How does your lawn look? Is there an area where the grass is spotty and only grows is patches? If so, you may need a lawn aerator.
Compacted soil
If the soil in your lawn is compacted, you will see brown areas of earth between patches of grass. Compacted areas in lawns are often in areas where you have a lot of continuous foot traffic. The reason that grass is dying and sparse in these areas is that the soil has been pressed down so tightly that water, oxygen and nutrients are unable to reach the roots of your grass.
Lawns that have compacted areas are not only unsightly in comparison with lush lawns, compacted areas pose additional problems for garden and yard lovers. For one thing, irrigating compact areas leads to waste of water, as water will simply run off without being absorbed into the ground. This is environmentally unsound and can lead unnecessarily high water bills.
Another problem with compacted soil is that weeds such as crabgrass are not deterred by compact soil and can actually thrive over time in these areas.
Aerating lawns
What is lawn aeration? You can aerate your lawn by literally poking holes in the ground to allow water and oxygen to enter the soil and help grass roots absorb nutrients.
Lawn aerators help you to poke holes in the ground without killing your grass. Lawn aerators range from very simple manual tools to gas powered machines to equipment that can be pulled behind tractors. Some tillers have attachments available that convert the machines to lawn aerators. My personal favorite, although probably not the most effective one on the market, is a device with cleats on it that can be tied to your shoes so that you can wander around your lawn poking holes.
You will find two types of lawn aerators available on the market: core aerators and spike aerators. To understand core aerators, think of cookie dough and cookie cutters. When you make cookies, you use a cookie cutter to pull a shape out of the cookie dough. Core aerators actually pull soil and debris out of the ground, like a cookie cutter. Your cut cookies go on a cookie tray to be cooked and eaten; your lawn cores are left on the ground to decompose and be eaten back into the ecosystem. Many experts recommend core aerators over spike aerators.
Spike aerators, like my shoe attachments, poke holes in the ground. However, while you are opening up the ground, you may be adding to soil compaction because you are pushing the soil down rather than removing soil and opening up the ground. Some experts suggest that spike aerators do not impact soil compaction at all.
Timing
When is the best time to aerate you lawn? You can aerate your lawn any time during the growing season. Lawn aeration is particularly effective before a rain or before you water.
Compacted soil
If the soil in your lawn is compacted, you will see brown areas of earth between patches of grass. Compacted areas in lawns are often in areas where you have a lot of continuous foot traffic. The reason that grass is dying and sparse in these areas is that the soil has been pressed down so tightly that water, oxygen and nutrients are unable to reach the roots of your grass.
Lawns that have compacted areas are not only unsightly in comparison with lush lawns, compacted areas pose additional problems for garden and yard lovers. For one thing, irrigating compact areas leads to waste of water, as water will simply run off without being absorbed into the ground. This is environmentally unsound and can lead unnecessarily high water bills.
Another problem with compacted soil is that weeds such as crabgrass are not deterred by compact soil and can actually thrive over time in these areas.
Aerating lawns
What is lawn aeration? You can aerate your lawn by literally poking holes in the ground to allow water and oxygen to enter the soil and help grass roots absorb nutrients.
Lawn aerators help you to poke holes in the ground without killing your grass. Lawn aerators range from very simple manual tools to gas powered machines to equipment that can be pulled behind tractors. Some tillers have attachments available that convert the machines to lawn aerators. My personal favorite, although probably not the most effective one on the market, is a device with cleats on it that can be tied to your shoes so that you can wander around your lawn poking holes.
You will find two types of lawn aerators available on the market: core aerators and spike aerators. To understand core aerators, think of cookie dough and cookie cutters. When you make cookies, you use a cookie cutter to pull a shape out of the cookie dough. Core aerators actually pull soil and debris out of the ground, like a cookie cutter. Your cut cookies go on a cookie tray to be cooked and eaten; your lawn cores are left on the ground to decompose and be eaten back into the ecosystem. Many experts recommend core aerators over spike aerators.
Spike aerators, like my shoe attachments, poke holes in the ground. However, while you are opening up the ground, you may be adding to soil compaction because you are pushing the soil down rather than removing soil and opening up the ground. Some experts suggest that spike aerators do not impact soil compaction at all.
Timing
When is the best time to aerate you lawn? You can aerate your lawn any time during the growing season. Lawn aeration is particularly effective before a rain or before you water.