Aeration

MECHANICAL CORE AERATION

What is core aeration?

• Core aeration is the removal of small cores of soil and thatch from your lawn.

Why aerate your lawn?

• Aeration is beneficial for your lawn in a number of ways. Aeration will overcome a compacted soil. Compacted soils make it difficult for roots to grow, limiting the movement of air, moisture and fertilizer through the soil.

• Aeration will reduce your water requirements. By relieving soil compaction, water penetration is increased and water run-off is reduced.

• If your lawn has a thick layer of thatch, aeration will punch through that layer and improve air, water and nutrient penetration. This will enhance the development of a deep root system. A deeply rooted lawn will be healthier and better able to withstand drought, disease and insect stress.

What is Thatch?

• Thatch is a layer of undecomposed living and dead plant parts which restricts root development and forms a good harbor for disease and insects.

Your Weed Man can probe your lawn to determine how thick your thatch layer is. A desirable thatch thickness is ½ inch or less.

How is aeration done?

• Specially designed aeration equipment consists of a series of hollow coring tines. When these tines are rolled over the lawn, they puncture the soil, systematically removing small soil plugs. The equipment is compact and can easily be used in confined areas.

• The cores of soil and thatch are pulled up by the machine and left on the lawn, as they contain beneficial microorganisms that will help to break down the remaining thatch.

• They will disappear back into the lawn in 7 to 10 days or with the first mowing. Raking the cores to break them up will speed up their disappearance from the lawn surface.

When should aeration be done?

• The frequency of aeration depends on the condition of the lawn.

• Aeration may be done 1 or 2 times a season. It is usually done in the spring and in the fall when the soil is moist.