Aerating Lawns

[Georgian]

I've been doing some research on aerating lawns. I found the following information, which describes the benefits of this process. I thought you would be interested.

Helps control thatch build up

Improves the soil structure

Helps create growth pockets for new roots (your lawn can easily have dead patches if you don't aerate)

Opens the way for water and fertilizer to get into the root zone.

That sounds very good.

One thing, what the dickens if "thatch"?:confused2:

 

[Green Girl]

Thatch is dead organic matter that builds up in a lawn faster than it decomposes. It could be stuff like grass stems, dead roots, and debris. (Usually grass clippings don't add to thatch, as these break down very quickly and add to the soil quality.)

 

[MowTown]

There's two ways that I know of to aerate----the hard way and the easy way. The hard way is done with a manual foot press type of tool that punches two aeration holes at a time. The easy way is to rent a core aerator that resembles a lawn mower. Either way, it can really help your lawn.

 

[TedBeal]

Thanks for the information but this is something I have never seen the need for. To be honest, my grass is pretty lush and thick already without doing this. I just have to try to get rid of the few weeds that crop up in the grass every now and again.

 

[Twinkle]

If you don't need to do this that's a big saving in time and money. If you want or need to you can get one that fits onto your mower - two jobs for the time of one! I would buy a stand alone machine if I had to very large area to deal with though.

 

[Georgian]

Thank you for all your input. Especially Green Girl for explaining about Thatch. I luckily don't have any Thatch myself. I have almost an acre to do, and I know my lawn needs it. So I plan to rent a machine. I'd love to get an add-on for my lawnmower, but I will check with the dealer and see if that is possible.

 

[cohen]

This is something new to me. One lesson a day keeps ignorance away

Just one question. How often should you aerate your lawn? What defines the frequency? This parameter may help in deciding whether the "hard" way is more cost-effective than the "easy" way.

 

[KennyV]

Just one question. How often should you aerate your lawn? What defines the frequency?

Soil type ... AND what is happening on the soil. The more the compaction the more you will need to aerate ...

Generally in mid to late spring ... it will help capture rain water...
Once a year is usually going to do it ...
Don't do it during the heat of the summer as that will only accelerate it's dry out ... :smile:KennyV

 

[kelly5]

Thatch builds up when grass clippings are not chopped finely enough with a mulching mower or if excessive clippings are not removed after cutting. To prevent thatch from accumulating, rake your lawn after mowing, especially at the end of the growing season. If you've got thatch buildup, you might need to dethatch.

 

[Willyvon]

Need for de-thatching is based on soil type, grass varieties, and moisture. I'm lucky on all those fronts, after years of mulcher mowing the leaves and twigs from our mature trees into the grass where they fell, over-seeding with endophytic tall fescue varieties(4-6' roots and kills grubs etc that try to eat it) for a couple of decades, watering it only when the color changes which has worked out to be once or twice a year in all but the driest years, and using low nitrogen, high nutrient variety, beneficial microbe infused fertilizer. The result is I've never de-thatched and have the best lawn on the block, if ocassionally maybe a little slower to show it's stuff in spring. PH adjustment up with limestone or pelletized lawn lime in the fertilizer mix goes a long way toward broad-leaf weed management, they like it lower & grass likes it higher. This year I got on the corn gluten bandwagon also. Decades ago an Iowa State ag dept person noticed where the hopper cars spilled corn, weeds didn't grow along the train tracks. Research showed it was the gluten in the corn that inhibited plant seedling roots from developing. It won't kill established weeds but will stop many weed seeds (and grass seed so time it right) from growing into mature plants in a well established lawn. There are at least 3 corn gluten products on the market, 2 from Gardens Alive and 1 from Jonathan Greene. The latter is available through your local Ace Hardware. A pretty good grass seed like mine is also sold now by Ace, Jonathan Greens "Black Beauty", an endophytic tall fescue mix.