Moss, since no-one else has said it, thank you for your volunteer work. I too, take care of our ball diamonds. Have been doing it for 3 years now. Looks like your doing a good job. A few thin gs I can suggest you do tho are these.
1). Once you get to a point where you say, "Ok, lets play! The field is ready!" , use a rotor tiller on that field. If you dont, it will be a pond when it rains. Go to a depth of till you hit subsoil. That lime gets so dang stinkin hard, that it doesnt let water pass thru very easy. once tilled, let it sit for the winter. Leave it alone! This will allow you some time to raise some money. Next spring, you will need fill put on it. DONT USE LIME AGAIN! I cant remember what it is called, but it is a dark granular fill that packs pretty easy, but will still allow water to pass thru it. Find one of the fathers that has a dump truck and get him to use it for you. Dump it in the middle and move it around with your fel to a depth of about 3 inches taller than your outfield boarder. If you dont, and you leave it the way you have it, when a grounder goes to that outfield lip, it will "jump" up into the face of that lil youngun and hit him in the face.
2) Make a SMALL pitcher mound and a SMALL home base mound.
3) When you get ready to lay out your bases, get bases that have a pole, at least 8" long attached to them undernieth them. Wherever you put those bases, drive a steel pipe in the ground 1st, at least 10". Make sure you drive this BELOW ground level! After season end, you will need to work the fields again. When you do, remove the bases, work the field, get a metal detector and find those "pins" and you dont have to measure it all again.
3) UNLESS you want to have the responsibility of keeping this field lines and in shape all the time, make sure everyone in the league knows you will work the fields with your tractor when needed BUT you WILL NOT line the field BEFOR each and every game! Let the coaches do this.
4) Keep your "leveling" screens, "attachments", and other "toys" away from the field. If you keep these at the fields, then the coaches take it upon themselves to hook onto it with their trucks/cars/whatever and drive all over the fields! Thus packing it down more and more!They also will NOT remove the bases and drag the drag over/beside/any way they can to stay on the fat arsses and end up tearing those new bags. They will get pissed at you, but oh well! Leave some fill material and a wheelbarrow/rake/shovel nearby so they can use that!.
5) If you use lime for new fill material, you will have to find some other type of line making material, cause it is crushed ag lime.
6) Keep in mind, that the condition of those fields are what those parents look at, and that determines how many kids sign up. We have grown 3-fold since I started doing our fields. The fields I take care of are 2 at our local county park, and 2 at our local elementary school. All various stages of play...from senior leagues to T-ball leagues.
7) Once a year, you will need to spray weeds on the infield. Rig you up some kind of sprayer and do this yourself. Use some type of "kill-all" when these weeds get to a point where it bugs you that your field is looking like crap.
8) When you mow, or whomever does it, dont blow the clippings onto the field. Weed seeds on the field.
9) Have a "MASS" quantity of water available. (I get the local fire dept. to bring out their field/grass fire truck out to spray it down. IF you try and put fill over DRY material, it will not stick! You will just drag it out. IT HAS TO BE WET! A T-ball field will use 450 gals. in middle of summer with no problem at all!(thats how big a tank the fire truck is)
Is so many more things your in for that my experience has taught me! No one took care of the fields before I started and they looked like what you started with. I did things a little different than you, but the end result is the same. Happy kids playing ball and not getting hurt due to anything you have created! You need any advice.... email me if ya want. Would be happy to help!
woodyfloors@mchsi.com
have fun and rfemember to work WITH the materials and mother nature. You are exposed to all sorts of things against you doing this! Once you get those fields into shape, it takes a little time at 1st of year to get "winter" off them and ready to play. then MAYBE one time durinfg season of rework, and one time at end of season, and one time of weed spraying. Thats all you want to do! If you do more, it WILL eat up all your free time during the season!
