Lawn tennis and croquet lawn maintenance

Lawn tennis and croquet hold a special place in the hearts of the British and there are plenty of examples of active and redundant courts in the county. 

Many of our marvel at the courts at Wimbledon each year.  While recreating the same look and play as the centre court is perhaps somewhat unrealistic, it is possible to have a reasonable lawn tennis court, or croquet lawn, if you are prepared to allow time for maintenance and in some cases renovation.  You can do this yourself or you now have the option of employing Great Grass to look after it for you, leaving you time for some extra coaching for your double handed backhand, or perfecting your croquet swing! 

While it is important to have a smooth lawn surface, it is not necessary for it to be completely horizontal.  With a grass court it is important that the surface is firm, yet it should have enough give to offset fatigue and undue jarring during play. 

To create your own grass court you need an area approximately 30 m by 15 m.

The ‘ideal’ grass seed mixture is 40% Dwarf Ryegrass, 25% Chewing’s Fescue, 25% Slender Creeping Red Fescue and 10% Brown Top Bent – a reliable seed firm will help here.  It is possible to breath life back into an old court providing the grass mix is still reasonable.  It is common for coarse grasses, such as Yorkshire Fog, to invade established turt and if it is too well established reseeding may be necessary.

Nigel Jupe (right) advises Mr MacBrayne on renovation of his tennis court in Fakenham.

After a fertilizer and weed control programme this summer, it will be scarified and aerated in the autumn. “We are keen to bring the court back into play after a few years where we have not had time to pay it the necessary attention,” says Mr MacBrayne. “I’m pleased and surprised at how quickly progress has been made. The grass now looks far healthier and we are getting good moss and weed control.
I am looking forward to creating a good playing surface for 2004. “

As with all summer sports preparation, or maintenance, begins as soon as the playing season ends.

In autumn it is important to scarify the surface and remove fibrous material and prostrate grass stems. It is also a key time to aerate the surface to relieve compaction.  Typically the area around the base line tends to become compacted, resulting in poor grass growth and even bare patches.  It may be necessary to apply seed or turf to these areas.  

At this time of the year I would also recommend applying a good quality autumn fertilizer with a moss control element.  

Every three years or so, it is a good idea to apply an overall top-dressing of a loam based material.   Although if there are any depressions in the surface these should be filled in on a yearly basis. 

During winter you may need to keep mowing lightly, especially now the winters are milder.  As a rule of thumb you should aim to keep the grass height at approximately 18 mm (3/4 inch) over the winter months. 

As with any lawn, it is advisable to remove fallen leaves as soon as possible to  help stop fungal diseases developing.

In Spring you should start to reduce the height of the grass a little at a time.  Mowing is very important to encourage the grasses to tiller out and prevent weeds establishing.  I would also recommend applying a spring fertilizer, with a high nitrogen content, to get things moving!  

If the surface is slightly spongy, a light scarify may be the answer.

And so to summer when your thoughts drift from maintenance to actually getting out there and playing!

In early summer weed control may be important and another feed may be necessary.  During a prolonged dry period, you should irrigate to avoid damage to the grass.

To many, a lawn tennis court or croquet lawn is as quintessentially English as a rose garden.  Well maintained, they will not only be more enjoyable to play on but can be an attractive garden feature in their own right. 

 If lawn maintenance is not your thing, you can now employ Great Grass - Norfolk’s specialist lawn agronomy company to carryout the work for you using professional products and specialist lawn care machinery, leaving you with just the mowing and the problem of who to invite round for a game!