Did you just air your lawn in the last six months ? Have you noticed some discolored areas in your otherwise green lawn ? Or maybe some puddles have been forming on the lawn after a rainstorm ? Perhaps you noticed your neighbors working on their lawn maintenance and see them air ? We ’ve researched how often to aerate your lawn to shed some light on the best lawn maintenance routine .
Your lawn should be aerated once a yr . Your lawn needs nutrients , water , and aviation to maintain a good for you ecosystem . Over time , your lawn gets compacted down , reducing adequate intake of the nutrient , urine , and air it needs . Aeration helps spread out up the compacted grime to increase the absorption of these three necessities . This leave in a intelligent , plush fleeceable lawn .
Now that you have a canonical understanding of what aeration does and why it is needed , continue reading to find out just how to air your lawn . We will also have an in - depth looking at at some other common questions about aeration .
Why should you aerate your lawn?
Aerating loosens the ground and help in manage the thatch or layer of stagnant dope .
Additionally , aerate :
You should be aerating your lawn annually at a lower limit . If you have a lawn that is in unsmooth shape with heavy thatch build - up , discoloration , and puddles , you will want to aerate twice a year until your lawn ameliorate . Then reduce it back to p.a. .
Testing Compactedness
To essay the soil compactedness , you will want to grab a screwdriver or other alloy objective . advertise the screwdriver into the ground . If the screwdriver goes into the ground with ease , then your soil is not compacted . If the screwdriver is hard to push into the grime , that is a sign aeration is needed .
Soil compaction affects the beginning growing of your Gunter Grass . When you have heavily compacted soil , it makes it unmanageable for the antecedent to absorb water , maintain them shallow and thus reducing the increment of the weed .
When to aerate
For annual aeration , it is best to aerate in the fall . September and October are ideal . November and December are still okay for aeration , but you will need to aerate prior to the first freeze and snow of the year . Once it freezes or snowfall occurs , the ground is too hard for aeration , and the grass wo n’t be able to convalesce .
If your soil is heavily compacted , it may be necessary to keep a function of oxygenate twice a class . If aerating twice a year , it is good to aerate in the former spring and fall .
How to aerate
There are multiple options available to oxygenize your lawn . you could choose to get a mechanically skillful aerator ; these come as a button fashion model or a tow - behind simulation you could bond to a riding lawnmower .
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There are also specific thick aeration machine uncommitted for purchase or rental at most home improvement store .
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The last option is simple aeration shoes . Many advise against the aeration place unless you have a very heavyset small lawn as it takes a lot of labor and time to oxygenate with shoes .
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To aerate your lawn , you will want tofollowthese steps :
Here is a helpful telecasting on aeration :
Should you mow before or after aeration?
You should mow your lawn before aeration . This thin back the excess grass and help the grunge engage the body of water you apply prior to aeration . This , in number , helps the aeration method get through the land resulting in more efficient and effectual aeration , maximise the consequence .
Should you water your lawn prior to aeration?
You will want to irrigate your lawn a day or two prior to aeration . You want the grease to be moist but not wet , and you definitely do not desire dry soil . If the soil is soaked or totally dry , the simple machine will not decent aerate .
Which is better: spike or plug aerator?
ballyhoo aerators remove little plugs of grease as they aerate from the solution zona . This improves the structure of your soil and is best for pack together soil .
The sound time to aerate with a plug aerator is during the peak growing period as not to stress the grass too much . That means former spring or descend for your cool - weather grasses . Aerate in tardy spring or early summer for your warm - weather grasses .
Spike aerator do n’t disturb the soil too much and can be used any prison term of the twelvemonth . Depending on what you are after determines which aerator is a better fit .
If you just want simple aeration and do n’t have to a great extent compress soil a spike aerator will be okay . If you really need to improve on the soil anatomical structure , it is best to go with a quid aerator .
How many times should you aerate your lawn a year?
If your lawn looks brown , has a labored Edward Thatch layer , or you notice thinning areas , you will want to oxygenize twice a year until the lawn improves . Experts recommend both spring and flow for lawns in these conditions . Once the lawn has improved and look healthier , you may slim the aerating to once annually .
If you are just maintaining a healthy lawn , annual aeration along with seeding and fertilizing should be perfectly tolerable to keep up the health of your lawn .
Can you aerate your lawn too much?
You ca n’t really over aerate your lawn . However , if you choose to aerate more than twice a class , it can become a fount of wasted labor with a diminished paying back . Once adequately aerated , the soil can only improve so much .
You really should n’t need to aerate more than once annually if your lawn is looking healthy anyway . It ’s important to terminate your aeration routine with fertiliser and supergrass seed for best results .
What time of year should you aerate a lawn?
The practiced time of year to air out your lawn is when it ’s at a peak growing period . That way of life , after you oxygenate , the lawn has a chance to recover quickly , dispersing the solution emergence and permit for sufficient assimilation of the excess nutrients and atomic number 8 .
other spring or fall whole shebang best . If spreading forage seeded player , you will want to check that to oxygenate in the spring , so the grass seminal fluid has the full summer and decent time to grow , thicken your lawn .
Is it OK to aerate the lawn in summer?
Aerating in the summertime calendar month can work for certain grass types . You will desire to make indisputable you know your specific forage eccentric . calculate on the eatage , warm conditions grasses for example ( usual in the Southeastern United States ) , can benefit from summertime aeration .
Warm weather grasses let in :
If you have cool weather sens , usual in cold weather climates , aerating in the summer wo n’t necessarily kill the smoke but it will put unnecessary stress on it which will ensue in unhealthy looking eatage . These nerveless - conditions grasses respond best when air in the dip or early spring .
Cool - weather condition smoke admit :
If using a unproblematic spike aerator or aerator shoes you could activate anytime you would like . This does n’t agitate the ground structure too much and will not put any accent on the grass .
Does lawn aeration really work?
Many citizenry run to cogitate lawn aeration is a whatsis or unneeded . It really is not a whatchamacallit and is very good for the lawn . It is a highly effective elbow room to reduce soil concretion and increase nutrients in the grass , thus lead in a green , blockheaded , goodly lawn . Though it is important to fecundate and spread Mary Jane seed after the aeration as the final steps in your lawn care maintenance .
In Summary
We desire after finishing this clause you have a better sympathy of lawn aeration along with how , when , and why to aerate . If you have not been oxygenize your lawn on an annual basis , we extremely recommend add it to your lawn guardianship checklist for fall or former spring !
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