Allykat's Tales
Lawn aeration is essential for healthy grass. Grass is very hardy, and can probably go a few years with little work other than watering and mowing, but if it is not taken care of properly, it will start to die and succumb to disease, weeds, and moss in some parts of the country.
Lawn aeration opens up the ground around the roots of the grass giving the roots room to breathe. It also allows for water and nutrients to reach the roots. Because there is more room around the roots, they have more room to grow. When air it able to reach down into the soil, after aeration, microbes are more active and break up dead matter more quickly controlling thatch development. As the roots have more room to grow, and are getting more water and nutrients, the grass becomes healthier. And when the grass is healthy, it will choke out any weeds, moss, and disease that would otherwise threaten it.
Compaction becomes a problem if there is a lot of activity on the lawn, or it is in a mountainous region. If the soil becomes compacted, the roots of the grass will die, leaving room for weeds and disease. Over time, on any lawn, there is compaction and the only way to fight it is with lawn aeration.
Aerating is a fairly simple thing to do. For small lawns it may make sense to buy a small hand aerator, but for medium to large size lawns, get a lawn aerator rental. You can also use liquid aerators, but I would suggest to use them only in conjunction with a machine aerator. They are more just soil conditioners and cannot actual reach the root level without first aerating with a machine. However, they do extend the effectiveness of a manual aeration and so can be worthwhile in very compacted soil. Just be sure to get an aerator rental regularly, it will save in the long run on water, fertilizer, and weed kill.
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