Watering an Infield - Basic Step by Step Process

In an earlier post we discussed Hydrating/Watering an Infield Mix.  In this post, let's discuss a topic that is often posed to me.  "How much do I water my infield?"

The answer, it depends on sunlight, wind speed, humidity, and time of day the game is to be played along with the time the water is applied.

At professional facilities, an infield may be watered 5-8 times a day.  Who has time to water an infield that often?  Not many facilities.  Here we will discuss hydrating an infield mix at noon for a 4 PM game - this is the only water the infield will receive in one day.  Is it perfect? No, but it will provide a surface that is forgiving for the athlete.  Important note - the infield is not worked open with a nail drag or an implement that rips open the infield.

The first step is to get a 1 inch fire hose ran off a minimum of a 1 inch quick coupler:

Here is the infield topdressing prior to irrigation - please note that the correct level of condition is applied to the infield:

Next, water is applied.  In this case, water is applied over a 30 minute time period:

Here is the infield post watering, note the almost standing water condition of the infield mix.

Finally, this infield is an amended infield mix and has the correct level of sand/silt/clay of a balanced infield mix.  Due to this fact, you can walk across the infield immediately following the watering:

Bottom line, have a balanced infield mix and pour the water to the profile.  This is the quickest way to provide a fast and forgiving surface that will play true for athletes of all ages.

Go to j-dturf.com to learn more about J&D Turf.

Play on!
--Jamie
@JamieMehringer