A healthy lawn is a beautiful addition to any property. To ensure your grass stays in peak condition, it's important that you maintain it properly. Scheduling an appointment to have a professional aerate your lawn is a great way to start. Read on to learn more about this essential process and the problems it helps to address.

What Is Thatch?

The grass and plants that make up your lawn produce debris that settles down in between the individual blades. This layer of debris can contain both dead and living organic matter such as stems or shoots. As a whole, this material is called thatch. While it can insulate the roots of the grass, it also blocks sunlight and moisture. Without these essential nutrients, the health of your grass will suffer. Additionally, thatch is a great hiding place for bugs, which can lead to uncomfortable encounters with insects while you're enjoying your yard. Thatch is not something you can prevent, but you can control it with regular lawn maintenance.

What Is Aeration?

When you aerate the lawn, you're opening the soil back up so that the grass can be healthier. Aeration controls thatch by poking holes through the layer of debris. This creates a path for air and moisture to reach the soil and nourish your lawn. While it's possible to create some holes yourself, this will only address surface issues, and can't compare to aeration performed by an expert with specialty equipment.

How Does Aeration Help My Soil?

Compacted soil doesn't let water and fertilizer flow down easily. Sometimes the compaction is a natural feature, such as with clay soils that are very dense. However, even nice, loamy soils can become compacted if they are walked on. You want to aerate your lawn so that the soil is loosened up and moisture and food can reach the roots of the grass.

How Often Do I Need Aeration?

For lawns that don't have many issues, you can aerate about every two or three years, according to The Spruce. If the lawn does have more pervasive problems, such as severe compaction or a lot of thatch that just keeps building up, you'll want to aerate more often. Simple jobs may need only a pitchfork and elbow grease, but more difficult jobs may need aeration equipment. It's best to allow a gardener or landscaping company to complete this process, especially if you're not familiar with what proper aeration looks like.

What Should I Do After Aeration?

After your lawn is aerated, it's wise to combine this process with other maintenance tasks such as fertilizing or overseeding. A lawn care company can also assist you with these jobs.

If you've never aerated your lawn, call a lawn services company to get started. Our team at Weed Solutions Inc can aerate your lawn properly so that the grass continues to get the nutrition and water it craves. Contact us to get your lawn the care it needs!