How to Perform Lawn Aeration Depending on the General Condition of the Soil
The process of lawn aeration is vital for a healthy lawn in Green Bay. As the name suggests, the aeration refers to the process of letting the lawn, as well as the ground beneath it breathe.
The pile of leaves that are covering your lawn do not let it receive enough oxygen, therefore, they must be removed. It is recommended to deal with this thatch during spring or fall, to keep your lawn in the best condition possible. Spring is the recommended period for the aeration of the lawns that consist of warm-season grass (i.e.: Bermuda grass, Buffalo grass, St. Augustine grass, zoysia), while fall is an appropriate aeration period for Northern lawns. If you perform the aeration during the recommended period, you will be able to keep the lawn thatch under control.
There are basically two major ways to perform the lawn aeration. The easiest way, apart from resorting to a lawn service provider that will take the burden off your hands, is to poke holes in it; the simplest and fastest way to do this is to walk over the lawn, wearing a pair of spiked shoes. Another thing you can do in order to aerate your lawn is to push a rod into it. However, these methods only work on mild cases, when the lawn only needs superficial treatment in order to receive the air it needs.
The thatch should be thoroughly removed in fall. You should do this by raking deeply, because only the skimming of the leaves will not be enough.
For the soil that is in a severe condition, being deeply compacted, you will need to perform core aeration. This kind of lawn aeration requires a special tool, which can be rented from one of the rental centers in your area. With the help of this lawn aerator, you will be able to extract plugs of soil. As a result, your compacted lawn will finally be able to breathe. The depth at which you will perform the extraction of the plugs is about 2-3 inches. In order to make this process easier, you should water your lawn in advance (24 hours before the aeration). However, make sure the lawn does not become muddy.
Severe cases (where the thatch is more than 3-4 inches thick) require a vertical mower, in order to perform the aeration. If you are in this situation, it is highly recommended that you resort to a lawn service provider, to help you aerate your lawn properly.
Lawn aeration has some major benefits, such as oxygenizing the soil and the roots, loosening up the compacted soil for the roots to grow, and enabling the action of water and organic fertilizers, by offering them deep access.
Aeration should be done with an increased frequency for the areas that are heavily circulated and suffer the consequences of the increased foot traffic.
If your lawn is in a pretty good condition, you may perform the aeration yourself, but if you have detected some severe problems, the help of a specialist will mean a lot; in addition to the lawn aeration, you may also be offered some advice about the fertilizers you should use.
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