When we say, ‘give your lawn room to breathe, ’ we mean it. Your lawn is like any other living thing, and it needs nutrients to respire, create energy, and grow. The only difference is that while we secure these nutrients from the air, your grass gets them from the soil surrounding its roots.
But your soil can’t be nutrient-rich if it can’t absorb anything. That’s where lawn aeration comes in. This post is your introductory guide to the concept, where we’ll cover this interesting lawn care technique, offer up some benefits of aeration, and even suggest a few ways you could get it done. Let’s go.
What is Lawn Aeration?
Essentially, lawn aeration involves punching small holes into the lawn bed to improve the flow of air, water, and nutrients to the roots. You’ll usually see it done with specialised tools, which are designed to either pull out small plugs of soil (core aeration) or create holes using solid tines (spike aeration).
But why does this need to happen in the first place? Time compacts your soil, especially if your lawn is frequently walked on or driven over. Add layers of dead grass and roots, and your lawn quickly develops a barrier that blocks everything your grass needs to thrive.
Aeration breaks up that barrier, loosens the soil, and gives your grass a much better shot at healthy, deep-root growth. In both residential gardening and farming, this is an absolute ringer of a technique.
Common signs your lawn needs some love
All lawns typically require aeration at some point, but some signs indicate an immediate need for spike-based TLC. If your lawn has a few of the signs below, it’s time to get out there:
- Water is pooling on the surface of your lawn after rain
- Grass is growing unevenly or patchily
- You can see lots of thatch just under the grass blades
- The soil feels hard and difficult to dig into, even with spades or forks
- Your lawn sees a lot of use
A good rule of thumb is to use the press check. Get outside and grab a garden fork or screwdriver – something sharp – to drive into the ground. If you can’t get it past 5cm deep, then your soil is likely too compacted. Try it in a few spots to make sure you haven’t just found a rock, though.
Why Aeration is Crucial for Lawn Health
It might sound like an overstatement, but lawn aeration is one of the most important ways to look after your lawn, especially if you have pets, small children, or vehicles that frequently run across it. Here’s why regularly aerating matters so much:
- It relieves soil compaction, which can suffocate your grassroots and prevent them from growing.
- It improves air and water flow through your lawn’s system, encouraging thicker, lusher growth from all varieties.
- It lessens the impact and creation of dead grass – or ‘thatch’ – which can shade your grass into turning brown or getting sick.
- It boosts how many nutrients get into the soil, in turn encouraging your grass to absorb more nutrients over time.
In the long run, taking the time to aerate your lawn is an investment that pays off significantly. Regular aeration keeps your lawn ultra-healthy, grants you a greener turf, prevents weeds, and allows the ground to both hold and drain more water. This keeps your grass hydrated without overwatering.
Different Lawn Aeration Methods
Core Aeration
When it comes to lawn aeration, this is the gold standard. A core aerator removes plugs of soil from your lawn, creating deep holes that decompress your soil and open the way for vital water, nutrients, and other enrichment. This is by far the best method for heavy clay soils and lawns with thick hatch, both of which are common in NZ.
You also don’t have to worry about introducing any additional chemicals to your garden, as the plugs left behind simply break down, returning their organic matter to the soil over time. No green waste removal required!
Spike Aeration
Rather than removing plugs of soil, spike lawn aeration punctures small holes into the soil using tines. It’s a quick and easy approach, especially for small lawns, and can be done using everything from a pair of strap-on boots to a roller.
In some cases, this can actually compact the soil further, so it’s only ideal for long-term compaction relief in sandy or well-drained lawns.
Manual Aeration
If you’re tackling lawn aeration yourself and only have a small area to cover, a garden fork or hand aerator will generally suffice. Just drive it into the soil at regular intervals, wiggling slightly to loosen the soil, and repeat this process across your lawn.
Liquid Aeration
Finally, liquid aeration is a modern technique that utilises a liquid solution to break up compacted soil at a chemical level and increase the depth to which water can penetrate. There is some debate in the gardening community about the effectiveness of this technique, as most versions of liquid aeration incorporate surfactants – or wetting agents – arrive along with some microbiological amendments.
For some, these are a useful addition to the garden toolkit that won’t disrupt the soil too much. For others, they’re less effective than other methods. It all comes down to the results you want to see in your garden.
In short, if you have half an hour free on a Sunday morning and you’re looking for a way to improve your lawn’s health long-term, you can’t beat lawn aeration. It enriches the lawn, provides vital airflow and water, and in most cases requires absolutely no additional chemicals in your garden. Who doesn’t love that?
Aeration will also fit neatly into a seasonal lawn care program with the right professionals, so be sure to discuss what you’re after when you book with us.
Keep your lawn beautiful year-round with Paramount Gardening.
We’re Paramount Gardening, your elite property care professionals. Whether you’re a residential gardener seeking help with your year-round care or a commercial property owner with other things on your plate, our team is here to help you grow and maintain your property’s greenery with world-class expertise.
Contact us today to receive a quote for your gardening services.
