Crabgrass encroachment

[jprop]

Hi All,

I maintain 4 baseball fileds and am dealing with the summer draught and grass encroachment in the infield clay along the back edge of all my fields. What have you found to be the best way to remove this without loosing infield clay/mix. Should a weed killer be used first and then a deep scarifier used? We have a Smithco super rake with center implement with knife blades.
We are also considering purchasing a tractor with provisions for rear tools such as a power rake and/or rototiller. Any thoughts/experiences would be great!

Jeff

[foreplease]

Jeff,
It's hard to tell without a photo how bad it is. You might try Roundup plus Scythe. Wait 3-4 days and go over it with a rented Harley Rake. Around here you can rent a tractor, trailer, and Harley Rake for about $320 for 24 hours. If you already have a suitable tractor, I think you can get the implement for around $125 a day. It does not go as deep as a tiller and won't leave the surface as loose. It is also good for pulling material around to fix low spots. I swear by them for bad infields.

If it is really all crabgrass it should die in late October but I understand your wanting to get it cleaned up. Think about using a pre-emergent in areas where you know you have a problem once you get it cleaned up. Working the dirt more often will help keep weeds out too. Good luck with it and post a photo if you can.

[ramsbaseball]

foreplease,

you mention using a pre-emergent, is there one you would recommend that you have had success using?

I have Barricade 65WG and it was not very good as a pre-emergent.

I will be using it on athletic fields with Bermudagrass.

[foreplease]

I use Pre-M EC (pendimethalin). LESCO/JDL has a combination product with gly that I do not remember the name of, but I prefer to mix separately as needed.