Plant Doctor’s prescription for the perfect backyard cricket pitch

The cricket season is now in full swing and we have the prescription to Aussies struck with cricket fever! Curating the perfect cricket pitch is more about your lawn’s recovery from a scalp than preparing a test pitch. 

If you’re going to create a backyard cricket pitch, you need to cut a portion of your lawn low, but with the drought and lack of rain, it’s important to consider the recovery of your lawn post cricket season. Depending on what type of lawn you have will determine how short you can cut your grass, you want to aim for about 10mm, but some types of lawn like to be to mowed low, others not so much.

For your pitch, you want somewhere that’s offers space, but is flat and reasonably hard so it accommodates bounce. Although proper cricket pitches are rolled, if you’re after a nice lawn, you want open airy soil, so we don’t advise using a roller.

In the lead up to your backyard cricket matches, we recommend conditioning your lawn and more importantly soil, with an organic regimen. People that condition and prepare their soil several weeks earlier will help everything cope with the lack of rain, the high temperatures and most importantly the recovery of a scalp.

Try a quality soil wetter, a liquid kelp or seaweed and a humic acid-based soil conditioner and apply fortnightly at least a month before the cut.

Right before your match, perhaps a few days earlier, a dose of iron will help your lawn turn a lovely shade of dark green for the day. Ideally, the right regimen will ensure your lawn has an improved water holding capacity, will reduce the need for watering and put less stress on your lawn.