when should i aerate my yard

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When Should I Aerate My Yard?

The best time for aeration is during the growing season, when the grass can heal and fill in any open areas after soil plugs are removed. Ideally, aerate the lawn with cool season grass in the early spring or fall and those with warm season grass in the late spring.

What is the best month to aerate my lawn?

spring

When to Aerate Your Lawn

You want to aerate the lawn when your grass is in its peak growing period so it can recover quickly—think early spring or fall for cool-season grasses, and late spring through early summer for warm-season grasses.

When should you not aerate your lawn?

Spring is not the ideal time to aerate the lawn, but circumstances may require it. If the soil is so compacted that existing grass can’t grow, it may be necessary to aerate in the spring. 1 Generally, though, spring aerating is discouraged because the aeration holes provide a perfect spot for weed seeds to germinate.

How do I know if my lawn needs to be aerated?

10 Signs It’s Time To Aerate & Seed Your Lawn

It’s Fall or Spring. The fall is the perfect season to aerate and seed your lawn. …
Puddles. Puddles are an indication of compacted soil. …
Worn Areas. Patches in the yard? …
Inability to Moisten. …
Thinning Grass. …
Discolored Areas. …
Uniformly Thin and Dull. …
Yard Stopped Growing.

What should I do before I aerate my lawn?

What to Do Before Aerating Your Lawn

Mow your lawn before watering and aerating it.
Be sure to water your lawn thoroughly two days before aeration. …
Avoid aerating immediately after an extended period of rainfall. …
Mark sprinkler heads, cables, septic lines, and any other obstacle that may be in the way while aerating.

Is it too early to aerate my lawn?

Never aerate dormant lawns. For cool-season grasses common in northern lawns, early fall or early spring are the best times for aerating. For warm-season grasses common to southern lawns, the best time for aerating is late spring or very early summer.

Is it better to dethatch or aerate?

A dethatcher works well when you have a lot of dead grass on top of the soil, making the lawn feel spongy. An aerator is best used when the core has a thick layer of thatch, usually more than 0.5 inches.

Is aerating your lawn worth it?

Is lawn aeration necessary? Almost all lawns will benefit from aeration, and a great lawn demands it. That said, most lawns do not need it. Lawns suffering from heavy foot traffic, excessive thatch (>1 inch thick) or grown on heavy soils will benefit most.

How Much Should lawn aeration cost?

Professional Lawn Care Aeration and Treatment

The cost to aerate your lawn by hiring a lawn care company is about $15 to $17 per thousand square feet. The average lawn size is about ten thousand square feet, making the average aeration cost around $150.

Can you aerate too much?

Loose soil doesn’t need to be aerated very often. … Especially thick types of grass may also call for aerating more frequently. As a general rule, you shouldn’t need to aerate more than once a year at any time (“too much of a good thing” applies here, since you don’t want to damage your soil).

Should I cut my grass before aerating?

Before you aerate, mow your lawn low (Timberline lawn experts recommend setting your mower to about 1.5-2 inches above the ground to maximize the effectiveness of aerating, being sure to not scalp the crown of the grass.) You will want to water one to three days before aerating.

Should I pick up plugs after aerating?

Those aeration plugs are vital to the health of your lawn. Resist the urge to “clean” the lawn after it’s been aerated, and whatever you do, don’t remove the plugs.

Should you aerate your lawn every year?

No, it’s not necessary to aerate your lawn every year, especially if your grass is healthy and thriving. Aeration is good if you’ve got compacted, poor or clay-heavy soil that’s been impacted by heavy equipment or lots of foot traffic. It’s also good to aerate if you are renovating a yard or installing a new one.

Should you water lawn after aeration?

Watering Your Lawn After Aeration

You should not water the day of because your lawn won’t have time to absorb the water. The goal after aeration is to keep your lawn moist without oversaturating the soil. … Be sure not to overwater, as this can cause the soil to shift, potentially negating your hard work!

Should you aerate in the spring?

If you’re looking to aerate your landscape in the spring, the best time would be between March and May. While we recommend aerating your lawn in the fall, spring core aeration may be beneficial if your turf is so compacted it refuses to grow.

Can you overseed without aerating?

To overseed a lawn without aerating, start by mowing it lower than 2 inches and follow it up with raking to remove debris and loosen up the topsoil. Spread the grass seed and then rake over it gently. Fertilize with a starter fertilizer and then water the lawn lightly until the grass grows to a good mowing height.

Do I Overseed After aerating?

Within 48 hours after you aerate you should over seed, fertilize, and water your lawn. The seed, fertilizer, and water will have the best chance to get down into the holes made by the aerator if applied soon after aeration.

Do I overseed or fertilize first?

Stop fertilizing for at least a month before overseeding. The fertilizer makes your grass grow faster, which makes it harder for the new seeds to take hold. Identify your grass type or the type of grass you want to grow, so you can manage it appropriately.

Can you aerate and overseed in the spring?

Overseeding is used for larger areas where the turf is thin, but not bare. The effectiveness of overseeding, whether done in the spring or fall, is enhanced when it is combined with lawn aeration. … It is helpful to core aerate before and after seeding into an existing lawn.

Can you power rake and aerate at the same time?

It is recommended that you power rake your lawn before aerating it. Power raking first will help prepare the grass for aeration. You should power rake at least 5 to 7 days before aerating so that your lawn has time to recover between procedures.

Is power raking good for your lawn?

For cool season grasses, power raking is recommended in early fall or spring. Warm season grasses are better power raked in late spring to early summer. Because power raking does damage some healthy grass, it is important to power rake with enough growing season left for your lawn to recover.

Does a Dethatcher aerate?

They both serve to help key nutrients like fertilizer, water or oxygen reach your lawn’s root zone so that your grass can continue to grow and thrive. However, aeration results in the breakdown of compacted soil whereas dethatching removes layers of thatch, or dead grass and other debris, from the top of the soil.

How do I fix a bumpy lawn?

How to Fix a Bumpy Lawn

Set the lawn mower to a low or short setting, so the cut grass will be extremely short. …
Rake the lawn with a garden rake to remove thatch, a layer of living and dead plant matter directly on top of the soil. …
Apply scoops of fresh topsoil to low areas of the lawn using a shovel.

Can you walk on lawn after aeration?

You can’t walk on the lawn after aeration because the seeds and fertilizer need time to settle, and the soil could get too compact. Walking or mowing on a freshly-aerated lawn can prevent the seeds from sprouting and the soil from getting enough oxygen and nutrients.

When should I Dethatch my lawn?

Dethatch the Lawn

For northern grass the best time to dethatch your entire lawn is in late summer to early fall when the grass is actively growing. For southern grasses, dethatch in late spring. In early spring, and for small areas, use a thatching rake, which is a sharp-tined rake that rips the thatch out of the lawn.

How much does TruGreen aeration cost?

This gives your lawn the nutrients that it needs to grow strong and healthy. The cost of a TruGreen aeration treatment can cost anything from 200 dollars to 450 dollars depending on the size of your lawn, whether fertilizer is applied at the same time and if so what type and how much of it is required.

Is TruGreen any good?

Overall, we give TruGreen a score of 97 out of 100. We believe it’s the best lawn care company in the industry.

Why do they poke holes in grass?

Aeration involves perforating the soil with small holes to allow air, water and nutrients to penetrate the grass roots. This helps the roots grow deeply and produce a stronger, more vigorous lawn. The main reason for aerating is to alleviate soil compaction.

How far apart should holes be when aerating lawn?

Make sure you’re aerating the entire lawn. You’ll also want to space the holes evenly, about three to four inches apart. You may need to make several passes to achieve the right spacing. Stay off the lawn for a few days afterward.

How soon can I mow after overseeding?

Ideally, you should hold off on mowing your lawn until at least 2 to 3 weeks after overseeding. This will give your new, fragile grass roots a chance to settle. Mowing before your roots settle may exert pressure on your new roots. Timing is crucial during this process and patience is key.

How long do aeration holes last?

While aeration itself can take just a couple of hours, depending on the size of your commercial property, plugs typically break down in about two weeks.

How do I prepare for aeration?

Preparing for Aeration

Can I mow after aeration and overseeding?

You mow too soon.

After you lay down your seedlings, they’ll need time and the right environmental protection to grow. They’ll need to acclimate and set roots before the first mow, so during the first two to four weeks post aerating and overseeding, don’t mow.

Can I aerate my lawn in the summer?

Warm weather grasses should be aerated when the weather begins to warm. This means that aeration should occur between late spring and through the summer. Anytime during this season will help your lawn, as long as it is not during heat waves or drought.