Lawn aeration is important in almost every area of the country. According to Pennington.com, when the soil is compacted, grassroots struggle to obtain important nutrients such as air, water, and vital elements that make for a fresh, lush lawn.
For us, lawn aeration Concord NC, and surrounding areas, are critically important. The most calls for lawn aeration come in March, April, May then skip over to September, and October so that grass can be healthy by time it goes into dormancy between November and March.
The type of grasses that are most popular in general tend to be either Kentucky Bluegrass or Tall Fescue grass. It is recommended that you water your grass regularly twice a week but deep watering and aeration contribute greatly to a healthy lawn especially in the hot months, like July.
(Click here to watch Is Tall Fescue The Best Cool-Season Grass)
What Is Lawn Aeration
Lawn aeration is the process of making tiny holes in the grass in order to allow the necessary nutrients to reach the root.
According to Briggs and Stratton, you definitely should be aerating your lawn if:
- It has lots of heavy use by children in play
- Is part of a new subdivision, in which the soil was compacted by heavy equipment
- Your lawn dries out quickly
- Has a spongy texture
- The soil the lawn was created in or planted was layered
How To Tell If Your Lawn Needs Aeration
One of the obvious tell-tale signs is puddles on your lawn. Puddles indicate compacted soil.
Another is lots of worn areas, possibly due to overseeding.
Also common is watering your lawn and then it quickly becomes dry. If the soil is too compact, water has trouble getting to the roots.
Thinning grass is also another indication you need aeration. Bald patches can occur for different reasons, but one of them is due to the roots not getting enough nutrients and water.
Discolored areas, patches of brown and yellow, are a sure sign you need aeration.
Another indication of a compaction problem is when your yard just stops growing.
Lots of thatch on your lawn is another sure sign you need aeration.
Finally, there is the screwdriver test. The purpose of this test is to give you a good indication of whether your lawn needs aeration or not. Though it is not a complete guarantee one way or the other it can give you a strong indication of the health of your ground.
Put a screwdriver into the ground, and if it takes quite a bit of pressure to insert the screwdriver, you more than likely have an aeration problem.
The Step By Step Aeration Process
Once you have determined that your lawn needs aeration, we recommend that you don’t proceed to aerate your lawn without being adequately informed as there is a specific step-by-step procedure that must take place.
Step one is to water your lawn with at least 1 inch of water one or two days before you plan to aerate.
A simple way to test whether you have enough water on your lawn or not is to place an empty tuna can on the lawn as you water. When the tuna can is full, you have enough water.
At the same time, flag any warning areas you don’t want t