Why aerating your lawn

Immediately after aeration, your lawn will be dotted with small plugs pulled from the soil. Within a week or two, they break apart and disappear into the lawn. About 7 to 10 days after aeration, the aerification holes will be filled with white, actively growing roots — a sign that the turfgrass is receiving additional oxygen, moisture and nutrients from the soil.

On compacted soils and on lawns with slopes, you should see an immediate difference in water puddling and runoff after irrigation or rainfall. After aeration, your lawn should be able to go longer between waterings, without showing signs of wilt. With repeat aerations over time, your lawn will show enhanced heat and drought stress tolerance. Remember, most lawns benefit from annual aeration. Compacted soils have reduced air spaces and more resistance to root growth than noncompacted soils.

Compacted soils are dense and cause water to puddle and run off. Core Aeration: The mechanical removal of small plugs of soil and thatch from the lawn. Dethatching: The process of removing the thatch layer from turf, the layer of dead and decaying plant tissue located between the soil surface and the green vegetation. This process is usually done mechanically with a dethatching unit or power rake. Power Rake : Turf equipment that mechanically removes thatch with rigid wire tines or steel blades, which slice through the turf and lift the thatch debris to the surface for removal.

Thatch: The layer of dead and decaying plant tissue located between the soil surface and the green vegetation. A thin layer of thatch is beneficial because it reduces soil compaction and it increases wear tolerance. Thatch also makes an excellent breeding ground for harmful insects and disease organisms. Depending on your needs and location, find the most appropriate RYAN dealerships near you. All Rights Reserved. Find A Ryan. Sod Cutters. Sod Cutter Jr. Sod Cutter — Hydro.

Golf Course Management. Sports Turf And Municipalities. Professional Lawn Care. Compare Products. View All Articles. Aerating adds a layer of top-dressing to your lawn. Aerating your lawn is like giving it top-dressing. This reason alone makes me want to aerate my lawn twice a year. Lawn aeration reduces runoff.

When you aerate your lawn, the water goes into the ground and not just over the top of it. Lawn aeration, as the name implies, makes it easier for your lawn to breathe. Your lawn can more readily exchange oxygen and carbon dioxide with the environment when you aerate it.

Find many more reasons to aerate your lawn online. Next Winter Waterland Next. Share on facebook. Share on twitter. Share on linkedin. Share on reddit. Share on email. Quick Links. If you live where heavy clay soil is the norm, annual aeration is probably needed to keep your lawn from becoming thin and weak. Dethatching and aerating are two different tasks, but they often go hand in hand.

Thatch is the layer of decomposing organic matter that forms right at the lawn surface, between soil and grass. Aggressive spreading grasses, such as Kentucky bluegrass in northern lawns and Bermudagrass down south, form more thatch than many other grass types.

Aeration helps penetrate and reduce thatch buildup or prep it for removal through dethatching. If your grass often looks stressed and your soil is hard to the touch or rainwater puddles up where it used to be absorbed, you may have compaction problems. Confirm your suspicions with a simple "screwdriver test. It should slide in fairly easily.

If you meet resistance, your soil is compacted, and aeration can help. As with most larger lawn projects, such as planting grass seed , it's best to aerate during or right before the time your grasses reach their peak time for natural growth. Aeration is good for lawns, but it can stress grass if timed improperly.

Never aerate dormant lawns. For cool-season grasses common in northern lawns, early fall or early spring are the best times for aerating. For warm-season grasses common to southern lawns, the best time for aerating is late spring or very early summer. When aeration coincides with active growth, grasses recover quickly and fill in areas where aerator equipment exposes soil. Aerating is easiest on you or your equipment operator and your lawn when your soil is moist from irrigation or rainfall the day before.

Overly dry soil can be tough to aerate, so moisture eases the process. Never aerate overly wet lawns; wait a few days instead.