Rolling will still be a key maintenance regime in June, using a 1-1.5 tonne roller to periodically roll the courts, both down and across the line of play when conditions allow. Try to achieve between 6-10 hours of rolling in any one given week prior to matches.

The rolling, and the fact that soil profiles are now drying out, will produce firmer, faster courts. This month sees the continuation of regular maintenance tasks; grass cutting, grooming, brushing, aerating, feeding and watering.

Quality of cut is important; ensure your mowers are adjusted correctly and are sharp. Badly adjusted and blunt cylinder blades will cause a number of problems - tearing of the grass plant, ribbing and scalping, leading to poor presentation and the likelihood of plant stress or disease. Brushing and verti-cutting will help stand the sward up and improve the quality of cutting.

Mowing regimes will be dictated by the amount of play, the weather and what tournaments you may have. As a general rule of thumb, most courts should be cut a minimum of three times a week at a height of around 7-8mm, however some clubs do like to mow daily to maintain presentation and improve the quality of the sward.

Ideally, you should be brushing on a daily basis to remove early morning dew.

Keeping the sward dry helps prevent disease attack. Verticutting on a fortnightly, or even a weekly basis, helps thin the sward and remove lateral growth, thus allowing good air circulation around the leaf blade which, in turn, increases respiration and transpiration rates of the grass plant.

You may need to stop verticutting operations if the courts become too dry.

It is essential to have water available for irrigation purposes. Irrigation is required for court preparation and repairs. Ensure that the water gets down into the rootzone, a minimum of 150mm, to encourage deep rooting. Check with a probe.

Allow to dry out and repeat the irrigation process. Allowing surfaces to remain dry can lead to problems of dry patch, a condition that prevents water into the soil, thus forming areas of non-uniform turf quality. To help overcome dry patch, the use of wetting agents have now become an integral part of the maintenance regime, with applications being applied on a monthly basis throughout the summer.

Most natural grass courts have a clay loam top soil profile, ideally having 18% clay content, which can become compacted under moist conditions. It is essential to keep the playing surfaces open with adequate aeration regimes. During the playing season, however, it is best to refrain from using deep aerators and just use a sarel roller to spike the top 4mm only. Aerating with deeper tines could lead to the courts drying out too quickly and cracking.

Keep an eye open for any fungal disease attack, and use approved fungicides to treat the infected areas.

Keep your turf fertilised, but sparingly, to help maintain vigour and colour. It is often best to use liquid products during the playing season, as you have more control over the application and they work more efficiently. Applying Everris Greenmaster Spring & Summer 12+4+6 Liquid Fertiliser product will suffice and give the results you desire. Overdosing with high N fertilisers will only lead to lush growth which, in turn, will affect traction and wear on the courts.

Marking is important, lines need to be clean, straight and accurate; ensure your marking machine is cleaned and serviced, checking that all the components are working properly. There is northing worse than using a marker that drips and produces poor line quality. It will reflect on your workmanship. Remember to use string lines for accuracy. Also invest in a good quality paint products, there are plenty to choose from that will suit your requirements and budget.