How to Ventilate Your Lawn (and Why You Need It)
Depending on where you live and how you look at your yard, the lawn can be a tough job. If you don’t want to take an artificial route (which has its own environmental and physical concerns), there are other ways to make your lawn care job easier. There are many small steps you can take to keep your lawn lush and green or conserve water, and one way to help stimulate lawn growth and ease landscape stress is to aerate your grass.
This is what aeration is and why you should poke holes in your yard.
What is aeration?
The grass can take deep and healthy roots, but sometimes it needs a little help. Aeration is the process of punching holes in the lawn for water and nutrients to penetrate deeper into the soil and strengthen the roots. When you have full and hydrated roots, they grow deeper, allowing the grass to stay green longer, not to mention thicker and more resilient. You won’t need to water or fertilize nearly as much as you normally would if the lawn is sufficiently ventilated.
When to ventilate your lawn
Landscaping company Briggs & Stratton explains that aeration helps slow the growth of grass, which is compacted soil: “Compacted soil contains too much particulate matter in a given volume or space, which interferes with proper circulation of air, water and nutrients in the soil.” Large amounts of straw (a densely mixed layer of organic debris such as live and dead stems, leaves and roots that accumulates where the grass stalks meet the soil) can add to a compacted lawn.
According to the site Trees.com for the care of the lawn , if you have a half-inch or more of straw, perhaps it is time to remove it and aerate the yard. Aeration can also be helpful when the lawn dries out quickly, as water may not penetrate deeply enough. If you’ve just bought a new home, the soil may be compacted due to construction, or if your lawn can withstand heavy traffic, it may compress the soil and inhibit its growth.
How to ventilate your lawn
First you need to prepare your lawn. Remove the straw layer so the aeration tools can punch through the soil properly. After removing the straw, True Green suggests watering your lawn a few days before aerating. Watering one inch into the soil will facilitate penetration. Then select the type of aeration you want, be it a spike or a plug . Peak aeration is the process of punching holes in your yard and can be done with aeration shoes , hand aerators or hand aerators , and electric aerators .
Cork aeration includes hollow spikes that pierce the soil and remove a piece of soil. This process creates a wider opening for optimal aeration. Whichever option you choose, make sure you cover the entire lawn in one direction. Home Depot suggests walking perpendicularly around the yard again. After this process is complete, you should probably fertilize or add a layer of compost (but this is not necessary). Be sure to water your lawn two or three times a week for the next few weeks to strengthen the roots.