction, keep a slow and steady pace, allow the drag to be kept low so it stays on the ground, and get the job done relatively quickly.

How to drag:

Keep in mind what the purpose of the drag is, and that it works best when there is loose soil for it to move around.

In order to produce the best playing surface and for the drag to be most efficient, using something that will break up the soil at least an inch or so deep before the drag is used produces the best effect. That doesn’t have to be done every time you drag, but I’d suggest doing before the 1st game of the day, and after the last.

I’ve used or seen used everything imaginable to bust up the IF soil, from full blown tractors with hydraulic rippers, to old pieces of chain link with some concrete block thrown on top, to devices made especially for the purpose. It doesn’t matter what you use! The object is to bust up the soil at least an inch deep so the drag can do its job the most efficiently!

One thing to keep in mind is, its easier to dig in soft ground than hard. Don’t be afraid to put some water out there before you go bustin’ up the soil! There’s no set amount to use because every IF will have different soil. Experiment. Put some water down and see how it goes, next time put a little more down and see if the results are better.

Usually, if there’s mud or standing water and the soil cakes onto whatever you’re using, you’ve used too much. If your device won’t cut into the soil at least a half inch, you haven’t used enough. Keep experimenting, You’ll soon get the “feel”.

Now you’re ready for some serious soil bustin’. For this job, its unlikely manpower will be sufficient to pull the device. I also wouldn’t use a golf cart, because they aren’t mead for that kind of thing. A garden tractor, Gator, or something like it will be fine. If all else fails, take out a light pickemup truck, but just be careful if you do.

I suggest removing the bases for soil bustin’ or dragging. It just makes it easier. I also suggest not using anything to bust the soil that can touch the base pegs, and keep that thing away from home plate!

Go around the field either clockwise or counter clock wise until the whole field has been gone over at least once. Then, start at 1st or 3rd and go in circles to cross the why you went before. Don’t try to go in circles between 1st and home or 3rd and home. ;-)

After you’ve got the soil pretty well busted up, put that thing away and get the drag. Do the same thing. go around the bases until the whole field is dragged once, the go in circles.

Once you’ve dragged the whole field once, you may thing it looks pretty enough and want to quit. DON’T! there is a reason for the circles with the drag. It levels the playing surface from front to back! If you don’t do that, eventually you’ll end up with the same “cupped” effect you get on the base baths from traffic and incorrect raking.

The drag will pull soil for the outside an move it to the center to some degree, If its done often enough, the field will level itself.

Drag No No’s:

NEVER allow the drag to touch the grass! Let me repeat that. NEVER allow the drag to touch the grass!

Every time the drag goes over the turf, it will drop whatever soil its carrying with it. What’s the result? You get lips!

Le me emphasize that point. NEVER allow the drag to touch the grass!

Be the careful whether you’re pulling the drag by hand or with something else. Remember, that’s like a trailer out there and doesn’t turn when you do! When you go around corners, you may have to go a bit farther out to make sure that last foot or so of the drag doesn’t just happen to cross over the grass,

Also, when you’re going in circles with the dirt buster or the drag, remember, that thing’s way back there from where you’re at. If you’re making circles, what you’re pullin’ is not only way behind you, but its traveling sideways too.

Its like being on the end guy playin’ crack the whip. If you get too close to where want it to turn around, centrifugal force will take it another foot or so and what’ll happen. It’ll go over the grass! Plus, if you get too close, the drag will actually throw dirt another few inches from where its end is. What’ll happen? You’ll get lips! The best thing to do is, when you’re close to the grass, go slowly, or just stay a foot or so away.

Now you’re all don draggin’. What do ya do?

Roll up the drag on the infield dirt!

DO NOT PULL IT INTO THE GRASS!!!!

There’s where you’ll most likely build up lips, and it won’t take long! Drag a field every day and pull the drag off the same place each time, and in a week you’ll have 2-4” lip!

Getting Rid of Lips

Easiest thing to do on the world! The best thing to do is not allow them to happen in the 1st place, but no matter how careful ya are, its gonna happen.

Get a hose and a high pressure nozzle. Once a week or so, go around all the grass that boarders on the IF soil and wash the built up soil back into the IF dirt. IF you do that from the very beginning of putting in a new field, you’ll never have a problem.

If you have some big ol’ lips that have built up, and I’ve seen them as high as a foot, do the same thing, The only thing is, don’t try to get rid of the thing all at once! If its only an inch or so, you can soak it down, and then get rid of most of it. Wait a day or so, then go back and do it again until you have the whole thing gone, down to the same place the soil is where there’s grass.

If the lip is much bigger than that, just do a little bit a couple times a week. That’ll give what grass is there a chance to see the light of day again and get used to it. If you try to get too aggressive, you’ll expose too much of the grass roots and might kill the grass. Take it easy! do a little bit at a time and in a couple of weeks, you should be able to get rid of even the oldest and toughest of lips.

If you have a particularly tough one, just be patient. You might have to work on it for a month or two, but eventually it will disappear. The main thing to remember is, wash that grass of fairly frequently and you won’t be troubled with it again!

Of course if you’re impatient and like hark work and lots of blisters, you can peel the sod back, remove the sol below the roots, and put the sod back again. One trouble with that is, you shouldn’t play on it until the sod has re-rooted. That would be like stepping on ice.

Another is, it’s a lot like work! You can grab a couple cool ones, go out in the evening when no one is playing, and spend a half hour of “quiet time” while accomplishing the same thing!

Heck, even the parent with 2 left feet who couldn’t poke themselves in the eye can wash off the grass! All anyone has to do is to remember to keep the nozzle moving so it doesn’t dig a hole!

Hope that answers your questions.