Springtime is the Ideal Time for Lawn Aeration.

Along with taking out the lawn mower and performing regular maintenance on it for the upcoming heavy summer mowing season; a homeowner may want to consider lawn aeration to control any thick compaction and layers of thatch which has no doubt built up through the late fall and long winter months.

There are two times a year when homeowners may want to aerate their lawn, however the best time is  springtime. Using Memorial Day as bench marker has proven to be about the best time for aeration of a lawn because the weeds have formed however they have not flowered and will not shed their seeds for a few more weeks. One needs to be concerned about the weed seeds falling into the holes left behind by the aeration machine, these seed would germinate all over again, defeating part of the purpose of aeration.

Aeration is the act of ‘ventilation’ or ‘providing air’ to the grass roots by punching holes into the grass and soil with the help of a special machine. What are left is ‘finger size’ plugs that should be left scattered about the lawn because they will eventually (in about a week or so) decompose back into the ground, providing more nutrients to the grass and roots. The punctured holes allow the roots to ‘breathe’ and receive foods from fertilizers, water and air. This helps the roots repair themselves and the grass grow back straighter, stronger and thicker without weeds or thatch.

Thatch is one of the other reasons a homeowner would want to aerate their lawn in the springtime. Thatch is a thick growth of a ‘woody’ organic substance consisting of compacted soil, small twigs, leaves and dead grass that accumulates between the grass and the soil preventing the grass from receiving the water and other macrobiotic materials needed to grow.

During the first few warm days of the spring, when surveying your lawn, a homeowner could see patches of grass that seems ‘stuck’ together. These patches of matted grass are known as ‘snow mold’ and new, fresh grass may have a difficult time growing up through the tangled greenery. A deep raking and / or core aeration will help remedy the ‘snow mold’ situation so that new, straight and healthy grass will grow.

Other reasons the spring months are a good time to aerate the lawn is because pests, large and small bugs, even micro organisms become more active and could destroy a lawn in quick secession. Core aeration helps to open up the compaction and allows for the weed control and pest control to penetrate deep down into the soil better and work its way into the roots and soil where it’s most effective.

There are many different types of grasses and some might be considered warm weather and some might be considered cold weather grasses, this could play a factor in when core aeration is performed, however, typically, most grasses do well with aeration in the spring.