4.3 When are they used?
4.3.7 Water
There are two key periods for artificially (in contrast to just natural rainfall) watering a pitch.
- The end of season renovation to help seed germination and initial establishment. This is typically towards the end of April to mid-May.
- The post-renovation period, typically from mid-May to August to ensure the grass plants develops well, producing a nice dense and hard-wearing sward, so that it is ready to start the new playing season in a good condition. This is especially important where sand-gravel slit, or similar, are installed as an enhanced drainage system.
High specification sand based, especially reinforced-hybrid, pitches will also require regular watering during the playing season. However, these are primarily only used for professional pitches and premium quality (Grade 5) pitches and this is not usual for the vast majority of football pitches.
