Height of Cut Guide for a Cricket Square

Height of Cut Guide for a Cricket Square is just that a guide to height of cuts over the cricket year, with some small explanations to each season helping you decide on your final height of cuts. I shall break down heights by season as below.

Spring- 15-22mm

• Gradually prior to the first game reduce from the winter hoc to the spring hoc.
• This range will help the plant to thicken and dry out the square prior to the first games, in and around pre season rolling
• Aim to be at 12-15mm by the start of the first game

In Season-Square 12-18mm / Wicket 5-12mm

• Hoc of wickets over the years have increase but final hoc is dependent on grass density, location, standard of cricket and possible format and surface levels
• Always box off clippings, whatever time of year
• Preparing for renovations, reduce HOC as low as possible without scalping the surface usually around 4/6 mm. This will give the seed a chance to come through and make topdressing much easier.

Renovations- Aftercare 30-40mm

• First cut after renovations within a range of 30-40 mm, reducing to the winter hoc below over a number of cuts, often started with rotary mower
• Ensure blade/cylinder is sharpe, to prevent tearing of the new leaf
• Don’t remove more than a third of the leaf in any one cut

Winter- 18-22mm

• Often with a cylinder mower cutting as growth demands 10-12 months a year
• This range ensures good air flow around the base of the plant but also helps with plant density
• Longer shoot, longer roots but also need to manage density and disease risk

Printable Version

The outfield

Outfield 12-20 mm in summer & 20-30mm in winter, based on dual sports sites and if rugby even higher.

I believe there will be some variants in this Cricket Square Height of Cut Guide, but as a basic guide its a good starting point, but local knowledge of the groundsperson on site can not be beaten.

Brian on behalf of the TurfCareBlog.com Community

Need more guidance, then why not check out my Annual Guide to the Maintenance of Cricket Squares eBook- https://turfcareblog.com/annual-guide-to-the-maintenance-of-cricket-squares/

for more guidance of cutting the square please see this blog by the GMA – https://resources.thegma.org.uk/cricket/cricket-mowing-square#:~:text=During%20the%20playing%20season%2C%20mowing,and%20the%20frequency%20of%20mowing.

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