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|  CORE AERATINGHomeowners often overlook problems associated with soil compaction. Insects, diseases, nematodes, improper watering and a lack of fertilizer are often blamed for a lawns decline when the real culprit is compaction. The problem starts when the top 4 inches of the soil become compressed, impeding the movement of air, water and nutrients to the grass roots. This stresses the grass plants, making them less able to compete with weeds and slow to recuperate from injury. In time a compacted lawn needs renovation.
Compacted soil contributes to the accumulation of thatch because restricted oxygen levels in highly compacted soils impair the activity of earthworms and other thatch-decomposing organisms. Left unmanaged, thatch can lead to serious maintenance and pest problems. Thatch accumulates faster on compacted soils and heavy clay soils than on well-aerified soils. Therefore, some lawns may require frequent aerification to aid in thatch control.
If soil is compacted, the solution is straightforward: aerify. The practice of physically removing cores of soil and leaving holes or cavities in the lawn is defined as core aeration or aerification.
Benefits of Core Aeration
1. Loosens compacted soil and increases the availability of water and nutrients.
2. Enhances oxygen levels in the soil, stimulating root growth and enhancing the activity of thatch-decomposing organisms.
While removing cores of soil, the spoons or tines also sever roots, rhizomes and stolons. Grass plants are stimulated to produce new shoots and roots that "fill up" the holes in the lawn and increase the density of the turf.
3. Reduces water runoff.
4. Increases the lawn's drought tolerance and improves its overall health. Timing
The type of grass will determine whether to aerify in the fall or in the summer. Lawns composed of cool-season grasses such as Kentucky bluegrass and tall fescue are best aerified in the fall, when there is less heat stress and danger of invasion by weedy annuals. Allow at least four weeks of good growing weather to help the plants recover. Warm-season grasses such as zoysiagrass, centipedegrass, carpetgrass, St. Augustinegrass and bermudagrass, on the other hand, are best aerified in late spring and summer, when they are actively growing. With either type of grass, choose a day when temperatures are mild and soil is moderately moist, which makes the soil easier to penetrate. Avoid aerifying a wet soil, as it is messy and leads to further compaction of the soil as well. If the soil sticks to your shoes or if the core sample you take sticks to your probe, you should wait until it dries out some before starting the job.
Frequency
Aerification of home lawns corrects soil problems and is generally recognized as a required maintenance discipline especially in our area. The best answer to the question, "How often should I aerify?" is, "As often as needed." One way to determine if aeration is needed is by scouting the lawn. Take a screwdriver and probe the soil. If the screwdriver penetrates the soil with little resistance, then you probably don’t need to aerify. If it is difficult to penetrate the soil with the screwdriver, then you may need to aerify. Make sure the soil is moist when testing the areas since dry soil can also be more difficult to penetrate.
Turfgrass in high traffic areas may need aerification more often than the rest of the lawn. Turfgrasses with low traffic tolerance such as centipedegrass and St. Augustinegrass may need aerifying more often than turfgrasses with good traffic tolerance, such as bermudagrass and zoysiagrass. These high traffic areas can usually be done by "hand" as described in the next section.
Large Areas
Aerifying larger lawns (1/8 acre or larger) requires a power-driven core aerator or aerifier. The working parts of these machines are spoon-shaped tines or hollow tubes. As the tubes are driven into the lawn, cores of soil are removed from the ground and strewn across the lawn. Both types of tines work equally well, but the hollow tine makes a somewhat cleaner hole than the spoon type and brings up less soil. The tine size varies up to three-quarters of an inch and in depth of penetration up to 3 inches, depending on the manufacturer’s specifications. The closer tine placement removes more soil, exposes more soil surface area for water and fertilizer movement and alleviates compaction quicker than the wider tine spacing.
Penetration depth depends on soil type, soil moisture, tine diameter, and the weight and power of the aerifier. Soil cores should be left on the lawn to be broken up by rainfall and traffic. If their appearance bothers you, you can speed up their disappearance by raking them into the grass. Whichever machine you use, go over the lawn twice, once in one direction, and then in a perpendicular direction for best results.
Aerifying and Reseeding
LawnSharks combines core aerating with overseeding and proper fertilization to give you the healthiest, disease resistant lawn on the block!! We use only the finest, highest germination seed available to the industry coupled with a very effective starter fertilizer. As`stated above, timing is everything. We complete your service in time for 4-6 weeks of pleasant fall weather to allow your grass to mature before the harsh temps of winter. LawnSharks "We're dedicated to your 100% SATISFACTION!"
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