Lawn aeration involves perforating your yard to break up compacted soil. While the holes used are only a few inches deep, they promote the flow of air, water, and nutrients to the roots. Regular aeration reduces thatch buildup, encourages root growth, and leads to dense, healthy lawns. Here is an overview of this lawn care service and how it benefits your yard:
How Lawn Aeration Is Done
Landscapers use machine aerators to perform lawn aeration. Aerators are special equipment featuring spikes, plugs, or blades. Spike, core, and slicing aerators are the three types used for lawn aeration. Some aerators are small and require manual operation, while others are large and motorized.
Spike aerators feature spike-like tines that poke holes into the soil, while core aerators use rows of hollow tines. Core aerators are the preferred choice for lawn care service professionals, and they remove soil plugs from the turf. Core aerator tines come in varying widths and depths, and the removed plugs of soil are deposited on top of your lawn. Slicing aerators use rotating blades that cut through the grass, thatch, and soil to break up compaction. Spike and slicing aerators usually leave the soil in the ground.
Benefits of Regular Aeration
The main benefit of lawn aeration is to break up the soil and prevent the unwanted impacts of compaction. Compacted soil doesn’t let in enough air, water, and nutrients for the roots and organisms. Soil deficient in water and nutrients results in malformed roots and thin, discolored grass. Compaction can lead to shallow roots and increased lawn diseases. Your lawn may have compacted soil because of foot traffic, strong rainstorms, or previous construction. Soil with high clay content is more easily compacted than lawns with sandy soil.
Compaction increases the risk of soil erosion caused by water runoff. Erosion washes away the nutrients, fertilizer, and organic matter from your top soul, resulting in less fertile lawns. Compact soil leads to rainwater pools and ponding, which are breeding sites for pests and diseases. These unwanted impacts result in an increased need for irrigation, fertilizer, seeding, and pesticides. Lawn care companies offer aeration to achieve the following benefits:
Prevent Water Runoff
Aerating your lawn reduces water runoff, puddles, and swamping, which can kill your grass and provide breeding grounds for pests. Runoff is common in compacted soil because the water cannot infiltrate the soil fast enough. Aeration loosens the soil, allowing rainwater and irrigation to seep into the lawn.
Improve Nutrient Uptake
Lawn aeration improves air circulation, allowing the soil to absorb more nitrogen and oxygen. Breaking up compacted soil allows fertilizer to penetrate deeper into the roots. Growing strong, resilient, healthy grass requires improved nutrient uptake. Increased nitrogen uptake promotes greener-looking lawns because nitrogen is needed to produce chlorophyll.
Fight Lawn Diseases
Plants and animals require water and nutrients to produce disease-fighting compounds. Compaction prevents these nutrients from reaching the roots, where they can be absorbed. Aerating your lawn allows the grass to assimilate enough water and nutrients to fight diseases. Dense, healthy grass is more resilient to drought conditions and weed competition.
Reverse the Effects of Foot Traffic
Aeration helps to break up soil that has been compacted by foot traffic. If you have children and pets playing on your lawns, the soil will gradually become compact. Regular aeration counters this compaction, keeping your lawn breathable.
Reduce Maintenance Requirements
Regular aeration reduces the need for dethatching, watering, and fertilization. Aeration promotes the growth of soil insects, earthworms, bacteria, fungi, and other beneficial organisms. These organisms require optimal circulation of oxygen, water, and nutrients and help to maintain soil fertility.
Schedule Professional Lawn Care Service Today
Lawn aeration schedules are carefully planned to improve soil conditions and promote optimal grass growth. Schedule aeration services to fix and prevent dry patches, discolored grass, or other signs of compaction. Contact a professional landscaper today to find out more about aeration and other lawn care service schedules and programs.