Lawn Aeration

Many urban soils, which were once rich farmland, have been stripped of their valuable topsoil and replaced with heavy, unfertile clay. This type of soil often is not conducive to growing healthy, thick turf. Clay soils can become easily compacted, impeding the movement of water and nutrients throughout the root zone, causing poor root growth and as a result premature drought stress.

If your lawn is or has been over-fertilized, the thatch layer can become too thick. Thatch is caused by the buildup of dead and undecayed organic matter in your turf. Too much thatch impedes the movement of water and nutrients throughout the root zone.

Furthermore, thatch provides a favorable environment for devastating turf insects and diseases to thrive.

At Barnes, Inc., we recommend doing a core aeration at least every other year, unless your lawn is newly sodded. We then recommend doing this annually for at least 3 years, then at least every other year after that. Early spring and fall are the best times to aerate because the turf is actively growing.

A way to combat these problems is with regular core aeration. A core aeration pulls "cores" of soil out of your turf and deposits them on top of the thatch layer. The natural soil microbes, which feed on thatch, are forced to feed on the thatch from the top down. Furthermore, the two to four inch deep holes left behind after aeration fill in with roots, increasing the rooting structure of your lawn. Because of this, compaction levels are reduced.

Aeration is an inexpensive way to increase the health of your lawn. At Barnes, we feel this service is an essential part of a turf maintenance program.