Return To ... "It is Happening ...... The Work has Started ...... September 2009" ... Index Page
and this page includes twenty-four photos and one video
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Rebuilding of Diamond One

PAGE #01 - How the field has progressed - BELOW
Sunday 4th October 2009 to Wednesday 27th January 2010
grass is starting to grow ... picking up rocks and sticks ... first mowing ... spreading gypsum
pulling out sensitive weed ... top dressing the infield ... changing the soil mixture in the running
tracks and skinned infield ... the bauxite has been delivered ... sensitive weed

PAGE #02 - How the field has progressed - CLICK HERE
Sunday 21st February 2010 to Sunday 21st March 2010
marking the dirt to grass edges ... mound position and height ... the bags of bauxite have been
dragged on to the diamond ... unfired clay bricks being put in the catcher and batter's boxes
chipping the dirt to grass edges ... spreading and levelling the bauxite
mowing the infield ... aerial and panoramic photos

PAGE #03 - How the field has progressed - CLICK HERE
Wednesday 24th March 2010 to Friday 2nd April 2010
inground supports for first, second and third base ... aerial and panoramic photos
collecting ant bed for the mound from the Tablelands

PAGE #04 - How the field has progressed - CLICK HERE
Wednesday 7th April 2010 to Sunday 11th April 2010
marking out and building the mound ... buried 'secrets'
shaping the top and front of the mound with ant bed ... crusher dust for the outside slopes

PAGE #05 - How the field has progressed - CLICK HERE
Monday 12th April 2010 to Friday 16th April 2010
final touches to the mound ... unfired clay bricks added to the foot mark / hole
the mound is finished ... marking the field for the first time and it's ready
the first game and the first home run ... the highly qualified grounds crew

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this page includes around 40 photos and 1 video and, yes, I know that's a lot
however, it's the best way to look at the growth of the grass, etc
so just be patient while it downloads completely ... will not take long !!

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Sunday 4th October 2009

The ground work by 'LDI Constructions' has finished ... Seed has been planted
and this is how the field looked when it was handed back to the Baseball League

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Saturday 10th October 2009

A week later ... and after millions of gallons of water, there is a 'tinge of green'

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Saturday 17th October 2009

After a fortnight there is great grass coverage

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Saturday 24th October 2009

Three weeks following completion ...

... and below is the infield from home plate ...

... and looking in from second base ... and the seeded rows are clearly visible

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Sunday 25th October 2009

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Following the heavy watering,
lots of debris from the new soil
had worked its way to the surface

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These shots of the Players and their Wives
were taken during a 'working bee'
that was held to pick up rocks and sticks

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Tuesday 17th November 2009

Starting to look like a baseball field ...

... and the infield and foul ball areas are ready for their first mowing ...

... which the outfield has already had

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Monday 30th November 2009

Looking great after two months of sun and water ... and plenty of each !!

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Thursday 3rd December 2009

LDI Constructions suggested the application of gypsum to the entire field
One-and-a-half tonnes was delivered ... and this is the massive piece of equipment that was on hand to spread it ...

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... but fortunately sanity prevailed
and this Company donated a spreader truck and driver

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The job was done in twenty minutes !!

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Saturday 12th December 2009

!!--Sensitive Weed--!!

Before the reconstruction the field did not have any of this "bastard of a plant"
but now it is completely infested ... both the infield and outfield

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A working bee was held today to pull it out ... plant by plant

Starting on the infield, a lot was got rid of
BUT
there are still millions of plants spread all over the field

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Click on the picture opposite to read a
Queensland Government Fact Sheet on "mimosa pudica"
which also includes a list of poisons for its control

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Tuesday 15th December 2009

Top Dressing the Infield

Double-washed-sand was used and this was spread by hand ...

... and this drag mat was then used to work it down and level the surface ... it did a terrific job !! ...

... and here is the finished result

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Wednesday 23rd December 2009

How the field is looking after eleven weeks

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Saturday 9th January 2010

After checking it out when both wet and dry, it was decided that the mixture of soils used in the running tracks and infield cutouts
may not be an ideal surface to play on and this video shows a bobcat removing the soil
The new 'brickies loam' was delivered within a couple of days
and has now been spread and this will be finished off with a layer of bauxite

In the video, Brett and Ritchie are the truck drivers
plus Ritchie can be seen pulling out, you guessed it, sensitive weed
On the grandstand are Tanya and her friend, Bethany

1 minute 53 seconds

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video address = http://www.ronebergcairns.com/2010onwards/general2010_0270.flv

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Wednesday 27th January 2010

Here is a look from the Canteen / Clubhouse area

Cairns has had over a week of steady rain ... and at times, it's been torrential !!

As mentioned on Saturday 9th January above, the new base soil has been added to the infield cutouts

A look down the first base line ...

... and towards third base ...

... and near the home run fence are the bags of bauxite ready to go on the tracks and infield playing areas

First and second base playing areas ... just a bit wet at the moment !!

Below is a close look at the infield surface ... and the grass still needs to 'thicken up' quite a lot

There's been enough rain !! ... the sun must come out !!
plus it's been impossible to keep the grass short which would also promote 'sideways growth'

The field will be mown as soon as it is dry enough to do so

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The bloody sensitive weed is growing

The damn stuff spreads about an inch a day !!

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This shot, taken in the first base foul ball area,
shows the extent of the problem

Like the mowing,
this will be tackled as soon as there is some fine weather

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and now CLICK HERE to go to PAGE #02

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